Geoscience Research Institute

Design In Fossil Organisms

Have you ever had the opportunity to examine a real fossil? Maybe you have seen dinosaur bones or shells encased in rock. Do these remains of once living organisms look less designed than the creatures we find living around us? How might the same engineering challenges faced by living creatures have been solved by these ancient creatures? What do the conclusions we draw tell us about the Creator of these ancient yet elegant organisms? Shelley Quinn and Tim Standish, PhD

Raúl Esperante - Dinosaurs, Fossils, and The Flood

Raúl Esperante is a senior researcher at the Geoscience Research Institute and has a doctorate in Paleontology from Loma Linda University. His research projects include the study of fossil whales in Peru and the study of dinosaurs in different parts of the world.

What do Fossils Tell Us?

Fossils are fascinating objects that give us information about animals and plants of the past, but what do fossils tell us about origins? In this session of Fundamentals of Faith and Science, we explore the fossil record and its main features, as well as the different interpretations that have been proposed for its formation.

Complexity and Interdependency

We begin the Biology section by describing the characteristics and composition of living things. We then review the concept of Abiogenesis (the appearance of the first living being from non-living matter) and the serious difficulties faced by this theory, which is necessary for the naturalistic perspective of the origin of life. Finally, by means of examples relating to the different levels of study of biology (cells, organs, organisms and ecosystems), we show how the high complexity and interdependence found in all of them point to a superintelligent Creator who designed complete and functional systems from the beginning.

Natural Selection and Altruism

Altruistic behaviors are a challenge to the theory of evolution because those organisms that put the benefit of others ahead of their own should be eliminated by natural selection. However, altruistic behaviors are relatively common in nature. In this session we explore some examples of collaboration, empathy, and altruism in plants and animals. We also discuss how these behaviors are explained depending on the worldview of the researchers.

Leonard R. Brand - Science, Evolution, and Fossils

Leonard R. Brand is a researcher and professor of Biology and Paleontology at Loma Linda University. He has published his research in scientific journals and has a PhD from Cornell University.

Noemí Durán - Natural Selection, Epigenetics, and Environment

Noemí Durán is a biologist specialized in animal behavior. She has a PhD in Marine Biology from Loma Linda University and is the director of the European headquarters of the Geoscience Research Institute.

Timothy Standish - Mutations, Darwin, and Theory of Evolution

Timothy Standish is a biologist specialized in genetics and has a PhD from George Mason University. He is a Senior Researcher and responsible for communication and audiovisual production at the Geoscience Research Institute.

Noemí Durán - In the Beginning, There Was Love

“Survival of the fittest" and “struggle for existence." You have probably heard these expressions before, likely in connection with one of the most famous concepts in evolution: natural selection. Competition and violence are presented as the necessary tool that allowed for the emergence of biodiversity, in contrast with the biblical account of a “very good" creation. In this talk, Dr. Durán illustrates fascinating examples of altruism and cooperation in the animal world, challenging the dominant narrative and pointing back to the time when animals were designed to show the loving character of God.

The Theory of Evolution

Charles Darwin's theory of evolution was based on natural selection as the engine of change in living beings. Later, with the advances in genetics, mutation was added to the theory as the source of the variations on which natural selection would act. The mutation-natural selection binomial thus became the main mechanism proposed for biological diversity. Do mutation and natural selection have the creative capacity assigned to them? Can they transform an organism into a different one by means of small changes accumulated over a long period of time? Are there other natural mechanisms that can do the job?

Solving a Fossil Mystery

Have you ever encountered someone who sees things that are not actually there? This can be a problem among those looking for dinosaur footprints. What one person thinks is a footprint might just seem like erosion on a rock to others. How can we tell the difference between “fake” and real dinosaur footprints? Watch to find out.

DNA and design

DNA is the hereditary material and the molecule that contains the information to make all cellular proteins. Proteins, in turn, are very complex organic molecules that perform multiple cellular functions, including copying, reading and translating DNA. In this webinar we briefly explain how this sophisticated DNA-protein system works, and discover that it is a fascinating example of information, complexity and interdependence in living things that clearly points to an intelligent designer.

Related Videos

Complexity and Interdependency

Design In Fossil Organisms

Raúl Esperante - Dinosaurs, Fossils, and The Flood

What do Fossils Tell Us?

Complexity and Interdependency

Natural Selection and Altruism

Leonard R. Brand - Science, Evolution, and Fossils

Noemí Durán - Natural Selection, Epigenetics, and Environment

Timothy Standish - Mutations, Darwin, and Theory of Evolution

Noemí Durán - In the Beginning, There Was Love

The Theory of Evolution

Solving a Fossil Mystery

DNA and design

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