For a long time I had dismissed the idea of anything resembling evolution because of the extraordinary improbabilities involved. Even given 4 billion years, the age of the earth as estimated by scientists, there is no way evolution could have happened in such an extremely short period of time.
This is a non-issue, isn't it? 1. Life doesn't just spontaneously generate out of rocks--no matter how much time elapses and 2. Pond scum doesn't turn into a dog--no matter how much time elapses. The whole idea is preposterous.
The Bible says that God created the heavens and the earth--plants, birds, cats, dogs, people--'nuff said.
One form of explanation that scientists don't like to talk about has to do with the teleological nature of the equations. The quantum equations are used to calculate probabilities. The probability of a given state is calculated by multiplying the amplitude of the wave function by its conjugate.
You said that there are equations to calculate probabilities. A probability is "the likelihood that a given event will occur". Is there a particular event that you are referring to or all the possible events in a non-existent 4 billion years?
The interesting thing is that conjugation is the time-reversal operator, so the probability is calculated by multiplying the wave function by the time-reversed wave function. Intuitively, the probability is proportional to the product of the number of possible pasts of a given state multiplied by the number of possible futures of a given state. This gives the number of possible time lines that pass through a given state.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the number of possible pasts or futures infinite?
According to the quantum principle called the democracy of histories, all possible time lines are considered equally probable. But of course there are selection rules that determine which time lines are considered possible.
Interesting, and what are the selection rules and who determines them?
So all God has to do is specify, as one of the selection rules, what the outcome should be, and the quantum equations say that the universe will behave in a goal oriented manner to produce the desired outcome.
All God had to do was say "Let there be light". Heheh, much more simple. He doesn't have to fiddle with equations or our bumbling attempts at understanding his divine order.
Of course, the question still remains as to how the universe could do such a thing.
Answer: 'cause God said so.
Any other questions?
Years ago, I remember seeing seeming reversal of causality while debugging circuit boards for closed-loop motion control systems. In normal debugging, if you see good signals going into a part and bad signals coming out, the part is probably bad. When debugging a closed loop control system, the reverse rule seems to work: if you see bad signals going into a part and good signals coming out, then the part is probably bad. This analogy would seem to suggest that the universe is part of a larger complex system which, in order to cope with the complexity of the control system, would need to possess a very high intrinsic intelligence.
God doesn't need to cope with anything. He's the designer, he's perfect, and he has infinite knowledge--this is his universe.
Perhaps when God said, "Let there be light," he was speaking to this highly intelligent entity that he had created, which understood and then carried out the command, using its intelligence to figure out how to do it.
Oh my, that sounds like the Jehovah's Witnesses. I hope you don't actually believe that.
The problem with conventional directed evolution (and the similar ideas of Hugh Ross) is that it consists of an arbitary mixture of laws of physics and exceptions which are thrown in to make the result come out right. It's like cheating when you are playing a game. If you cheat enough times, then why have rules in the first place. You aren't really playing the game if you aren't following the rules. The quantum form of directed evolution overcomes this objection because the rules are never broken.
Yep. It would seem to me that it is the height of hubris for man to think he is able to deduce how it (the universe/creation) all happened (came into being, is maintained, etc.) with observations and calculations. Man has created a fantasy world of half-truths (and some just plain wacko ideas) and then thinks that by abiding by its rules he has arrived at "the truth". Guess again, Hugh, et al!
Interesting post, Stephen. Thank you for sharing.
Teleological indeed! It is all in God's hands. There is order in chaos ("for God is not the author of confusion but of peace"). Man thinks he's smart in that he can predict the weather fairly accurately up to three days.
But God holds all possibilities in the palm of his hand. He wields all possible time-lines with surety and sovereignty.
God has infinite knowledge; he knows the end from the beginning. For example, God knew from the foundations of the earth what Abraham would be like and what actions he would perform, and he chose him. He had the whole plan of redemption planned out from the beginning. "The foolishness of God is wiser than men."
"O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out! For who hath known the mind of the Lord? or who hath been his counsellor? Or who hath first given to him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again? For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen."
