10/14/1998 - 2359

Darwin's Black Box

USA (VNN) - The Biochemical Challenge to Evolution

A book by Michael J. Behe

From The Publisher:
Virtually all serious scientists accept the truth of Darwin's theory of evolution. While the fight for its acceptance has been a long and difficult one, after a century of struggle among the cognoscenti the battle is over. Biologists are now confident that their remaining questions, such as how life on Earth began, or how the Cambrian explosion could have produced so many new species in such a short time, will be found to have Darwinian answers. They, like most of the rest of us, accept Darwin's theory to be true.

But should we? What would happen if we found something that radically challenged the now-accepted wisdom? In Darwin's Black Box, Michael Behe argues that evidence of evolution's limits has been right under our noses -- but it is so small that we have only recently been able to see it. The field of biochemistry, begun when Watson and Crick discovered the double-helical shape of DNA, has unlocked the secrets of the cell. There, biochemists have unexpectedly discovered a world of Lilliputian complexity. As Behe engagingly demonstrates, using the examples of vision, bloodclotting, cellular transport, and more, the biochemical world comprises an arsenal of chemical machines, made up of finely calibrated, interdependent parts. For Darwinian evolution to be true, there must have been a series of mutations, each of which produced its own working machine, that led to the complexity we can now see. The more complex and interdependent each machine's parts are shown to be, the harder it is to envision Darwin's gradualistic paths, Behe surveys the professional science literature and shows that it is completely silent on the subject, stymied by the elegance of the foundation of life. Could it be that there is some greater force at work?

Michael Behe is not a creationist. He believes in the scientific method, and he does not look to religious dogma for answers to these questions. But he argues persuasively that biochemical machines must have been designed -- either by God, or by some other higher intelligence. For decades science has been frustrated, trying to reconcile the astonishing discoveries of modern biochemistry to a nineteenth-century theory that cannot accommodate them. With the publication of Darwin's Black Box, it is time for scientists to allow themselves to consider exciting new possibilities, and for the rest of us to watch closely.

Reviews:

From Publisher's Weekly:
Charles Darwin's theory of life's evolution through natural selection and random mutation fails to account for the origin of astonishingly complex biomolecular systems, argues Behe, associate professor of biochemistry at Lehigh University. In this spirited, witty critique of neo-Darwinian thinking, he focuses on five phenomena: blood clotting; cilia, oar-like bundles of fibers; the human immune system; transport of materials within the cell; and the synthesis of nucleotides, building blocks of DNA. In each case, he finds systems that are irreducibly complexno gradual, step-by-step, Darwinian route led to their creation. As an alternative explanation, Behe infers that complex biochemical systems (i.e., life) were designed by an intelligent agent, whether God, extraterrestrials or a universal force. He notes that Francis Crick, co-discoverer of DNA's double-helix structure, proposed that life began when aliens from another planet sent a rocket ship containing spores to seed Earth. Perhaps Behe's plea for incorporating a "theory of intelligent design" into mainstream biology will spark interest. Illustrated. Translation and U.K. rights: Simon & Schuster. (Aug.)

From Library Journal:
Behe (biochemistry, Lehigh) argues that the biochemical basis of complex life could not have developed through gradual evolutionary change because too many dependent variables would have had to have been altered simultaneously. Through explanations of the functions of the eye, blood clotting, and the immune system, he sets out to argue against evolution as a sole explanation for their existence. Behe doesn't call on religion to support his thesis. Rather, he explores the scientific literature for some of the alternatives to evolution and includes his own support for life by design at the end of the text. The importance of this controversial work is in the questions it raises about the primacy of evolution as the sole creator of life. Recommended for all libraries concerned with evolution.Eric D. Albright, Galter Health Sciences Lib., Northwestern Univ., Chicago

From James A. Shapiro - National Review:
Is this book a serious critique of orthodox evolutionary theory? Or is ita misguided attempt to bring religion back into biology? Unfortunately, the answer to both questions is yes. Darwin's Black Box starts with the promise oftaking us in useful new directions, but it ultimately disappoints the seriousstudent of evolution by rehashing sterile disputes. . . . {The book} has the merit of showing us that evolution remains a mystery. . . . Where {it} undermines itself is in abandoning the effort to treat the question of intelligent design within science's own ongoing evolution. Professor Behe unfortunately expresses a static view of science.

From Andrew Pomiankowski - New Scientist:
Behe is good at exposing the paucity of evolutionary thought in the fieldof biochemistry. But in Darwin's Black Box, he reveals that he is also part of the problem, falling back on the old, limp idea of 'design'. He takes irreducible complexity as a statement of fact, rather than an admission of ignorance, claiming that the 'purposeful arrangement' of biochemical parts must be the result of an intelligent designer. So what we have here is just the latest,and no doubt not the last, attempt to put God back into nature. But it is anold blind alley. To understand molecular design, we need a biochemical account of evolution. . . . You can read {the book} to tell you what is wrong with biochemistry. Behe is also very good at making biochemistry easy to understand. But don't be fooled by his claim that molecular systems are irreducibly complex, or that a supernatural designer is needed.