A New Model for Evolution: A Rhizome

Evolutionists have a problem. Their theory doesn’t fit the facts, yet it must be true. They have to constantly change their story, all the while insisting it is a fact. Like a Heraclitean flux, it is constantly changing and yet always called the same thing. Evolutionists are continually surprised by the science, yet they euphemistically call this “progress.” A recent article in The Lancet, suggesting that evolution is like a rhizome, is a good example of evolution’s folly that is so obvious.

In 2009, with the 200th anniversary of Darwin's birthday, the concept of Darwinism became so popular that it was celebrated in most biological journals. However, the Darwinist theory of evolution is associated with the scientific knowledge and outdated beliefs of the 19th century. The theory is characterised by a description of life as a tree in which all living organisms are thought to have a single ancestor and where each node represents a common ancestor (Darwin's tree) … The structure of our current knowledge base has changed substantially. …

Darwin was certain god would not have created the nested hierarchy pattern the species were thought to form. Today we know that pattern is a crude and inaccurate model.

In the 21st century, the genomic revolution has brought about an important change in the way we think about life, which has forced us to reconsider the way we describe evolution. Genomic data have gradually accumulated and show that there were multiple original sources of the genetic information of living organisms, with inheritance occurring not only vertically but also laterally. Such lateral gene transfer, initially observed only in bacteria, was quickly identified in all living organisms. For example, the human genome is a mosaic of genes with eukaryotic, bacterial (in the mitochondria and the nucleus), and viral origins. …

Multiple origins, vertical, lateral, gradual, punctuated, backwards, forwards. Got it.

Thus we cannot currently identify a single common ancestor for the gene repertoire of any organism. Comparative genome analysis shows not only a substantial level of plasticity in the gene repertoire, but also provides evidence that nearly all genes, including ribosomal genes, have been exchanged or recombined at some point in time. Overall, it is now thought that there are no two genes that have a similar history along the phylogenic tree.

So why do we need the nineteenth century dogma again?

Moreover, there are some genes that do not have a single history, due to the occurrence of intragenic recombinations. Therefore the representation of the evolutionary pathway as a tree leading to a single common ancestor on the basis of the analysis of one or more genes provides an incorrect representation of the stability and hierarchy of evolution. Finally, genome analyses have revealed that a very high proportion of genes are likely to be newly created through gene fusion, degradation, or other events, and that some genes are only found in one organism (named ORFans). These genes do not belong to any phylogenic tree and represent new genetic creations.

When the evolutionist states that the genes that appear out of nowhere are “likely to be newly created through gene fusion, degradation, or other events,” he means as opposed to having evolved by the conventional common descent narrative, or via horizontal gene transfer. Those avenues are ruled out, so the evolutionist must resort to unlikely schemes. He then labels them as “likely” not because science and mathematics reveals this to be so, but because evolution must be true.

A post-Darwinist concept of the living species can be proposed, to integrate the theories of multiplicity and de-novo creation … I believe that the evolution of species looks much more like a rhizome (or a mycelium). Consequently, this view of evolution resembles a clump of roots that considers the occurrence of multiplicities. Emerging species grow from the rhizome with gene repertoires of various origins that will allow, under favourable environmental conditions, the multiplication and perpetuation of this species. As such, potential new species and new genes are continuously appearing.

A good example of how evolutionary thought makes a mockery of science.

I suggest we respect the revolutionary mind of Darwin and allow the theory of evolution itself to evolve from a tree to a rhizome.

There’s not much to respect. Darwin was not an intellectual revolutionary. The theological and philosophical heavy lifting was done long before Darwin got in a boat and went anywhere. Darwin had good command of the science, but turned it upside down to fit the metaphysics of the day.