Module 02 Presentation

1. Question 2
Kylee Avery, Samantha Lovelady, Nainoa
Tomimoto-Kim, Kaitlyn Cheatham, and Blake Ares

2. Why does evolution remain controversial in North
America?
Especially in the United States, religion still plays a rather large part in
the American view of things. According to the Pew Research Center,
approximately 80% of Americans identify as Christian. Due to this, it is
hard for Americans to grasp that perhaps embracing evolution doesn’t
have to mean that their ideas about Creationism are wrong. It is hard
for them to reconcile these two things. The only way they could work
together is if they could explain them both by saying God created the
world and universe with the laws of science. That perhaps God made
animals and people through evolution, that these scientific laws are
also His. However, meshing Creationism and evolution is hard for a lot
of these people. Perhaps they think if they confirm one, then they must
deny the other. As long as religion remains a large part of society, this
subject will remain controversial for some time to come. Consider if the
Americas wasn’t so based on religion, would evolution be easier to
accept? - Kylee Avery
Wormald, B. (2015, May 11). Religious Landscape Study. Retrieved
May 18, 2017, from http://www.pewforum.org/religious-landscape-
study/

3. Isn’t evolution just a theory?
Although evolution is referred to as just a theory scientists have found hard
biological evidence of a change in genetic characteristics in populations over time.
This means that through this biological evolution came the necessity for certain
species to have shared a common ancestor dating back over thousands of years.
All these breakthroughs in studying genetic adaptations were able to be made
through years of discovering old fossils, bodies and the examination of ancient
body structures of various creatures. So while evolution is indeed a theory, it is
also a fact due to the amount of evidence supporting its cause that specifically
displays the tiny advancements of organisms due to necessity and changing
environments over time. - Nainoa Tomimoto-Kim

4. If Evolution is True, Why Are There So Many Gaps
in the Fossil Record?
The fact of the matter is that fossils are hard to find and take millions of years for
bones to become fossils, even then it’s rare for bones to become fossils. The
circumstances for the preservation has to be just right and then there’s the matter
of finding them. It’s much easier to see evolutionary changes in taxonomy
because even though evolution happens over a long time for us, it happens very
quickly from a geological standpoint. To catch a small population evolving in the
fossil record is highly improbably just from how fossils are made. There are
complete fossil records that support evolution though such as birds evolving from
dinosaurs and mammals evolving from reptiles. Even though the human fossil
record is incomplete we can still draw conclusions that we have common ancestry
with apes. - Samantha Lovelady

5. Where can you find more material on the creation/evolution debate?
More information can be found at the talkorigins.org Archive. This website focuses on the
Creation/Evolution controversy.
A couple other website links that could give more information on this debate:
http://www.allaboutphilosophy.org/creation-vs-evolution.htm
https://www.bethinking.org/does-evolution-disprove-creation/let-there-be-light
A book on this controversy is:
Larson, Edward J. The Creation-Evolution Debate: Historical Perspectives. University of Georgia Press,
2007.
● These websites and book don’t focus on religious views while presenting the topic at hand, therefore
are good resources for learning more.
- Kaitlyn Cheatham

6. Are there other countries in the world where
evolution is equally debated?
While there are many countries on earth who have accepted evolution as fact, many other countries have
a certain degree of resistance to accepting evolution as the predominant explanation for genetic diversity.
Such resistance is mainly found in countries that have a significant religious influence, such as the United
States, South Africa, India, South Korea, Singapore, and Brazil. While not as significant, debate also
exists in The United Kingdom, Ireland, The Netherlands, Japan, Italy, Germany, Israel, Australia, New
Zealand and Canada. Such debate is unlikely to die down in the foreseeable future. - Blake Ares