Is Evolution Really Standing Up to Science?

"Wow," the scientist being interviewed remarked, when the interviewer showed him a diagram of fossils, creatures, apes, and humans. "Quite a detailed and fascinating chart. I definitely recognize the creatures here: this is a pterosaur, this is a Neanderthal, this is a chimpanzee—they are drawn accurately. The only thing I have absolutely no idea about is those stylized arrows between the creatures. I have no idea where those arrows were discovered, or how the idea they embody could even make sense."

This was David Berlinski, an American Jew and molecular biologist who has written many science books. His expertise is in the very field evolution deals with—molecular biology—and that is exactly what infuriates him: all kinds of explanations that have no basis whatsoever, and in his view cannot even be possible, appearing in textbooks as though they were facts.

At the beginning of the interview, he notes that he allows himself to speak freely and tell the truth about these theories because he does not hold an academic position. He knows very well that if he did have such a position, he would have to "toe the line" in order to protect it.

That is also why he allowed himself to give his book against evolution the sharp title: "The Devil’s Delusion: Atheism and Its Scientific Pretensions." In the book, he reviews the limits of science and presents what he sees as the arrogance of those who claim that atheistic science is the ultimate tool for understanding the world around us. "In the 21st century, Western science has become our church, the place where we deposit our security and our trust," he writes.

The whole story of evolution is not science, Berlinski says in the interview. How do people have the nerve to present it as though it were a fact, as though it were a scientific conclusion? It’s a story that cannot be verified, and is not even possible. A story, a story, a story—they turn it into a diagram and make it look like science.

In response to the question of whether he can explain the connection between evolution and science, Berlinski says: "With Newton’s laws of gravity, for example, he was able to calculate the force between the sun and the earth, and with the formulas he developed he was able to predict precisely the paths of the earth and Mars. But we have nothing like that in the theory of evolution. What is missing is a clear demonstration that the mechanism of random changes and natural selection can allow the development of this level of complexity. From the standpoint of serious science, without such demonstrations you have no idea whether these mechanisms are capable of what is being attributed to them."

Not only is there no precise formula here, Berlinski says. They keep trying to create a computer model, a simulation—not one that proves it, only one that explains how it could theoretically be possible—but there has been no success in this area.

"In the serious sciences, for example in general relativity or quantum mechanics, I can write software using the relevant equations and then test their implications. I look at all the genetic algorithms. I try to run them myself, and it turns out that without a tremendous amount of special manipulation, the computer cannot produce anything realistic when it relies on Darwinian mechanisms."

It simply does not work.

Another point Berlinski discusses is findings from laboratory research. "If we are talking about random changes and natural selection, we should already have begun doing manipulations on organisms in laboratories. But bacteria, for example, no matter what we do to them, still remain bacteria. Their basic nature does not change. I think these points need to be emphasized and examined honestly and openly," he says, "but that has never been done."

"In your book, you describe science as the church of the 21st century. What do you mean by that?" the interviewer asks him, and Berlinski replies: "I can think of several parallels. For example, scientific theories are often treated like sacred relics in a church—they are cherished when discovered, and then worshipped accordingly. And if we look at the people themselves, many senior scientists are careful to preserve their priestly status."

A little humility, an honest acknowledgment of the truth, and you discover there is something beyond.