Almost 150 years after the publishing of The Origin of Species, the theory of evolution by natural selection has come a long way. We now have supporting evidence not only from the vast fossil record, but from the genetic code written in the DNA of all Earthly life. The evolutionary process has been harnessed by pharmaceutical companies and software developers to make better medicine and solve complex problems. Evolution has given us a new understanding of our place in the universe.

Many of the theories of science — relativity, quantum mechanics, evolution — must , in some sense, be true because they make precise predictions that are verified by experimental evidence. It has been said that quantum mechanics (physics on the atomic scale) makes predictions so precise that it is equivalent to measuring the width of the United States to one width of hair. The discovery of DNA and the rapid sequencing of genomes have both further supported predictions made by evolution. Darwin knew that evolution could only work if traits were passed on from parents to offspring, but he didn’t know what the mechanism was for passing those traits on. The answer was DNA, but the link between heredity and DNA wouldn’t be discovered until 1952. 50 years after that the genetics revolution began, and for the first time we were able to see the fine detail of our genes. We can now compare directly the sequence of code that makes us with that of other animals. The proof is in the code: all life is related .

While we continue to learn more about evolution from biology, at the same time we are applying that knowledge to some of our most difficult problems. Pharmaceutical companies now use the principles of natural selection to produce better medicine. Software developers, scientists, and even artists are applying genetic algorithms to breed better and better solutions to problems. For a scientist a genetic algorithm might look for the best solution to climate change or the most efficient design for a solar cell. A genetic algorithm might be used by an artist to find the most pleasing aesthetic, or the best readability. If 10% of the power of biological evolution can be harnessed by this kind of artificial evolution then the big breakthroughs are probably yet to come.

Darwin’s idea shatters our anthropocentric tendencies by showing us our true place in the universe: we are one of millions of animals, all of which share a common ancestor. We should be humbled by our smallness, but also be optimistic about all of the possibilities for our species. We are the only intelligent, self-aware species that we know of in 100 billion galaxies! And someday, if we survive, we will have all of the galaxies to explore.

Tomorrow is the 200th anniversary of Darwin’s birthday. In honor of this great thinker and doer, I would like to suggest that you take 15 minutes to read about Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection. Consider what it means about life and why we are here. The wikipedia entry is a good start. You might also enjoy this lecture series by Prof. Richard Dawkins titled Growing Up in the Universe were he explains evolution in detail with lots of real world examples and visuals. It’s entertaining at the least.

1. 1. Daniel Feb 13, 2009 7:59 PM

   Nice article Karl, well done.