Growing Scientific Evidence Supporting Evolution

Main Category: Biology / Biochemistry
Also Included In: Medical Students / Training;  Genetics
Article Date: 12 Jan 2008 - 5:00 PDT

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The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) and Institute of Medicine (IOM) have released SCIENCE, EVOLUTION, AND CREATIONISM, a book designed to give the public a comprehensive and up-to-date picture of the current scientific understanding of evolution and its importance in the science classroom. Recent advances in science and medicine, along with an abundance of observations and experiments over the past 150 years, have reinforced evolution's role as the central organizing principle of modern biology, said the committee that wrote the book.

"SCIENCE, EVOLUTION, AND CREATIONISM provides the public with coherent explanations and concrete examples of the science of evolution," said NAS President Ralph Cicerone. "The study of evolution remains one of the most active, robust, and useful fields in science."

"Understanding evolution is essential to identifying and treating disease," said Harvey Fineberg, president of IOM. "For example, the SARS virus evolved from an ancestor virus that was discovered by DNA sequencing. Learning about SARS' genetic similarities and mutations has helped scientists understand how the virus evolved. This kind of knowledge can help us anticipate and contain infections that emerge in the future."

DNA sequencing and molecular biology have provided a wealth of information about evolutionary relationships among species. As existing infectious agents evolve into new and more dangerous forms, scientists track the changes so they can detect, treat, and vaccinate to prevent the spread of disease.

Biological evolution refers to changes in the traits of populations of organisms, usually over multiple generations. One recent example highlighted in the book is the 2004 fossil discovery in Canada of fish with "intermediate" features -- four finlike legs -- that allowed the creature to pull itself through shallow water onto land. Scientists around the world cite this evidence as an important discovery in identifying the transition from ocean-dwelling creatures to land animals. By understanding and employing the principles of evolution, the discoverers of this fossil focused their search on layers of the Earth that are approximately 375 million years old and in a region that would have been much warmer during that period. Evolution not only best explains the biodiversity on Earth, it also helps scientists predict what they are likely to discover in the future.

Over very long periods of time, the same processes that enable evolution to occur within species also can result in the appearance of new species. The formation of a new species generally takes place when one subgroup within a species mates for an extended period largely within that subgroup, often following geographical separation from other members of the species. If such reproductive isolation continues, members of the subgroup may no longer respond to courtship from members of the original population. Eventually, genetic changes become so substantial that members of different subgroups can no longer produce viable offspring. In this way, new species can continually "bud off" of existing species.

Despite the overwhelming evidence supporting evolution, opponents have repeatedly tried to introduce nonscientific views into public school science classes through the teaching of various forms of creationism or intelligent design. In 2005, a federal judge in Dover, Pennsylvania, concluded that the teaching of intelligent design is unconstitutional because it is based on religious conviction, not science (Kitzmiller et al. v. Dover Area School District). NAS and IOM strongly maintain that only scientifically based explanations and evidence for the diversity of life should be included in public school science courses. "Teaching creationist ideas in science class confuses students about what constitutes science and what does not," the committee stated.

"As SCIENCE, EVOLUTION, AND CREATIONISM makes clear, the evidence for evolution can be fully compatible with religious faith. Science and religion are different ways of understanding the world. Needlessly placing them in opposition reduces the potential of each to contribute to a better future," the book says.

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SCIENCE, EVOLUTION, AND CREATIONISM is the third edition of a publication first issued in 1984 and updated in 1999. The current book was published jointly by the National Academy of Sciences and Institute of Medicine, and written by a committee chaired by Francisco Ayala, Donald Bren Professor of Biological Sciences, department of ecology and evolutionary biology, University of California, Irvine, and author of several books on science and religion. A committee roster follows.

The book was funded by the NAS, IOM, the Christian A. Johnson Endeavor Foundation, the Biotechnology Institute, and the Coalition of Scientific Societies.

The National Academy of Sciences is an independent society of scientists, elected by their peers for outstanding contributions to their field, with a mandate from Congress since 1863 to advise the federal government on issues of science and technology. The Institute of Medicine was created in 1970 by the NAS to provide science-based advice on matters of biomedical science, medicine, and health.

[This news release and book are available at http://national-academies.org/]

NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES INSTITUTE OF MEDICINE

Committee on Revising Science and Creationism: A View from the National Academy of Sciences
Francisco J. Ayala (chair) 1
Donald Bren Professor of Biological Sciences
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
University of California
Irvine

Bruce Alberts1
Professor
Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics
University of California
San Francisco

May R. Berenbaum1
Swanlund Professor of Entomology
Department of Entomology
University of Illinois
Urbana-Champaign

Betty A. Carvellas Science Instructor Essex Junction High School (retired) Essex Junction, Vt.
M.T. Clegg1
Donald Bren Professor of Biological Sciences
Department of Ecology and Evolution
University of California
Irvine

G. Brent Dalrymple1
Professor and Dean Emeritus
Oregon State University
Corvallis

Robert M. Hazen
Staff Scientist
Carnegie Institution of Washington
Washington, D.C.

Toby Horn
Co-Director
Carnegie Academy for Science Education
Carnegie Institution of Washington
Washington, D.C.

Nancy A. Moran1
Regents' Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
University of Arizona
Tucson

Gilbert S. Omenn2
Professor of Medicine, Genetics, and Public Health
Center for Computational Medicine and Biology
University of Michigan Medical School
Ann Arbor

Robert T. Pennock
Professor
Department of Philosophy
Lyman Briggs School of Science
Michigan State University
East Lansing

Peter H. Raven1
Director
Missouri Botanical Garden
St. Louis

Barbara A. Schaal1
Spencer T. Olin Professor of Biology
Department of Biology
Washington University
St. Louis

Neil de Grasse Tyson
Visiting Research Scientist
Princeton University Observatory
Princeton, N.J.

Holly Wichman
Professor
Department of Biological Sciences
University of Idaho
Moscow

NATIONAL ACADEMY STAFF

Jay B. Labov
Study Director

1 Member, National Academy of Sciences
2 Member, Institute of Medicine

Source: Maureen O'Leary
The National Academies

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