I disagree, we would find a way to explain how the fossils got there or accept that we can't explain everything, but we wouldn't junk the whole theory so quickly.
I disagree, we would find a way to explain how the fossils got there or accept that we can't explain everything, but we wouldn't junk the whole theory so quickly.
The discovery I mentioned would be something like an experimentum crucis. At the very least, it would force a complete revision of the timeline of evolutionary history. Of course, I'm not suggesting that intelligent design would take the place of evolution, just that something quite different from what we now call evolution would be forced upon us.
But, of course, as a matter of general principle, almost nothing is ever neat or simple when dealing with comprehensive scientific theories.