throopw@rtp47.UUCP (Wayne Throop) (05/18/85)
Having read many postings which attempt to show how the "entropy
must increase" rule of thermodynamics conflicts with evolution, I come
to the conclusion that there is no conflict.
The argument as I understand it is this:
- Evolution requires simple things to become more complicated with the
intervention of only fairly-well-understood "natural" forces.
- The second law of thermodyamics (or isomorphs of this law in
information theory) states that closed systems tend to become "less
ordered" with time.
- Since the universe is a closed system, a conflict exists.
The first two points seem straightforward enough, but they fail to
support the third point, because Earth is not a closed system.
Some folks supporting evolution have argued that the problem with the
thermodynamic refutation is in the applicability of "entropy" or "order"
to the field of biology. This does not seem to be the case, and folks
attacking evolution rightly point this out at length.
There is no doubt that the thermodynamic refuation is a powerful
argument in cosmology, and in other areas where one cannot reasonably
claim that the system under consideration (the universe, for example) is
open (since the universe BY DEFINITION (in most definitions) is closed).
Therefore, if you want to use this argument in a discussion of cosmology
or cosmogeny, you are well founded. But to use it in discussions of
biogeny or evolution is improper, since these fields assume that the
universe already exists as a closed system that is not in equilibrium,
(and it manifestly is NOT in equilibrium) and make no comment on how it
got there. The system they are concerned with is Earth, which is
clearly an open system.
Some attackers of evolution try to rescue the argument, saying that even
in open systems things only increase in order by design (or intent or
other phrase with similar meaning). These arguments are simply wrong.
There were many examples posted of increasing order in natural systems
when there is a driving energy flow. Most of these deal with water
freezing or evaporating, but it doesn't take much trouble to come up
with dozens of non-watery examples, some of which boggle the mind.
Thermodynamics and information theory simply do not conflict with
evolutionary theory.
--
Wayne Throop at Data General, RTP, NC
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