Topic: Evolution
Quote: But the problem is that Neo-darwinists claim that DNA is in complete isolation and goes on its merry way, regardless of any pressures and effects of the environment.
Response: Misunderstanding or misrepresentation? Biologists and geneticists do not claim that DNA is isolated from the environment. We are well aware that the environment can cause mutations under many conditions (cosmic radiation, x-ray, etc.). What is denied is that mutations are environmentally directed - in other words, exposure to cosmic radiation will not cause a mutation that will make the organism resistant to cosmic radiation. The mutations will be random.\nOn the other hand, natural selection IS, by definition, the response of populations to their environment. The environment has been shown to have effects on DNA, i.e., the genome of the population.\n
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