> > >A similar anology for evolution is the observation that an earthquake which >struck a quarry was able to loft a rock up one stope. This is then >extrapolated to ``so it is possible that enough earthquakes would loft the >rock up all of the stopes and out of the quarry.'' Well, yes, possible. But >*extremely* unlikely. > The point is, IF the earthquakes lofted all the rocks up the slopes, as unlikely as that might be, it would not violate a fundamental physical law called the law of thermodynamics. The laws of probability however may have many interesting things to say.
>Since life is the issue being addressed, let's look at it a bit closer. Given >a universe made entirely out of suitable amino acids, a trillion years, no >distance effects or waste products, and a stupendous interaction rate, oh, >and by ignoring numerous structural and supply difficulties, we are able to >get to the point where a single typical protein is ``only'' out of luck by >well over a hundred orders of magnitude. What this tells us is that if we see >a universe with as much as a single protein in it, we are seeing a miracle >far more staggering than water turning to wine. > That's a good argument based on probability, possible ages for the universe etc. Just not about thermodynamics.
