If there’s anything left to salvage from the neo-Darwinian theory of life’s origins, it must first be rescued from dogma. On a new episode of ID the Future, host Casey Luskin begins a conversation with two distinguished PhD scientists who are asking tough questions of neo-Darwinism: Olen Brown, Professor Emeritus of Biomedical Sciences at the University of Missouri, and David Hullender, Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at the University of Texas, Arlington. Luskin discuses three recent scientific papers written by Brown and Hullender warning that neo-Darwinism must be updated if it has any hope of surviving as a theory. 

First up is discussion of a 2022 paper aptly titled “Neo-Darwinism Must Mutate to Survive.” Brown and Hullender explain how they applied realistic probability calculations to argue that neo-Darwinism may explain small-scale changes but is insufficient to produce macro-evolutionary change. 

Next, the pair discuss their 2023 paper, “Biological evolution requires an emergent, self-organizing principle.” They argue here that complex, multifactorial change needed for speciation events requires self-organization beyond what is accomplished by known mechanisms. Thus, the Darwinian selection mechanism, survival of the fittest, fails to explain the origin of the millions of current and extinct species. 

Go here to find and listen to the podcast. This is Part 1 of a two-part conversation. Look for Part 2 next!

Dig Deeper

• Watch Stephen Meyer, David Berlinski, and David Gelernter discuss the mathematical challenges to neo-Darwinism!