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Nothing in biology makes sense except in the
light of evolution.
- T. Dozhansky
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Greek Gods
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Norse Gods
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Raelian leader says cloning first step to
immortality Saturday, December 28, 2002 Posted
208 AM EST (0708 GMT) MIAMI, Florida (CNN) --
The leader of a religious sect that claimed to
have created the first human clone Friday called
the development "just the first step" toward
human immortality through cloning. Former French
journalist Claude Vorilhon, who now calls himself
Rael, claims to be a direct descendant of
extraterrestrials who created human life on Earth
through genetic engineering. A company founded by
his followers announced Friday that the first
human clone has been born -- a 7-pound baby girl
dubbed "Eve."
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Raëlians on the origin of life
www.rael.org
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Origin hypotheses
natural selection
God
space aliens
?
?
Life
Humans
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mainstream biology
Life
natural selection
Humans
God
space aliens
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Genesis God
God
universe
Life
natural selection
space aliens
Humans
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Raëlian hypothesis
space aliens
Life on earth
Humans
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the materialist hypothesis
universe
natural selection
Life
natural selection
Humans
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Distant creator God
God
universe
Life
natural selection
space aliens
Humans
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Watchmaker God
God
universe
natural selection
Life
natural selection
space aliens
Humans
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Other hypotheses?
natural selection
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Rael No DNA test for baby Eve Sect leader vows
to guard identity of alleged human clone
Friday, January 3, 2003 Posted 1105 AM EST
(1605 GMT) SHERBROOKE, Quebec (CNN) -- A
company founded by members of a sect that
believes mankind was created by extraterrestrials
says what it calls the first human clone will not
undergo testing to verify her genetic
makeup. The head of the Raelian movement, who
calls himself "Rael," said Thursday that he has
told Clonaid's leader not to perform DNA tests on
the infant girl, nicknamed "Eve."
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Raelian cloners 'have two staff and no
lab' WASHINGTON Clonaid, the company that
announced last December that it had cloned a
human, seems to have no lab space and only two
employees, according to court documents obtained
by the Boston Globe. Clonaid was founded by a
religious sect known as the Raelians, who believe
that the human race was cloned from aliens. The
company's managing director, Raelian bishop
Brigitte Boisselier, has said that so far a dozen
clients have each paid 25,000 or more for the
group's cloning services. Nature 423, 8 (01 May
2003) doi10.1038/423008a
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What do you think?
Do you think the Raëlians cloned a human? Did
space aliens create all life on earth?
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How do you know?
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How do you know?

• Because youve seen it yourself.
• Because someone you trust told you.
• Because it makes logical sense.

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Why do you believe someone?

• They are a relative.
• They have moral or religious authority.
• They are scientists.
• They offer verifiable evidence in favor of their
  for their idea.
• They offer verifiable evidence against
  alternative ideas.

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Why do you believe someone?

• They are a relative.
• They have moral or religious authority.
• They are scientists.
• They offer verifiable evidence in favor of their
  for their idea.
• They offer verifiable evidence against
  alternative ideas.

Thats science
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Scientific hypotheses
Hypothesis a potential explanation for some
observation or phenomenon. Scientific
hypothesis a hypothesis that could be
rejected by some conceivable observation. Useful
scientific hypothesis a hypothesis that can
be rejected by some conceivable observation
RIGHT NOW.
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Text, Fig. 1.19
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Limits to science

• Many interesting hypotheses are not necessarily
  verifiable
• What does pain feel like?
• Did space aliens take Raël to another planet?
• Did God create humans?
• Not everything that is true is subject to
  scientific confirmation.

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OUTLINE 20 I. The Concept of Evolution up to
Darwins Time A. Greek Philosophy B. Christian
Theology C. The Enlightenment II. Evolution
Before Darwin A. Lamarck B. State of knowledge
at Darwins time III. Darwin and the theory of
Evolution By Natural Selection A. Voyage of the
Beagle B. Formulation of the theory IV. The
Theory A. Essential elements B. Contrast with
views of the time V. Darwins Evidence A.
Artificial selection B. The fossil record C.
Comparative anatomy D. Embryology E.
Biogeography
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Greek Philosophy
Essentialism
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Modern remnants of the great chain of being
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Surprising things about this discovery
Homo floresiensis in the context of the evolution
and dispersal of the genus Homo. a, The new
species as part of the Asian dispersals of the
descendants of H. ergaster and H. erectus, with
an outline of the descent of other Homo species
provided for context. b, The evolutionary history
of Homo is becoming increasingly complex as new
species are discovered. Homo floresiensis (left)
is believed1 to be a long-term, isolated
descendant of Javanese H. erectus, but it could
be a recent divergence. 1, H. ergaster/African
erectus 2, georgicus 3, Javanese and Chinese
erectus 4, antecessor 5, cepranensis 6,
heidelbergensis 7, helmei 8, neanderthalensis
9, sapiens 10, floresiensis. Solid lines show
probable evolutionary relationships dashed
lines, possible alternatives. Nature 4311043.
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James Hutton 1726 - 1797
Gradualism Natural laws are invariant. Change
results from the accumulation of slow continuous
processes.
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Charles Lyell 1797 - 1875
Uniformitarianism the rate of geological
activity on Earth is constant.
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Similarity among the limb bones of organisms that
use them for different purposes Buffon 1760
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Jean-Baptiste de Lamarck 1744 - 1829
. . . time and favorable conditions are the two
principal means which nature has employed in
giving existence to all her productions. We know
that for her time has no limit, and that
consequently she always has it at her disposal.
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Charles Darwin 1809-1882
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Voyage of the HMS Beagle
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Thomas Malthus 1766 - 1834 Populations can
increase faster than their resources
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Alfred R. Wallace 1823 - 1913
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More offspring are born than can survive to
reproduce
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Individuals within a species vary
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Traits are heritable
Parent
Offspring
Parent
Offspring
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Individuals with some traits reproduce more than
others
Parent
Offspring
Parent
Offspring
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Traits that enhance reproduction become more
common each generation
parents generation 1
offspring generation 1
parents generation 2
offspring generation 2
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Artificial selection has produced different,
true-breeding varieties of fancy pigeons from a
single ancestral form
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Fossils - preserved evidence of previously living
things
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Fig 22.17
A fossil whale with hind legs
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Homology - similarity caused by common ancestry
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Evidence for evolution from comparative embryology
Early embryos of diverse groups share many
features. As development proceeds, embryonic
forms diverge and become more similar to adults
of their own species (von Baers law)
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Finches of the Galapagos Islands
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Molecular evidence