May 2005 Post of the Month: Body Fluid Salinity.

April 2005 Post of the Month: Human and Ape Common Ancestry.

Dino Blood Redux. Over a decade ago Mary Higby Schweitzer began her research career by announcing that she and professor Jack Horner had discovered evidence of blood residues in a Tyrannosaur rex femur. There followed many years of creationists' distortion of those findings which they presented as support for a young Earth that was debunked in Dino Blood and the Young Earth. In April of 2005, Schweitzer and Horner were again at the center of a media circus prompted by their announcement that this time they had discovered blood vessels and identifiable cells. The creationist reaction was immediate. This article reviews these new discoveries, their presentation in the popular media, and the sadly predictable creationist responses.

"Polonium Haloes" Refuted: A Review of "Radioactive Halos in a Radio-Chronological and Cosmological Perspective" by Robert V. Gentry. Professional geologist Tom Bailleul takes a second look at Gentry's claimed polonium haloes, arguing that there is no good evidence they are the result of polonium decay as opposed to any other radioactive isotope, or even that they are caused by radioactivity at all. Gentry is taken to task for selective use of evidence, faulty experiment design, mistakes in geology and physics, and unscientific principles of investigation and argument style.

The Coso Artifact: Mystery from the Depths of Time. The creation 'science' field known as OOPARTS, or "Out Of Place ARTifactS" is a lively area of study with numerous examples. This paper will examine the most popular and least understood specimen, the Coso Artifact.

March 2005 Post of the Month: The Impossibility of Evolution.

Make a Donation. Help keep The TalkOrigins Archive on the web by making a donation to The TalkOrigins Foundation.

The Paleoanthro Weblog: April Fool! The April 1997 issue of Discover magazine had a pretty good April Fool's joke about some Neandertal musical instruments that had supposedly been discovered in Germany. It was an unlikely collection, featuring bagpipes, a tuba, a triangle and a 'xylobone', along with a cave painting of marching musicians. Some creationists, however, didn't get the joke. Jim Foley first reported this in 2000. Now Brad Harrub writing in the "technical journal" of Answers in Genesis has also fallen for the joke.

February 2005 Post of the Month: The Jigsaw.

Young-Earth Creationist Helium Diffusion "Dates": Fallacies Based on Bad Assumptions and Questionable Data. Young-Earth creationists consider the helium diffusion studies of D. Russell Humphreys and others to be one of their greatest achievements in arguing for a 6,000 year old Earth. A geologist shows that these studies are extensively flawed and include: serious miscalculations in their data, sampling the wrong rock type, failing to eliminate possible contamination, using equations that are based on invalid assumptions and relying on questionable data.

January 2005 Post of the Month: How to Listen to an Atheist.

A Response to Bergman. In the misquotes page of Fossil Hominids, Jim Foley documented an erroneous quote by Jerry Bergman in a 1993 article on Nebraska Man in the journal Creation Research Society Quarterly (CRSQ). Bergman has responded, disputing Foley's interpretation, in a new article in the CRSQ: "A misrepresentation by Jim Foley: a correction". Here is Foley's response.

December 2004 Post of the Month: Teaching Biology Without Evolution.

Selman v. Cobb County School District: Amicus Curiae of Several Pro-Evolution Groups. Colorado Citizens for Science and several other pro-science organizations filed this brief in court arguing against the evolution disclaimer required in Cobb County, Georgia science textbooks that discuss evolution.

Selman v. Cobb County School District. The decision of the United States District Court striking down a policy of placing a sticker with a disclaimer on textbooks discussing evolution.

Homo floresiensis: the Hobbit. The Fossil Hominids entry for a new fossil find from Indonesia of dwarf hominids. Its discovers suggest it is descended from Homo erectus.

The Quote Mine Project: Geologic Column Quotes. Another document in this Archive's examination of the evolution quotes used by evolution deniers. This document examines some quotes used by young-earth creationists in their attempt to deny geologic time. Additional new material can be found by checking the Quote Mine Project's What's New Page.

The Quote Mine Project: Or, Lies, Damned Lies and Quote Mines. Nine new quotes used by anti-evolutionists have been added bringing the Project up to a total of 115 examined quotes. This is the resource for examples of creationist misrepresentation via quotation.

Skeletons in Your Closet. A review of creationist Gary Parker's book for kids about human evolution, Skeletons in your Closet. Briefly, this is an awesomely bad book. Anyone reading it will learn nothing useful about any of the considerable number of legitimate hominid fossils, but will pick up an amazing amount of misinformation if they are unfortunate enough to give Parker any credence.

Digit Numbering and Limb Development. Jonathan Sarfati of Answers in Genesis charges that limb development shows that birds are not descended from dinosaurs since the digit order is wrong. And furthermore that frogs could not share a common ancestor with mammals since, he claims, that the hands of mammals and amphibians "develop in a completely different manner." A professional developmental biologist shows why Sarfati is wrong.

Quote Mine Project: Assorted Quotes. The latest addition to the Quote Mine Project which continues to document what is wrong with the quotes that creationists so often use to argue their case.

Piltdown 2003. Paleoanthropologist Chris Stringer writes about the fiftieth anniversary of the uncovering of the Piltdown hoax.

Quote Mine Project: Gould, Eldredge and Punctuated Equilibria Quotes. A look at some quotations used by antievolutionists. This, the latest addition to the Quote Mine Project, brings the total number of examined quotes to over one hundred.

RSS Feeds. A list of RSS feeds to provide easy access to news about creationist activities, evolution, and science.

RSS 2.0 Syndication. The Talk.Origins Archive is now syndicated. RSS allows people to see what is new at this web site without actually surfing to it. The use of the RSS feature requires an RSS reader.

More on Walter Brown's debate offer. Walt Brown has long made an "offer" to debate with a supporter of evolution. Jim Foley, the maintainer of Fossil Hominids: The Evidence for Human Evolution, has a short article on Brown's so-called "offer."

Other Web Sites.

Quote Mine Project: Darwin Quotes. This is batch of quotes of Charles Darwin used by anti-evolutionists with commentary of what is wrong with the quotes. It is part of the Quote Mine Project which deals with dozens of examples of creationist misquoting.

Ancient Molecules and Modern Myths. In Dino-blood and the Young Earth Dr. Gary Hurd debunked false creationist claims that dinosaur blood proved the Earth is young. In this article, he deals with a similiar claim by creationist John R. Baumgardner. Dr. Baumgardner claims that osteocalcin in dinosaur remains could not have survived for millions of years. Dr. Hurd shows why Baumgardner is wrong.

Information on the TalkOrigins Foundation.

Spontaneous Generation and the Origin of Life. Creationists often claim that Louis Pasteur disproved spontaneous generation and hence any naturalistic origin of life. This article shows what Pasteur really demonstrated and gives a history of the subject from early ideas of spontaneous generation to modern ideas about the origin of life.

Genetic Algorithms and Evolutionary Computation. Creationists often argue that evolutionary processes cannot create new information, or that evolution has no practical benefits. This article disproves those claims by describing the explosive growth and widespread applications of genetic algorithms, a computing technique based on principles of biological evolution.

The Panda's Thumb [off site]. A web log of interest to readers of this Archive was recently opened. Those behind it include a number of people involved with this Archive and other sites critical of the anti-evolutionists. Its raison d'être reads:

The Panda's Thumb is dedicated to explaining the theory of evolution, critiquing the claims of the anti-evolution movement, and defending the integrity of science and science education in America and around the world.

Dino-blood and the Young Earth. Answers in Genesis claims that paleontologist Mary Schweitzer found "obvious, fresh-looking blood cells" and traces of blood protein hemoglobin in a Tyrannosaurus rex bone. It further claims that this demonstrates that the dinosaur could not have lived millions of years ago. This essay documents that all these claims are absolutely false. They are the result of selective quoting and misrepresentation of popular science articles.

Wells and Haeckel's Embryos: A Review of Chapter 5 of Icons of Evolution. A biologist reviews the embryo claims of the "intelligent design" proponent Jonathan Wells. Haeckel's incorrect views, gill slits, and how textbooks deal with embryology are discussed.

The Vestigiality of the Human Vermiform Appendix: A Modern Reappraisal. Many anti-evolutionists, and even some medical texts, claim that modern evidence has shown that the human vermiform appendix should no longer be considered a vestigial structure. This article re-examines the case of the appendix in light of recent scientific developments and explains why the appendix is still a valid example of a human vestige.

Citing Scadding (1981): Another Example of Poor Creationist Scholarship. Creationists often quote a paper by Steve Scadding as proof that vestigial structures are not evidence for evolution. Scadding's paper was in error as was quickly pointed out in the same journal by another researcher. Furthermore the creationists misrepresent this twenty-year-old paper. This article is a useful case study of what is wrong with the creationist practice of quote mining.

Harun Yahya and Holocaust Revisionism. In Creation/Evolution Organizations there is a brief mention that Harun Yahya, a creationist from Turkey, is the author of a book whose title translates to The Holocaust Hoax. Since this charge has been disputed by a supporter of Yahya, it is now documented in this response.

Determining Distances to Astronomical Objects. Astronomers can measure distances to objects in the universe whose light took thousands, millions, or even billions of years for their light to reach us. This has obvious implications for those who believe the universe is under ten thousand years old. This article explains how scientists measure distances to various types of astronomical objects and how young-earth creationists deal with large astronomical distances.

An Index to Creationist Claims. A collection of creationist claims which aims to be comprehensive. It includes brief rebuttals and, in many cases, pointers to more information.

The Quote Mine Project: Or, Lies, Damned Lies and Quote Mines. The collecting of quotes to attack evolution is often called "quote mining" and is a very common tactic used by those who wish to deny evolution or modern evolutionary biology. A creationist on the talk.origins newsgroup posted a large collection of such quotes which he copied from a creationist website. This resulted in other participants looking up those quotes. The results, gathered in the Quote Mine Project, show that many of the quotes are blatantly out-of-context.

Frequently Asked Questions and Their Answers. The main Archive FAQ has been updated with new questions and new links.

Wright v. Houston I.S.D. Houston, Texas, students sued to prevent the school district from teaching evolution, believing it infringed their First Amendment rights. The federal courts dismissed the case for failure to state a claim upon which relief could be based.

Daniel v. Waters and Steele v. Waters. These companion court cases from the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals and the Tennessee Supreme Court in 1975 struck down Tennessee's "balanced treatment" law for creationism and evolution.

Supernovae, Supernova Remnants and Young Earth Creationism FAQ: Reply to Jonathan Sarfati. Dave Moore replies to the comments of Jonathan Sarfati of Answers in Genesis attacking Moore's Supernovae, Supernova Remnants and Young Earth Creationism FAQ. In that FAQ, Moore gave an introduction to supernovae and provided a devastating debunking of the supernova remnant claims of creationist Keith Davies. Moore here answers Sarfati and provides additional evidence of the low quality of the astronomy of Davies. Those familiar with the constellation of Orion might find a mistake by Davies amusing.

29+ Evidences for Macroevolution. Creationists continually claim that there is no evidence for macroevolution. This section of the archive provides more than 29 examples, none of which are simply an extrapolation from "microevolution." This update focuses on the evidence for common descent from vestigial structures, a commonly misunderstood concept. More discussion, examples, references, and pictures have also been added to the sections on embryology and atavisms, such as the extensive discussion of the atavistic human tail and the rare findings of modern whales with hind limbs (including pictures!).

Project Steve: Humorous Testing of the Scientific Attitudes Toward "Intelligent Design" Via Scientists Named "Steve". Project Steve is a spoof of the lists of people that evolution deniers use to try to argue that evolution is a "theory in crisis" conducted by the National Center for Science Science Education. It uses humor to eviscerate claims that scientists are abandoning evolutionary biology. In addition to explaining the project, this page also provides many links that document the broad and deep acceptance of common descent by the scientific community.

"Polonium Haloes" Refuted: A Review of "Radioactive Halos in a Radio-Chronological and Cosmological Perspective" by Robert V. Gentry. Professional geologist Tom Bailleul takes a second look at Gentry's claimed polonium haloes, arguing that there is no good evidence they are the result of polonium decay as opposed to any other radioactive isotope, or even that they are caused by radioactivity at all. Gentry is taken to task for selective use of evidence, faulty experiment design, mistakes in geology and physics, and unscientific principles of investigation and argument style. This document is now illustrated and features improved explanations of the ideas involved and of the terms used.

Anatomy and Evolution of the Woodpecker's Tongue. Creationists have often asked us to wonder how a woodpecker's tongue (and hence the woodpecker itself) could have evolved. Many have claimed, erroneously, that a woodpecker's tongue is anchored in the right nostril and not in the back of the beak as in other birds. Thus the transition from non-woodpecker to woodpecker was impossible, or so the logic goes. This article shows, not only that the creationists have gotten their anatomy wrong, but also that a gradual continuum exists between woodpecker and non-woodpecker structures even today.

Lucy's Knee Joint: A Case Study in Creationists' Willingness to Admit Their Errors. A number of creationists have claimed that Donald Johanson, discoverer of the famous Australopithecus afarensis specimen dubbed "Lucy," found her knee joint several kilometers away from the rest of her skeleton. This claim is absolutely false, but that doesn't stop some creationists from making it.

Apolipoprotein AI Mutations and Information: A reply to Answers in Genesis regarding the Apo AI Milano mutation. A common claim by those who deny evolution is that there is no way to evolve an increase in information. The Apo-AIM mutation is a counter example which shows a beneficial mutation with a new function. Answers in Genesis has disputed that this mutation is an increase in information claiming that specificity has been lost. This document shows why Answers in Genesis is wrong.

Metaphors on Trial or, How did the Groundhog Cross the Road?. An examination of the metaphors used by 'Intelligent Design' proponents such as William Dembski and Michael Behe.

Fossil Hominids - The Evidence for Human Evolution. This section of the Talk Origins Archive is intended to provide an overview of the study of human evolution, and of the currently accepted fossil evidence. It also contains a very comprehensive treatment of creationist claims about human evolution. The changes include a new page on Icons of Human Evolution reviewing the human evolution chapter of Icons of Evolution by Jonathan Wells and a short new page on the recently announced OH 65 fossil.

Muller and Mutations. A quote by the Nobel Prize winning biologist Hermann Muller on mutations, which has often been used by evolution deniers, turns out to be inaccurate, misleading, and out-of-date.

Darwin's Precursors and Influences. It is sometimes claimed by those who wish to denigrate the achievements of Charles Darwin that he was little more than a 'serial plagiarist'. This essay aims to show that Darwin, like any scientist, had influences, but that he was honest in his theoretical development. This update corrects some errors and misleading statements of the first edition, and includes images and figures. The main addition is a discussion of the influence of von Baer on Darwin's notion of common descent, and of Haeckel's "recapitulation theory"; and extra information regarding claims for Alfred Wallace's priority.

A Criticism of the ICR's Grand Canyon Dating Project. A critique of the Institute for Creation Research Grand Canyon Dating Project, as proposed and executed by the ICR's Steve Austin. Austin has obtained some bad Rb-Sr isochron dates, though there are several serious questions regarding his methodology. One of the changes is a new link to a creationist "response" by Jonathan Sarfati of Answers in Genesis who clearly did not actually read what he was replying to.

Jerry Bergman and Racism: Replies to Bergman's "Are Jerry Bergman and Henry Morris Racists?" Jim Lippard, Tom McIver, and Richard Trott reply to Bergman's rebuttal of Creationism Implies Racism? and other writings. This document also discusses Dr. Bergman's dismissal from Bowling Green State University.

Added page for Pro-Evolution or Anti-Creationism web sites. The main links page will now have an abridged list of pro-evolution sites.

Added more links including a new links page for miscellaneous links that are relevant origins discussion but are not easily pigeonholed into the preexisting categories. The index page for the Thermodynamics FAQs has had links to off-site resources recently added to it as well.

The Solar FAQ: Solar Neutrinos and Other Solar Oddities. Nuclear fusion is the only process reasonably capable of powering the sun, and one product of this fusion is invisible particles called 'neutrinos'. But why don't we observe as many solar neutrinos as theory would predict? This FAQ has been updated to reflect recent developments including the apparent solving of the solar neutrino problem.

Fossil Hominids - The Evidence for Human Evolution. This section of the Talk Origins Archive is intended to provide an overview of the study of human evolution, and of the currently accepted fossil evidence. It also contains a very comprehensive treatment of creationist claims about human evolution. The changes include a new page on Louis Leakey's views on human evolution and an update of the page on D2700 from Dmanisi, Georgia that now deals with a creationist non-response and the naming of the species Homo georgicus.

Flood Stories from Around the World. While flood myths are common to practically every culture on the planet, they differ significantly in detail. This article describes hundreds of flood myths originating from cultures all over the globe.

How Good Are Those Young-Earth Arguments?: A Close Look at Dr. Hovind's List of Young-Earth Arguments and Other Claims. Dave Matson's classic and detailed refutation of the arguments used by Kent Hovind and many other creationists to "prove" that the Earth is young. The text is now from Matson's most recent edition of his book and unlike before all the illustrations are now included.

The Talk.Origins Archive is one of five nominees for Cool Site of the Month. If you are a fan of this Archive please consider voting for it. Voting ends on November 30. Added note: Voting is now ended and the Archive came in a strong second place. Congratulations to the winner, Kontraband.com, and thanks to all the people who voted for the Archive.

Awards, Honors, and Favorable Notices for The Talk.Origins Archive Here are some of the honors this Archive has received.

Kent Hovind FAQs: Examining "Dr. Dino" An index to organize the Archive's documents on Kent Hovind.

Fossil Hominids - The Evidence for Human Evolution. This section of the Talk Origins Archive is intended to provide an overview of the study of human evolution, and of the currently accepted fossil evidence. It also contains a very comprehensive treatment of creationist claims about human evolution. Includes new pages on the spectacular new skull from Dmanisi, Georgia (country on the Black Sea) with implications for creationists who claim that habilis is an ape and erectus is a human, the new 6-7 million year old Toumaï skull from Chad, and Homo habilis: is it an invalid taxon?

Jonathan Wells and Darwin's Finches. Covers in more detail the claims in chapter 8 of Icons of Evolution.

Added more links.

Kent Hovind's $250,000 Offer. This article discusses why creationist Kent Hovind's offer to pay $250,000 for empirical evidence of evolution is a sham, worded so as to be impossible to meet.

29 Evidences for Macroevolution. Creationists continually claim that there is no evidence for macroevolution. This section of the archive provides 29 examples. More discussion, examples, references, and pictures have been added to the sections on embryology and vestigial structures. Check out the updated sections on fossil transitional forms, such as the extensive reptile-to-mammal transition. In addition to the many new figures and examples, the comment on young-earth creationist Ashby Camp's critique has been greatly expanded.

Creation/Evolution Organizations This file will direct those who want to keep informed of antievolutionary activities and/or want to get involved. The file also includes information on the major organizations that oppose evolutionary biology as well as information on the American Scientific Affliation which is officially neutral on the question of evolution.

A Reply to "Talk.Origins: Deception by Omission" A response to an attack on this Archive by The True.Origin Archive.

The Talk.Origins Archive Outline This is an outline for the Archive that provides an alternative way to browse the Archive.

Polonium Halo FAQs moved to their own index page to accommodate a new article, Thomas Bailleul's "Polonium Haloes" Refuted, which definitively debunks Robert Gentry's claims.

With the conclusion of the November and December 2000 contests, the missing months have all been filled in and the Post of the Month section is fully up to date at last. Check it out here.

A highly revised and expanded new Request for FAQs list. Check it out and contribute something!

Response? What Response? Richard Wein replies to William Dembski's reply to his Not a Free Lunch But a Box of Chocolates.

Carbon-14 in Coal Deposits and Entropy, Disorder and Life Two new articles; one deals with the reason for the existence of anomalous amounts of radioactive carbon-14 in 300-million-year-old coal deposits, while the other explains the concept of "disorder" as a rigorous thermodynamic term.

Not a Free Lunch But a Box of Chocolates: A critique of William Dembski's book No Free Lunch This review argues that Dembski's case is nothing more than a god-of-the-gaps argument dressed up in misleading pseudoscientific mumbo jumbo.

Watching a Rock Age on an Isochron Diagram An animated illustration showing how an isochron diagram of a rock changes through time. It supplements the Isochron Dating FAQ which explains what isochron dating methods are and how they work.

Borel's Law and the Origin of Many Creationist Probability Assertions Creationists have asserted that a statistical principle called "Borel's Law" mathematically demonstrates that abiogenesis is impossible. This article explains what Borel's Law is and shows that Borel himself clearly understood that his law was not relevant to the probability of the origin of life.

Quotations and Misquotations: Why What Antievolutionists Quote is Not Valid Evidence Against Evolution. Many evolution deniers argue against evolution by providing many quotations. This FAQ gives many reason why this tactic is invalid and documents examples of out-of-context quotations by creationists.

Icon of Obfuscation: Jonathan Wells' book Icons of Evolution and why most of what it teaches about evolution is wrong. Icons of Evolution purports to document that "students and the public are being systematically misinformed about the evidence for evolution." But it is Icons itself that is really misinforming the public.

Is the Complement System Irreducibly Complex? Examines one of Michael Behe's proposed "irreducibly complex" molecular systems, the immune complement system, and demonstrates that simpler but still functional versions of it exist in nature.

Evolution in Biochemistry Textbooks. Intelligent-design advocate Michael Behe has claimed that college-level biochemistry textbooks completely neglect to mention or discuss evolution. This article shows that this claim is untrue.

Thrust faults. Young earth creationists are wrong in stating that thrust faults are used to explain sequences of fossils that are not in an order predicted by evolution. This claim is based on a misunderstanding of the principles of relative dating and the physical observations by which thrust faults are recognized. This FAQ considers thrust faults in general and the Lewis thrust specifically, a large fault that is exposed in parts of Montana and Alberta.

Fossil Horses. Horses are a common and instructive example of evolution recorded in the fossil record. Unfortunately many textbooks and popular accounts oversimplify the picture. Creationists have also made many false claims about horse evolution.

Is "Dawn Horse" a Hyrax?: Examining a Common Creationist Claim about Hyracotherium . A common creationist claim is that Hyracotherium, which is informally called eohippus or "dawn horse," is nothing more than a type of animal called a hyrax. This FAQ exposes this fallacy.

Did Hyracotherium and Equus Live at the Same Time? . Some creationists claim that the remains of Hyracotherium, the animal at the base of the horse sequence and more popularly known as "eohippus," have been found along side the remains of modern horses. This FAQ exposes this claim as an "urban myth" - oft-repeated yet lacking any factual basis.

Supernovae, Supernova Remnants and Young Earth Creationism FAQ. Young earth creationists (YECs) make two claims regarding supernova remnants: (1) There are not enough supernova remnants observed in our Galaxy to support an ancient Universe, or (2) there are no ancient supernova remnants; thus the Universe is actually young. This FAQ is written with the dual intention of both providing a general introduction to supernovae and supernova remnants, and addressing the YEC claims.

The Evolution of Improved Fitness. New evidence from molecular geneticists joins with the immense body of clues from other disciplines which collectively provide overwhelming evidence for evolution.

Irreducible Complexity and Michael Behe.

The Origin of Whales and the Power of Independent Evidence. One of the favorite anti-evolutionist challenges to the existence of transitional fossils is the supposed lack of transitional forms in the evolution of the whales. Raymond Sutera explains why the anti-evolutionists' argument fails by examining the fossil record of whales.

The Geologic Column and its Implications for the Flood. Young-earth creationists often claim that the geologic column -- the sequence of rocks that document Earth's ancient history -- is cobbled together from bits and pieces of scanty and unreliable evidence. Nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, the entire geologic column can be observed from top to bottom in several locales, including North Dakota, as this article describes.

29 Evidences for Macroevolution. This article directly addresses the scientific evidences in favor of macroevolutionary theory and common descent. It is specifically intended for those who are scientifically minded but, for one reason or another, have come to believe that macroevolutionary theory explains little, makes few or no testable predictions, or cannot be falsified.

Flood Stories from around the World. While flood myths are common to practically every culture on the planet, most of them are significantly different in detail. This article describes nearly a hundred flood myths originating from cultures all over the globe.

The Evolution of Improved Fitness by Random Mutation plus Selection. The notion that all the complexity we see before us today could have been the result of naturally selected random mutations seems mind-boggling. But antibody genes provide a clear example of random mutations leading to the evolution of increased reproductive fitness.

Creationist Arguments: The Monkey Quote (part of the Fossil Hominids FAQs). Between 1929 and 1936, 5 skulls of Peking Man were discovered at Zhoukoudian near Peking in China. The French anthropologist Marcellin Boule wrote about the Peking Man fossils before hid death in 1942, and one quote from his work in particular has been often been used, and misused, by creationists. This article tracks the long history of claims and counter-claims about the 'Monkey Quote'.

The Coso Artifact: Mystery from the Depths of Time. The creation 'science' field known as OOPARTS, or "Out Of Place ARTifactS" is a lively area of study with numerous examples. This paper will examine the most popular and least understood specimen, the Coso Artifact.

Missing Supernova Remnants as Evidence of a Young Universe? A Case of Fabrication. The creationist quote-miners have been at it again, this time on the subject of supernova remnants and their supposed support for a young universe. In this latest example of creationist dishonesty, we have scientists quoted out of context, quotes and motives fabricated, and the names and affiliations of scientists incorrectly identified.

What is Creationism? This article gives brief descriptions of the different varieties of creationism, both Bible-based and otherwise, with examples of notable proponents.

The Recession of the Moon and the Age of the Earth-Moon System. One of the common arguments made in support of a young Earth is that the Earth-moon system could not be billions of years old. This article examines the physics of the system and shows why the creationists are wrong.

Are Mutations Harmful? People often ask questions such as, "Doesn't evolution depend on mutations?", "Aren't most mutations harmful?" and "Are there favorable mutations?". This article catalogs the different types of mutations and discusses their effects on an organism's reproductive fitness.

Lucy's Knee Joint: A Case Study in Creationists' Willingness to Admit Their Errors. A number of creationists have claimed that Donald Johanson, discoverer of the famous Australopithecus afarensis specimen dubbed "Lucy," found her knee joint several kilometers away from the rest of her skeleton. This claim is absolutely false, but that doesn't stop some creationists from making it.

All About Archaeopteryx. Archaeopteryx is commonly cited as an example of a transitional fossil (i.e. a form showing characters common to two separate groups). This is disputed by anti-evolutionists, who claim that Archaeopteryx is a complete bird and thus cannot be transitional.

The Evolution of Improved Fitness by Random Mutation plus Selection. The notion that all the complexity we see before us today could have been the result of naturally selected random mutations seems mind-boggling. But antibody genes provide a clear example of random mutations leading to the evolution of increased reproductive fitness.

An Evaluation of the ICR Grand Canyon Research Project. This essay discusses the ICR's Grand Canyon Dating Project, as proposed and executed by the ICR's Steve Austin. Austin has obtained some bad Rb-Sr isochron dates, although there are several serious questions regarding his methodology.

Lies, Damned Lies, Statistics and Probability of Abiogenesis Calculations. Every so often someone comes up with the statement "the formation of any enzyme by chance is nearly impossible, therefore abiogenesis is impossible." Often they cite as evidence an impressive-looking, but ultimately erroneous, probability calculation.

How to Be Anti-Darwinian. Many different people oppose some or all aspects of Darwin's thinking, or the views that have arisen since and go by the term 'Darwinism.' This essay distinguishes and names the major varieties of anti-Darwinism.

Epperson v. Arkansas: U.S. Supreme Court Decision. Read the U.S. Supreme Court case which ruled unconstitutional Arkansas's law forbidding the teaching of evolution in state-supported schools.

Debunking Gentry's "New Redshift Interpretation" Cosmology. Young-earth creationist Robert Gentry has offered a theory to replace the standard Big Bang cosmological model of the universe, but his model is flawed by a number of deficiencies, errors and inconsistencies.

The Solar FAQ: Solar Neutrinos and Other Solar Oddities. Nuclear fusion is the only process reasonably capable of powering the sun, and one product of this fusion is invisible particles called 'neutrinos'. But why don't we observe as many solar neutrinos as theory would predict?

Radiometric Dating and the Geological Time Scale. Radiometric dating and stratigraphic principles are combined to establish the conventional geological time scale. Scientists apply these principles to date rocks, which can then be used to assign ages to fossils.

Plagiarized Errors and Molecular Genetics. New evidence from molecular genetics joins with the immense body of clues from other disciplines, collectively providing overwhelming evidence for evolution.

Darwin's Precursors and Influences. It is sometimes claimed by those who wish to denigrate the achievements of Charles Darwin that he was little more than a "serial plagiarist." This essay aims to show that Darwin, like any scientist, had influences, but that he was honest in his theoretical development.

Visits to the ICR Museum. The Institute for Creation Research, the premiere outlet for young-earth creationist writings, has its own museum, which is open to the public. Steve Linke and Karen Bartelt provide separate accounts of their visits to the museum.

Irreducible Complexity and Michael Behe. Recently a great deal of press attention has been given to biochemist Michael Behe's claims that many biological systems are "irreducibly complex" at the molecular level. According to Behe, this means they are not likely to have evolved in a step-bby-step fashion via natural selection. How right is he?

Some Questionable Creationist Credentials. A list of prominent (or once-prominent) creationists whose graduate degrees are either honorary or of suspicious origin.

Changing Views of the History of the Earth. How did we go from thinking Earth was a young planet to the realization that it is ancient, with a four and a half billion year history?

Peloza v. Capistrano Unified School District. California public school teacher John Peloza sued his school district, claiming he should not be required to teach evolution or refrain from teaching about his religious beliefs. The U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against him on the substantive portions of his claim.

The Other Links Page. Added a new category of web sites to the Other Links Page: Debate and Discussion Fora.

Problems with a Global Flood. This article presents a list of questions that the story of Noah's Ark and a global flood leave unanswered and probably unanswerable, such as: How did all the fish survive? and, When did granite batholiths form?

Edwards v. Aguillard: Amicus Curiae Brief by 72 Nobel Laureates. Read the amicus curiae brief filed by 72 Nobel Prize winning scientists in support of the appellees.

On Archaeopteryx, Astronomers, and Forgery. Most anti-evolution arguments about Archaeopteryx revolve around how it is a complete bird and thus not transitional. However, a group of people led by Prof. Fred Hoyle and Dr. N. Wickramasinghe have adopted a different tack by suggested that Archaeopteryx is a forgery. They claim that the feather impressions were forged onto a small reptile skeleton and implicate the then director of the Natural History Museum in London, Sir Richard Owen. Not unnaturally, these claims have been contested by the Natural History Museum. This FAQ details the claims made by both sides and shows that the suggestion of forgery is unsupported by the evidence.

Macroevolution. In evolutionary biology today macroevolution is used to refer to any evolutionary change at or above the level of species. It means the splitting of a species into two or the change of a species over time into another.

Fossil Hominids. Learn almost everything you wanted to know about our hominid ancestors. Characteristics of Australopithecus and Homo species are discussed and the fossil evidence described.

Is the Devonian Chattanooga Shale Really a Volcanic Ash-Fall Deposit? Some creationists contend that large shale deposits are the result of a volcanic activity during the Bible's catastrophic global flood, but their contentions are contradicted by the physical evidence.

Flood Stories from around the World. While flood myths are common to practically every culture on the planet, most of them are significantly different in detail. This article describes nearly a hundred flood myths originating from cultures all over the globe.

Plagiarized Errors and Molecular Genetics. New evidence from molecular genetics joins with the immense body of clues from other disciplines, collectively providing overwhelming evidence for evolution.

The 2nd Law of Thermodynamics, Evolution, and Probability. The creationist belief that evolution violates the laws of thermodynamics is based on a misunderstanding of both evolution and thermodynamics.

Lucy's Knee Joint: A Case Study in Creationists' Willingness to Admit Their Errors. A number of creationists have claimed that Donald Johanson, discoverer of the famous Australopithecus afarensis specimen dubbed "Lucy," found her knee joint several kilometers away from the rest of her skeleton. This claim is absolutely false, but that doesn't stop some creationists from making it.

Duane Gish at Rutgers University. This exchance between Richard Trott and Duane Gish of the Institute for Creation Research appeared in a student newspaper at Rutgers University.

Plagiarized Errors and Molecular Genetics. New evidence from molecular genetics joins with the immense body of clues from other disciplines, collectively providing overwhelming evidence for evolution.

Evolution and Philosophy: An Introduction. Critics of evolutionary theory very often misunderstand the philosophical issues of the speciality known as the philosophy of science. This essay seeks to summarise some of the more important recent developments, provide a reading list, and to show that evolution is no worse off philosophically than any other science would be, and that the usual arguments against evolution from a philosophical approach fail.

An Evaluation of the ICR Grand Canyon Research Project. This essay discusses the ICR's Grand Canyon Dating Project, as proposed and executed by the ICR's Steve Austin. Austin has obtained some bad Rb-Sr isochron dates, although there are several serious questions regarding his methodology.

Patterson Misquoted: A Tale of Two 'Cites'. Colin Patterson, senior paleontologist at the British Museum of Natural History, is frequently quoted by creationists as having said that there are no transitional fossils. But did he really say that? And if so, what did he mean?

On Archaeopteryx, Astronomers, and Forgery. Some people claim that the feather impressions were forged onto a small reptile skeleton and implicate the then director of the Natural History Museum in London, Sir Richard Owen. Not unnaturally, these claims have been contested by the Natural History Museum. This FAQ details the claims made by both sides and shows that the suggestion of forgery is unsupported by the evidence.

Intelligent Design: Humans, Cockroaches and the Laws of Physics. Cosmology is now being exploited by creationists who argue that the fundamental constants of nature are so precisely tuned that an intelligent designer was required to create the universe.

The Talk.Origins Archive Welcome Page. Now the home page links to a new welcome page that describes the purpose of the archive and answers some frequently asked questions about it.

Bombardier Beetles and the Argument of Design. Creationists often cite the bombardier beetle as an example of a creature that could not have evolved in a step-wise evolutionary manner. This essay disputes that claim, in part by presenting a plausible scenario for its gradual evolution.

Evolution and Chance. Evolutionary theory is a scientific theory dealing with scientific data, not a system of metaphysical beliefs or a religion. It does, however, set the sorts of general problems biology deals with, and also acts as a philosophical attitude in dealing with complex change.

Thermodynamics FAQs. The creationist belief that evolution violates the laws of thermodynamics is based on a misunderstanding of both evolution and thermodynamics.

Reorganized the home page menu a bit. Created a new Archive Administration page, which has subsumed the Site Statistics and the Acknowledgements. Also added were the Submission Guidelines and The Request For FAQs (RFF) file.

Darwin's Precursors and Influences. It is sometimes claimed by those who wish to denigrate the achievements of Charles Darwin that he was little more than a "serial plagiarist". This essay aims to show that Darwin, like any scientist, had influences, but that he was honest in his theoretical development.

Isochron Dating Methods. The isochron radiometric dating technique (and related ones) is widely used in isotope geology, and does not fall prey to many common creationist criticisms of radiometric dating. This essay introduces the technique and shows why it is so reliable.

Plagiarized Errors and Molecular Genetics. New evidence from molecular genetics joins with the immense body of clues from other disciplines, collectively providing overwhelming evidence for evolution.

Flood Stories from around the World. While flood myths are common to practically every culture on the planet, most of them are significantly different in detail. This article describes nearly a hundred flood myths originating from cultures all over the globe.

Broke The Meritt Anti-Creationism FAQs into separate files to make it easier to download and read.

John Woodmorappe's reply to Steven Schimmrich's Geochronology according to John Woodmorappe. Also added was Steven Schimmrich's rebuttal.

Creationism/Evolution Organizations and Periodicals. Eight organizations relevant to the creation/evolution debate are overviewed here. Included are brief reviews and membership/subscription information for the periodicals published by each organization.

Lucy's Knee Joint: A Case Study in Creationists' Willingness to Admit Their Errors. A number of creationists have claimed that Donald Johanson, discoverer of the famous Australopithecus afarensis specimen dubbed "Lucy," found her knee joint several kilometers away from the rest of her skeleton. This claim is absolutely false, but some creationists refuse to retract it.

The Age of the Earth. The Earth is accepted by scientists to be around 4.5 billion years old. But how do they know the Earth is this old? Some of the lines of evidence for an ancient Earth are presented.

Transitional Vertebrate Fossils. It is impossible to to debate creationists without hearing them claim that there are no transitional forms in the fossil record. This essay puts the lie to that claim by listing and briefly describing a large number of transitional fossils among the vertebrates.

New Address for the Talk.Origins Archive!
We've got our own domain name now. The new address is www.talkorigins.org. The old address will still work, but please point your links to the new one.

"Cretinism or Evilution" No. 2. Also added a "Cretinism or Evilution" issue selection page.

The Origin of Species. A local copy of the book was placed in the archive.

Creationism and the Platypus. Many creationists view the duck-billed platypus as an enigma that evolution cannot explain. However, fossil and anatomical evidence are completely consistent with the idea that the platypus evolved from primitive mammals that retained many of their reptilian characteristics.

Reorganized the Other Web Sites page.

Geochronology according to creationist John Woodmorappe. John Woodmorappe has examined numerous studies of radiometric dating in the scientific literature and concludes that radiometric dating techniques are invalid. This essay, however, raises serious questions about Woodmorappe's methods.

The archive was given another facelift. Added were a new title page, new headers, and new trailers.

The Archaeopteryx FAQs. This set of FAQs describes all you ever wanted to know about the reptilian/avian intermediary, Archaeopteryx. All known fossil specimens are described, claims about Archae's possible forgery are assessed, and creationist arguments against the fossil's transitional status are dissected.

Plagiarized Errors and Molecular Genetics. New evidence from molecular geneticists joins with the immense body of clues from other disciplines which collectively provide overwhelming evidence for evolution.

Darwin's Precursors and Influences. It is sometimes claimed by those who wish to denigrate the achievements of Charles Darwin that he was little more than a "serial plagiarist". This essay aims to show that Darwin, like any scientist, had influences, but that he was honest in his theoretical development.

Scientific Creationism and Error. Scientific creationism differs from conventional science in numerous and substantial ways. One obvious difference is the way scientists and creationists deal with error.

Piltdown Man: The Bogus Bones Caper. It took over 40 years to realize that Piltdown man, represented by hominid-like fossil specimens found in Britain, was a fraud. Why did it take so long to discover the hoax? Who was the hoaxer? And what does this episode say about evolution?

Creation Science and the Earth's Magnetic Field. Creationists have long argued that the earth's magnetic field proves that the earth cannot be more than 10000 years old. This article looks in great detail at the argument and thoroughly debunks it.

Darwin's Black Box: Irreducible Complexity or Irreproducible Irreducibility? Biochemist Michael Behe claims in his new book Darwin's Black Box that many biological systems are "irreducibly complex", that in order to evolve, multiple systems would have to arise simultaneously. But is it true?

Review of John Woodmorappe's Noah's Ark: A Feasibility Study. Creationist John Woodmorappe has given himself the daunting task of making a prescientific myth seem plausible. As this review illustrates, he was not entirely successful.

The Talk.Origins Archive is now running on a faster machine with a more powerful search engine!

Evolutionary and Geological Timelines. Modified the look of Neil Brandt's timelines.