In the clues section, we look for clues to the answers to the big questions of God and meaning in life. Each topic discusses the facts and arguments believers and unbelievers use to support their viewpoint - a world of philosophy and ideas in just a few pages!
- clues
- Summary page: hints of another dimension
- truth
- Can we ever know that something is true?
- belief systems
- 4 types of belief systems.
- the universe
- Does there have to be a reason for everything?
- it looks like it was designed
- Fundamental universal laws which are finely tuned for life.
- a rare earth?
- How our Earth is just right for life.
- life
- Are we created or evolved, or both?
- science, faith and rnb
- How rnb has approached these questions.
- evolution and design
- Background information on evolution & intelligent design.
- people
- Are human beings special, or just advanced animals? (Is there anybody in there?)
- are our brains like computers?
- Neuroscience, human-ness & free will.
- right and wrong
- Are some things truly right or wrong?
- evil
- Does an evil world prove there can be no God?
- road tests
- How do different beliefs work out in practice?
- two stories
- Choosing between the two stories that explain everything.
discoveries about the nature of life
- Charles Darwin's "The Origin of Species" (Wikipedia)
- Watson & Crick's discovery of the structure of DNA - Wikipedia.
- The Human Genome project to "map" human genes and DNA.
the evolution of life
General
- Evolution - Wikipedia
- Evolution. Francisco Ayala, Professor of Biological Sciences and Professor of Philosophy, University of Calfornia.
- Evolution: Fact and Theory. Richard E. Lenski, Professor of Microbial Ecology, Michigan State University.
- Understanding Evolution. University of California.
- Introduction to Evolution 1: Darwinism. Michael A. Dexter.
- American Scientific Affiliate - website of an organisation of christian scientists.
- Dissent From Darwin "Goes Global" as Over 600 Scientists From Around the World Express Their Doubts About Darwin's Theory. Press release by Discovery Institute, 2006.
the fossil record
- Fossil. Wikipedia.
- Gaps in the fossil record: a case study. David A Thomas, Skeptical Inquirer.
- Taxonomy, Transitional Forms, and the Fossil Record. Keith B. Miller, Kansas State University.
- Creationist claims. Mark Isaac, The TalkOrigins Archive.
- The Fossil record. Truth in Science - written from an Intelligent Design viewpoint.
- Transitional vertebrate fossils. Kathleen Hunt
- Gaps in the fossil record. Fredric Rice, the Skeptic Tank.
the cambrian explosion
- Cambrian explosion. Wikipedia.
- Phylum Level Evolution. Glenn R. Morton.
- The Precambrian to Cambrian Fossil Record and Transitional Forms. Keith B. Miller, Kansas State University.
- The Scientific Controversy Over the Cambrian Explosion. Discovery Institute.
transition processes
- Answering the Biochemical Argument from Design. Kenneth R. Miller, Brown University.
- The Flagellum Unspun: the Collapse of "Irreducible Complexity". Kenneth R. Miller, Brown University.
- Still spinning just fine: a response to Ken Miller. William A. Dembski, Baylor University, Texas.
- Evolution of the eye. Dan-Erik Nilsson.
the origin of life
- Life. Wikipedia.
- The origin and early definition of life. W Ford Doolittle, Biochemistry Professor, Dalhousie University, Canada.
- Origin and definition of life. Michael Pidwirny, University of British Columbia.
- The origin of life on the earth. Leslie Orgel, The Salk Institute for Biological Studies, California.
- The Origin of Life. Albrecht Moritz.
- How Did It All Begin? The Self-Assembly of Organic Molecules and the Origin of Cellular Life. David W. Deamer, University of California.
"how do biologists explain its emergence from the prebiotic world four billion years ago? The short answer is that they can't, yet. But this question may be a little closer to being answered as new money enters the field, and two new discoveries provide support for two competing models of prebiotic evolution." Richard Robinson, 2005. Jump-Starting a Cellular World: Investigating the Origin of Life, from Soup to Networks.
evolution and faith
- Darwin, Mind and Meaning. Alvin Plantinga, Professor of Philosophy at Notre Dame University.
- Who's afraid of evolutionary biology? James Hannam, Bede's Library.
- Evolution: Free will and punishment and meaning in life. William Provine, Professor of History of Biology, Cornell University.
- The Language of God. Francis Collins (head of the Human Genome project).
- The God Delusion. Richard Dawkins.
Read Dawkins' own summary of his views.
Read a positive review, or more critical reviews by Alvin Plantinga and Ship of Fools.
Or check out the views of Alister McGrath, and his book Dawkins God.
"Darwin's theory of evolution and explanation of design does not include or exclude considerations of divine action in the world any more than astronomy, geology, physics, or chemistry do." Francisco Ayala, Professor of Biological Sciences and Professor of Philosophy, University of Calfornia. Evolution.
intelligent design
- Intelligent Design. Wikipedia.
- Discovery Institute Home Page.
- Intelligent Design? Natural History magazine.
links
- Return to the page you came from.
- Read about evolution, its critics, the alternatives, and how this affects faith, in "evolution and design".
- If you want to think about the implications of evolution for life and faith, go to life and nothing but.
- If you would like to consider what we can learn about the meaning of life from looking around us at the universe and looking within ourselves, go to clues.