Theory of Evolution: Is It Really True?
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For many years, Charles Darwins theory of evolution and natural selection has been a debate all over the world. People have been writing books, articles, and essays about their research, discoveries, and points of view. Some say that Darwins theory is a fact while some say its just fiction.
The theory of evolution states that all species of organisms present today, including humans, evolved slowly over billions of years, from a common ancestor by way of natural selection wherein the individuals best adapted to their habitat and passed on their traits to their offspring. As time passed, these qualities changed the individual into a species completely different from its ancestors
An online article written by Dennis ONeil which is entitled “Evidence of Evolution” states that the primary evidence for evolution come from four sources. The first one is the fossil record of change in earlier species. These are the remains of animals and plants that can be used to prove that some species had traits that were transitional between organisms. According to him, their existence proves that species are not fixed and can evolve into other species over time. Just like the Archaeopteryx found in Germany: it had jaws with teeth and a long bony tail like dinosaurs, broad wings and feathers like birds, and skeletal features of both. This means that birds had reptilian ancestors. The second source of evidence is the chemical and anatomical similarities of related life forms. All living things have similar anatomical structure development and chemical composition since they all use the same language for their DNA codes. Some groups of species such as vertebrates have the same body structures that they inherit from common ancestors. This group of species has internal skeletons like arms for humans, wings for birds, and flippers for whales. The third source is the geographic distribution of related species.
Land areas and island groups often evolve their own plant and animal communities. An example of this is the existence of over 100 species of kangaroos in Australia alone. The last source of evidence is the recorded genetic changes in living organisms over many generations. This is the way the newer generations of species have adapted to their environment in order to overcome changes and survive environmental crisis.
Ann Davey, the writer of the online article entitled “Is the Theory of Evolution Fact or Fiction?” says that there is not one piece of definitive concrete evidence which confirms the theory of evolution. According to her, there is a lack of fossils proving the theory of evolution. Out of all the fossils found, only about 0.3% of them belong to primates which include apes, monkeys, and humans. In the second place, human DNA is quite identical to the chimpanzees. Chimpanzees have 10% more DNA than humans which could mean that the human DNA is 75% and is equal to those of