January 8, 2010
Another Problem for the Evolution Theory
Scientists determine four-legged creatures "emerged" far earlier
than previously thought.
Another Problem for the Evolution Theory
Scientists determine four-legged creatures "emerged" far earlier
than previously thought.
SUMMARY: The first vertebrates to walk on earth "emerged from the sea"
almost 20 million years earlier than previously thought, say scientists after
discovering footprints of an 8-foot-long prehistoric creature. Dozens of the
"395-million-year-old" fossil footprints were recently discovered in a former
lagoon in southeastern Poland.
The animals making the footprints were tetrapods, animals with backbones
and four limbs. They could "rewrite the history of when, where, and why fish
evolved limbs and first walked onto land, the study says."
The footprints vary in size, up to 10 inches wide, indicating they were made
by flat-bodied, lizard-like creatures as large as 8.2 feet in length. Discovered
in an abandoned mountain quarry, the tracks suggest tetrapods were on earth
"18 million years earlier" than previously indicated by the fossil record and
even "10 million years earlier" then the oldest known elpistostegids, the widely
considered transitional forms between fish and tetrapods.
Per Ahlberg, a paleontologist from Sweden, who led the new research tried to
explain this discrepancy by saying it is not uncommon for an animal to live
alongside its evolutionary successors.
The finding also suggests that “fins-to-limbs” evolution occurred in a lagoon
environment instead of a seasonally flooded forest, as earlier finds had
indicated. The regular coming and going of the tides would have helped the
“ancestors” of tetrapods to have easy access to marine animals stranded at
low tide and have helped the tetrapod ancestors to “find their legs.”
The new tetrapod finding "could lead to significant shifts in our knowledge of
the timing and ecological setting of early tetrapod evolution," said
paleontologist Ted Daeschle, who added, however, that tracks and trackways
are notoriously difficult to interpret “with full confidence.” He’s awaiting more
evidence before abandoning existing explanations.
(Picture of Darwin fish from Wikimedia Commons.)
To read the entire article, click on this link to the NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC.
COMMENT: If such a potentially major rewriting of evolutionary history were
such a rare event, it probably wouldn’t mean a whole lot to the integrity of the
theory of evolution. However, such stories have become so common, they
ought to be making many evolutionists feel quite uneasy by now.
Some examples from just the past few months: “58-million-year-old” plant
fossils that show no evidence of evolution; amber droplets that are “200-
million-years too old”; reptiles “learning to walk” much sooner than previously
thought; birds in existence before their alleged dinosaur ancestors.
Scientist Ahlberg tried to explain how the supposed ancestors of tetrapods, the
elpistostegids, could still have been around when the four-legged creatures
were prospering. His explanation is logical to a point. Parents can still be
around alongside their children for many years. But there was no explanation
in this report how a “child” could be 10 million years older than his “parents.”
What nature tells us is just what the Bible tells us. Insects, fish, birds, reptiles,
mammals, humans--all kinds of living creatures--have been around since the
beginning of time. Biblical creationists do not need to constantly rewrite the
history of the world with every new discovery. And we never need to rewrite
the end of time either. The Bible says it will all come to a flaming end one day,
but happily for believers in Jesus as Savior, a peaceful and joyful end.
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QUESTION OF THE DAY
What is the fastest fish?
The sailfish (picture of sailfish from Wikipedia). Although it is difficult to
measure the swimming speed of large fish in the wild, the cosmopolitan sailfish
(Istiophorus platypterus) is considered by many experts to be the fastest fish in
the world. It has been clocked at speeds of 110 km/h (68 mph). The average
fish would be hard-pressed to reach 20 km/h (12 mph).
Source: Usefultrivia.com
**************************************************************************************
NOTE ON VISITOR COMMENTS: Visitor comments are invited including
those containing alternate views. However, comments containing profanity or
advertisements will not be published. After posting a comment, please allow
several hours for it to appear on the blog.
**************************************************************************************
almost 20 million years earlier than previously thought, say scientists after
discovering footprints of an 8-foot-long prehistoric creature. Dozens of the
"395-million-year-old" fossil footprints were recently discovered in a former
lagoon in southeastern Poland.
The animals making the footprints were tetrapods, animals with backbones
and four limbs. They could "rewrite the history of when, where, and why fish
evolved limbs and first walked onto land, the study says."
The footprints vary in size, up to 10 inches wide, indicating they were made
by flat-bodied, lizard-like creatures as large as 8.2 feet in length. Discovered
in an abandoned mountain quarry, the tracks suggest tetrapods were on earth
"18 million years earlier" than previously indicated by the fossil record and
even "10 million years earlier" then the oldest known elpistostegids, the widely
considered transitional forms between fish and tetrapods.
Per Ahlberg, a paleontologist from Sweden, who led the new research tried to
explain this discrepancy by saying it is not uncommon for an animal to live
alongside its evolutionary successors.
The finding also suggests that “fins-to-limbs” evolution occurred in a lagoon
environment instead of a seasonally flooded forest, as earlier finds had
indicated. The regular coming and going of the tides would have helped the
“ancestors” of tetrapods to have easy access to marine animals stranded at
low tide and have helped the tetrapod ancestors to “find their legs.”
The new tetrapod finding "could lead to significant shifts in our knowledge of
the timing and ecological setting of early tetrapod evolution," said
paleontologist Ted Daeschle, who added, however, that tracks and trackways
are notoriously difficult to interpret “with full confidence.” He’s awaiting more
evidence before abandoning existing explanations.
(Picture of Darwin fish from Wikimedia Commons.)
To read the entire article, click on this link to the NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC.
COMMENT: If such a potentially major rewriting of evolutionary history were
such a rare event, it probably wouldn’t mean a whole lot to the integrity of the
theory of evolution. However, such stories have become so common, they
ought to be making many evolutionists feel quite uneasy by now.
Some examples from just the past few months: “58-million-year-old” plant
fossils that show no evidence of evolution; amber droplets that are “200-
million-years too old”; reptiles “learning to walk” much sooner than previously
thought; birds in existence before their alleged dinosaur ancestors.
Scientist Ahlberg tried to explain how the supposed ancestors of tetrapods, the
elpistostegids, could still have been around when the four-legged creatures
were prospering. His explanation is logical to a point. Parents can still be
around alongside their children for many years. But there was no explanation
in this report how a “child” could be 10 million years older than his “parents.”
What nature tells us is just what the Bible tells us. Insects, fish, birds, reptiles,
mammals, humans--all kinds of living creatures--have been around since the
beginning of time. Biblical creationists do not need to constantly rewrite the
history of the world with every new discovery. And we never need to rewrite
the end of time either. The Bible says it will all come to a flaming end one day,
but happily for believers in Jesus as Savior, a peaceful and joyful end.
**************************************************************************************
Want to be automatically notified each time there is a new post? Just e-mail
your request to [admin@lutheranscience.org].
**************************************************************************************
QUESTION OF THE DAY
What is the fastest fish?
The sailfish (picture of sailfish from Wikipedia). Although it is difficult to
measure the swimming speed of large fish in the wild, the cosmopolitan sailfish
(Istiophorus platypterus) is considered by many experts to be the fastest fish in
the world. It has been clocked at speeds of 110 km/h (68 mph). The average
fish would be hard-pressed to reach 20 km/h (12 mph).
Source: Usefultrivia.com
**************************************************************************************
NOTE ON VISITOR COMMENTS: Visitor comments are invited including
those containing alternate views. However, comments containing profanity or
advertisements will not be published. After posting a comment, please allow
several hours for it to appear on the blog.
**************************************************************************************
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| LSI stands for the Lutheran Science Institute, an organization of WELS and ELS Lutherans interested in science and health issues with a special emphasis on the creation and evolution controversy. This blog's purpose is to search the Internet to find articles of interest to Christians. Views expressed are those of the author (Warren Krug) and are not necessarily those of the Lutheran Science Institute, Inc. |
