The Ghost of Paley

Posts: 1703 Joined: Oct. 2005
|
Following up on my comments, I see this amusing quotation from the Krauss et al. paper:
Quote | The following cases of nested intron distributions are particularly informative. First, intron 212-1 was found in several species of animals, fungi, and protists. The nearby intron position 212-0 was identified only in angiosperm plants and may demarcate a monophyletic group of plants, because the intron 212-1 had been very likely lost before an intron 212-0 was evolved. Second, intron 127-2 was detected in protists, in some animals, and in one fungi (the basidiomycet Cryptococcus).[Paley's emphases] |
Notice, however, that Figure 5 assumes/posits intron positions 127-2 and 212-1 as ancestral to all species in its clade. It appears that wild conjectures serve as the phylogenetic equivalent of plaster of Paris. This collapses most of the nested hierarchy, as once again I demonstrate scientists's lust for proving evolution by assuming evolution. But I'm sure your response will be more na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na Darwin! It's nice to see algae and nematodes grouped together: this supports my model. For the insect grouping that does appear to support Darwinism, this probably arose to the tight geographic sampling:Quote | Species trapped in the vicinity of Leipzig (Sachsen, Germany) were Lithobius forficatus (centipede), Oniscus asellus (woodlouse), Enallagma cyathigerum (damselfly), Forficula auricularia (earwig). and Aphis sambuci (aphid). Arthropods captured around Ruhla (Thüringen, Germany) were Araneus quadratus (spider), Cercopis vulnerata (cicada), and Scoliopterix libatrix (butterfly). Allacma fusca (springtail) was trapped near Ilsenburg (Sachsen-Anhalt, Germany), and Lepismachilis spp. (bristletail) was found in the vicinity of Pfarrwerfen (Salzburg, Austria). |
Wow, no chance for gene transfer there. One last thing: notice the sparse taxon sampling. So in summary, the paper fails to achieve its goal due to circular reasoning, probable horizontal transfer, and goofy relationships. Better luck next time.......
-------------- Dey can't 'andle my riddim.
|