Faith-Based Evolution (a meteorologist looks at ID and "evolutionism")

Tech Central Station ^ | 08/08/2005 | Roy W. Spencer

[Right Wing Professor]

Well I have observed them myself at day and night at fairly close range, less than 200 feet away with plain eye sight and with 10X50 field glasses.

I watched one hunt pheasants from our deck a couple of months ago, in plain daylight. He took off as soon as he saw me. That's one difference already between the coyotes in our area (rural Nebraska) which are shy; and Northeastern coyotes, which IME are much bolder.

The coyote is a very opportunist feeder and he is very adaptable.

None of this rules out genetic adaptation. The wolf and coyote share a recent common ancestor; they still can and do interbreed in the right circumstances. When you look at the difference between a wolf and coyote, particularly eastern Canadian wolves , you're already seeing the effect of evolution. Wolves - near-obligate hunters - are larger and more powerful, with very different behavior. Coyotes, as they relied less of hunting large herbivores, have become smaller. That will continue; the populations that have largely gone over to scavenging will become less shy of humans, evolve dentition that's more characteristic of omnivores and less of carnivores, become smaller, probably less seasonal in their breeding, etc..

Someone asked for a prediction; that's a prediction.

[Junior_G]

Indeed, I was convinced of the intelligent design arguments based upon the science alone.

That's like being convinced to go out and kill an old lady based on the teachings of the bible alone.

[mordo]

He took off as soon as he saw me.

Well see, now you think because you got saw by a coyote & coyote saw you and ran off, then coyotes that don't run off aren't shy. The coyotes I talk about haven't seen me.

And now your example (the coyotes adaptation) does not rule out genetic adaptation where as before it was evidence for genetic adaptation.
Its getting to mushy around here.

Yes someone asked 2 questions

1.What's the current rate of evolution?
2.What can we expect the current evolutionary model to yield in the next 1000 years?

Question 1 never got answered.
Question 2 answered with 6 examples and at least 1/6 or 15% of that on very shaky genetic adaptable coyote hypothesis evidence.
For this I find the evidences you included for your current evolutionary model suspect.

[Right Wing Professor]

Question 1 never got answered.

Because it's a dumb question. It depends on the organisms. Bacteria can evolve in a day. Elephants take millenia.

Question 2 answered with 6 examples and at least 1/6 or 15% of that on very shaky genetic adaptable coyote hypothesis evidence.

It was a prediction, not evidence. Come back in 1000 years and tell me I was wrong ;-)

[mordo]

You predicted 6 things, one of them that coyotes adapt to eating garbage over deer.

I said Coyote is very adaptable, is opportunistic and will eat what is readily available.

Thats where you made the case for your coyote example being genetic adaptation. Thats when it became some of your evidence. It is then both for you.

I predict that the coyote of the future will be more like the coyote he is then than he is now, and genetically he'll still be a coyote too.

And no one can say I'm wrong either. Or they can but Mordo is laughing at them.