Tag: living systems

Cell membrane, lipid bilayer, digital illustration of a diffusion of liquid molecules through cell membrane, microscopic view of a cell membrane, biology background, medical background

^{Type
post

Author
Howard Glicksman

Date
August 7, 2023

Tagged
cellular life, CELS conference, chemical balance, chemical evolution, Conference on Engineering in Living Systems, Darwinian Evolution, Darwinian gradualism, diffusion, engineer, engineering, Evolution, friction, heat transfer, human death, human life, Intelligent Design, living systems, Molecular Machines, Natural Selection, osmosis, potassium, sodium pumps, survival}

The Innovative Cellular Engineering That Keeps Us Alive

_{Howard Glicksman

August 7, 2023

Uncategorized}

When left to their own devices, the laws of nature tend toward death, not life. So what does it take for life to exist? On this ID The Future, host Eric Anderson talks with physician Howard Glicksman about some of the remarkable engineering challenges that have to be solved to produce and maintain living organisms such as ourselves. Glicksman is co-author with systems engineer Steve Laufmann of the recent book Your Designed Body, an exploration of the extraordinary system of systems that encompasses thousands of ingenious and interdependent engineering solutions to keep us alive and ticking. In the "just so" stories of the Darwinian narrative, these engineering solutions simply evolved. They emerged and got conserved. Voila! But in this chat, Anderson and Glicksman explain that it takes more than the laws of nature to keep us from dying. "Chemicals on their own don't have any desire or tendency to turn into living organisms," says Anderson. "They tend to degrade, they tend to break down, they tend to go back to their basic constituents." Glicksman and Anderson discuss examples, including how the human body handles friction, heat transfer, and the crucial task of maintaining chemical balance at the cellular level. And where does all this essential innovation come from? Glicksman points to an intelligent cause that transcends matter and energy. Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
Eric H. Anderson

Date
June 26, 2023

Tagged
adaptation, biology, CELS conference, Charles Darwin, Darwinian Evolution, Darwinism, engineered systems, engineering, engineering principles, Evolution, finch beaks, fitness landscape, function, living systems, macroevolution, Microevolution, mutations, Natural Selection, peppered moths, random mutations}

Is Adaptation Actually a Fight to Stay the Same?

_{Eric H. Anderson

June 26, 2023

Uncategorized}

On this ID The Future, host Casey Luskin talks with Eric Anderson on location at this year's Conference on Engineering and Living Systems (CELS). The two discuss an intriguing new engineering-based model of bounded adaptation that could dramatically change how we view small-scale evolutionary changes within populations of organisms. In presenting his argument for natural selection, Charles Darwin pointed to small changes like finch beak size and peppered moth color as visible evidence of an unguided evolutionary process at work. Many have adopted this perspective, quick to grant the Darwinian mechanism credit for micro, if not macro, evolution. But Anderson and other attendees of the CELS conference are starting to promote a different view. "We need to stop saying organisms are partly designed," says Anderson. "We need to view them as deeply designed and purposeful, active and engaged in their environments, and capable of adapting within their operating parameters." Tune in to get a fascinating glimpse of this novel approach to biology. Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
Michael Denton

Date
February 21, 2012

Tagged
__edited, adaptation, body plans, Evolution: a Theory in Crisis, insects, living systems, Nature's Destiny}

Dr. Michael Denton on Predetermined Body Plans and Primal Patterns in Nature

_{Michael Denton

February 21, 2012

Uncategorized}

On this episode of ID The Future, medical geneticist Dr. Michael Denton discusses the implications of insect body plans as predetermined types rather than collections of adaptations. Denton questions the ability of a Darwinian process to account for the patterns found in living systems. Denton suggests that, while there are countless variations or “adaptive masks” present in organisms, they all extend from original “primal patterns.” Tune in to hear this fascinating discussion! Dr. Denton is the author of Evolution: A Theory in Crisis and Nature’s Destiny: How the Laws of Biology Reveal Purpose in the Universe.