by cofty 78 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
Cofty, why don’t you tell us the estimated number of living species and the number of extant fossil species?
Then, if the number of extant fossil species is not 99 times the number of living species, please explain how the 99 % figure is obtained. Or just admit that you don’t know how it is obtained.
Hooby is your question about the numbers or do you reject the simple fact that life on earth has been almost wiped out five times in its history?
It’s very clear what I was specifically referring to.
I stated it multiple times.
Why don’t you tell us the estimated number of living species and the number of extant fossil species?
Then, if the number of extant fossil species is not 99 times the number of living species, please explain how the 99 % figure is obtained.
Or just admit that you don’t know how it is obtained.
Estimates of all the species that have ever lived are around 5 billion (lowest estimate) if we just count eukaryotes. Orders of magnitude higher than the 8 million extant (eukaryote) species. So that means the 99% figure is massively underestimated, it's more like 99.9%
You're welcome but you really need to start doing your own research. Creationism seems to attract lazy people.
Extant species
~7.77 million species of animals (of which 953,434 have been described and cataloged)
~298,000 species of plants (of which 215,644 have been described and cataloged)
~611,000 species of fungi (moulds, mushrooms) (of which 43,271 have been described and cataloged)
~36,400 species of protozoa (single-cell organisms with animal-like behavior, eg. movement, of which 8,118 have been described and cataloged)
~27,500 species of chromista (including, eg. brown algae, diatoms, water moulds, of which 13,033 have been described and cataloged)
Total: 8.74 million eukaryote species on Earth. - Source...
It is known that almost all of the species which have lived on the Earth are now extinct (Raup 1986). Only about one in a thousand of those which have ever existed are alive today, and most of the others didn’t last very long—less than ten million years in most cases. Some of these were wiped out by well-documented cataclysmic events. The K–T boundary event is the most famous example, caused perhaps by the impact of a meteor (Alvarez et al. 1980, Sharpton et al. 1992, Glen 1994). However, the majority of extinctions have no known cause. It is possible that some of them were the result not of environmental disasters but simply of natural evolutionary processes. If a coevolutionary avalanche of sufficient size were to pass through the ecosystem, causing the evolution of thousands of species to new forms, it is conceivable that certain species would find their livelihoods destroyed by the changes, and be driven to extinction. - Source (pdf)
See How do rare species avoid extinction? A paleontological view. Author, Michael L. McKinney
See also Biological Extinction in Earth History Author, David M. Raup (pdf)
7.77 million species of animals
Noah, upon reading this: "I'm gonna need a bigger boat"
I hesitate to wade in, particularly since both Hooberus and Sea Breeze seem resistant to information that does not align with their beliefs, but here goes...
The selection in "natural selection," does indeed refer to existing traits. Natural selection in and of itself does not bring about anything "new;" rather, you have mutations to thank for that (among other things). A trait, of course, has to exist in order to be selected. "Selection" simply refers to the advantage that a member of a species has as a result of a particular trait over other members of the species who lack such a trait. How is it that traits appear in one member of a species but not others? Mutations constantly create variation in the DNA, the vast majority of which are neither beneficial nor harmful but silent. However, from time to time, variation does crop up that helps a member of a species survive in the face of new or changing environmental conditions. It is the combination of environmental variation with trait variation that creates the right setting for selection.
But natural selection is NOT the only force at work in evolution! Researchers now know (and have observed) a variety of other factors that also play a role. I should add-Prothero's book was an eye-opener for me. I highly recommend it.
What the WT and other creationist like to point out is how evolution is always changing or updating their theory as they find more and more evidence through the fossil records, yet they believe in a book of myths to explain the origin of life like ti is written in stone.
Hooby demands evidence
I provide tons of it
Hooby ignores it and demands more
I provide it
Hooby runs away until next time
and repeat ad nauseum
Hi,
Is this of any interest?
https://visual.ly/community/infographic/animals/deep-dive-mass-extinctions
Doug
There are many who rather accept ancient mythology for the existence of all living creatures including are selves.
Its a lot easier to accept and understand and hey you might even go to a church, a Kingdom Hall, a Temple or Synagogue and be with a associated group of people who think exactly the very same thing.
They also wont accept that human ignorance of the world in which we live by are ancestors is a indefensible fact.
