Evolution is not just a theory

To the editor:

Evolution has not been proven false, nor is it just a theory. Theodosius Dobzhansky said:

"For anything to be scientific, it must testable, i.e., in order for something to be a valid scientific theory, it must predict results that are observable by experimentation. This is true for evolution, which predicts that organisms change over time and this is verified by the fossil record and in observed speciation, adaptation and variation (among other results). It is a surprisingly easy theory to validate with the scientific method, which some people still cannot accept today as true, despite the obvious fact that, for instance, children are similar to their parents, but not exact replicas, nor are children identical except only if they are from the very same fertilized egg.

"So if evolution is a scientific theory that is not only testable but also happens to be true, what of creationism? If creationism is true, then evolution cannot be, for creationism dictates that things were 'created' and that they do not change beyond 'normal' and obviously observed variation. So it is true to say that creationism competes against evolution, but if evolution is already true, then can creationism be another valid theory? Certainly we have deduced that if evolution is true, which it certainly is, then creationism cannot. We also know that creationists won't accept evolution as true."

CHANDA ADAIR

Cape Girardeau