Stephen Meyer's book Signature in the Cell is primarily devoted to assessing attempts by materialists to explain the origin of information in life. Over the course of about four pages, he includes a short discussion of a peripherally related topic, the earth's early atmosphere and the likelihood of chemical monomers forming on the early earth. He notes that "[i]n the years following Miller's experiment, however, new geochemical evidence showed that the assumptions Miller had made about the early atmosphere were incorrect" and that a "neutral" atmosphere which is "not friendly[] to the production of amino acids" is more likely." (pp. 224-225) Some critics have claimed that recent research shows that that the Earth's early atmosphere was in fact reducing, and that Meyer's claims do not hold up. Are the critics right?

One critic who has made such arguments is Gary Hurd, an anti-ID blogger with a Ph.D. in anthropology, who in a recent Amazon review argues that Stephen Meyer's book Signature in the Cell is "outdated" because Meyer contends that the earth's early atmosphere was not reducing, and, therefore, would not have readily produced the amino acids needed for life. Hurd also charges that Meyer's book is the result of "self-plagiarism."

A closer examination shows that Hurd's review is an exercise in citation-bluffing.

Continue reading "Citation Bluffs About Earth's Early Atmosphere Dominate Misguided Response to Signature in the Cell" »

 

Now that it's out in paperback, Stephen Meyer's book is getting more attention and a wider audience. Today Professor Anthony J. Sadar has a thoughtful review of Signature in the Cell in the Washington Times, where he writes:
 

In "The Blind Watchmaker," atheist Richard Dawkins proclaimed, "Darwin made it possible to be an intellectually fulfilled atheist." Now, with the paperback release of Stephen C. Meyer's "Signature in the Cell: DNA and the Evidence for Intelligent Design," theists can rejoin with, "Meyer made it possible to be an intellectually fulfilled theist." Indeed, in his book, Mr. Meyer begins the chorus by stating that "as a Christian theist, I find this implication of intelligent design 'intellectually satisfying.' "

 

But, to suppose that "Signature in the Cell" is a book that argues for intelligent design (ID) from a religious or even metaphysical perspective is to suppose badly. For this book makes a strong case for ID as a rigorous scientific argument for the origin of life - at least as rigorous and scientific as any purely materialistic explanation such as neo-Darwinism.
 

Continue reading "Signature in the Cell, A "Wise Defense of Intelligent Design" »