Dawkins: Lecture 3. Climbing Mount Improbable (4of 8)

[entehrend]

anyone mind telling me why no one has commented on this in a year?

[Mahewston]

Wow, this is cool!

[mmontana]

Sincere thanks for posting this series of lectures...truly a public service.

Is it my imagination or is Dawkins the victim of an organized coughing chorus?

Since it goes on unacknowledged, I imagine this is not a new phenomenon for him to deal with during a public speaking engagement.

[RobertParkinson]

there are actually three types of cone cell, each sensitive to a primary color, red, blue, and green (not a primary physical color but a primary color in terms of light). we see color by combining the images of there three types of cell just as your computer screen produces color by combing red, blue, and Green light levels.

[RobertParkinson]

quite simple realy. of course it is of benefit to be able to see colors, to tell for example ripe fruit form new fruit so we have established a reason to go forward. then all it took was a gradual mutation of light receptive cells (known as cones, the see color, and rods that see black and white (used in low light)) this may have taken many years but once a single cone cell arrived its influence was positive and so it survived. this was passed on to offspring (propagated) and multiplied

[oregonmilitiaman]

anyone mind telling me how we evolved into being able to see colors?

[DrMontague]

Go and research it.

[Dymdez]

I'm not positive myself but I know that colors are frequencies of visible light. So I assume just like a radio receives radio frequencies, the eye receives light frequencies. ROYGBIV

[victimlesscriminal]

Religious people who avoid science not only miss out on the enriching facts about our world - they also rob humanity of their help in improving the world for future generations.

Millions of people are born with no expectation of an education above that which they will get from some ignorant religious bigot. It's such a terrible waste of so many people's potential. There have been, are and will be unknown and unknowable Darwins & Einsteins buried under the greedy and blind monster of religion.

[oregonmilitiaman]

I'm a Christian, and science is one of my best classess. nuff said.

[ambir]

apparently not 'nuff said. I was a christian and was taught to hate science and to never take biology seriously. I guess living from the bible literally, i learned to hate peoeple like Richard Dawkins who would try to instill doubt in me about what I believed.

"Stone them to death because they were trying to lead you away from the LORD your God..." Deuteronomy 13

I so wish I paid more attention to this stuff in high school rather than just dismiss it as contrary to what "God said".

[imabeastnimadawg]

This presentation of the eye is by far the best i have seen and it most clearly displays the uses of 'intermediate' organs

[alliswel]

Agreed.

[Clausfarre]

This a like a coffee break during a busy day. Getting science spoonfed, while being lazy. Love it.

[bluecobalt27]

Mount Improbable is a paper-mache masterpiece. The Blue Peter team would have been proud of it.

[ark1588]

Sean D Pitman gives an excellent description of the eye and some of the difficulties with RD's presentation (see googol).

Very few things are irreducible ,in nature or otherwise ,that may not be the best starting point for validation of evolutionary theory of the living world .

[DrMontague]

The theory of evolution has become so popular and so pervasive that it is difficult for anyone to question it without being branded as, "ignorant, stupid, or insane." (Pitman)

I've read Pitman. He is either ignorant, stupid, or insane

[bluecobalt27]

Hahahaha.

Fabulous put-down. You actually made me laugh out loud. :P

[MaxSafeheaD]

LOL

[ega1mann]

I really like the mountain/hills analogy

[Erech01]

one of his books s named after it its really good:) answers common creanitist questions like 'how did wings evolve' or 'how did eyes evolve'

[Celtic1433]

Oh, and many, many thanks to the good Dr. for all of these fantastic lectures.

Cheers.

[Celtic1433]

Creationists forget that it is not only them who try to disprove evolution. Evolution has been torn apart by all of science in the hope of coming up with a better explanation. It's called the scientific process. Also known as "young scientists trying to make a name for themselves". If evolution can survive the pressure of hundreds of years of this, then we can safely assume that it is a reliable and robust theory.

God is just pretend...

Love.

[BayerLexan]

That was just an incredible demonstration. If every school was able to explain things with so much visual aid (I just realized the pun, sorry), I think people would be able to understand things so much better. As having dabbled in computer programing, the idea of building upon simple componets is the fundamental idea. I never made anything very elaborate, but it gives you a great apreciation of how such advanced programs are able to do such complex things, just like with evolution.

[JeefCakes]

I love Youtube for stuff like this. I was never really interested in stuff like this at school, but these lectures have seriously got me hooked. My mind craves answers and repulses the lies I've been raised on. Anyone know where I can buy these lectures incase they ever leave Youtube?

[DrMontague]

Visit dawkins official website. Simply type in a search. They have just recently been released on DVD. Try amazon and similar sites as well.

[y0utubeebutu0y]

You can download the whole series on the net. There's a torrent of this series at torrentspy dot com. Search for Growing Up in the Universe.

[lamnaa]

last year the did maths! The antartica ones were better for 2005.

[StampotMetJus]

Thanks for the crystal clear explanation.

I also find them highly entertaining.

Is there a way to find more of this type of scientific lectures on Youtube?

[DrMontague]

click on my user name(DrMontague)and then playlists

[DrMontague]

I've also got more xmas lectures to upload. Not Dawkins but interesting science.

[DrMontague]

For creationists to upload these vids to them mean doing the devil's own work, their thinking is pathetic. Come creationists prove me wrong! Let's see links to these vids on your creationists web sites! Let me see u upload them. If other think I don't allow alternate views then check out my uploaded vid 'The creation:science v Religion Documentary.

[DrMontague]

I do NOT deny them their freedom of speech, I only make them work for it. I simply ask them to download these vids and upload them so they can then make all the comments they want. Not one creationist has took up this challenge thus indicating they would ban these vids. Therefore they have NO freedom of speech on my uploaded vids.

[DrMontague]

B4Hecomes can not answer u back as I have blocked him.I block creationists because they do not believe in freedom of speech or free thinking. They would have these vids banned if they had their way.

[robertvr222]

Montague, I think blocking the creationists isn't a good idea. The obvious reason is that you're just playing their game, but the better reason is that you're censoring their opinions. And their opinions are so ridiculously misinformed and pathetic, that it only does science and the debate (evolution vs. creationism) a disservice.

[DrMontague]

I do allow their comments if they genuinely seek answers. I just don't allow those creationist who reply with comments such as 'Huh that doesn't prove anything' type attitude. This is after a user has spent alot of time putting an intelligent argument together. If they have the Kent Hovind mentality of pig headed ignorance they can upload the vids themselves.

[DrMontague]

btw Richard Dawkins doesn't give the type of creationists I've mentioned a public platform. I welcome all comments. But Kent Hovind time wasters will be blocked. I will find the comments of some creationists I have allowed.

[robertvr222]

I understand...Thank you very much for these videos DrMontague. Really appreciate it.

[jayancherian]

Thank you DrMontague for posting, and thank you Professor Dawkins for doing what you do.

[Hollinka]

Thankyou so much for posting this, I had never before understood how an eye could evolve.

[AstarothCY]

Such an elegant destruction of the Irreducable Complexity "argument".

[higgism]

Thanks again, Montague.

[2Dlion]

do you know what evidence is? Evidence isn't faith, its something you can see, touch and re-create. Wtf can you do? Go create a miracle for us all and go away forever.

[2Dlion]

we deny creationism because it has no evidence you ....MOTHERFUCKING little hypocrit. YOURE are the one to speak of PRIDE?! The ARROGANCE of this prick is mind blowing, you call US zombies??? LOOK around your church next time you fucking blind moron. What a waste of space you are. I'm saddened that nature allowed such a fuckface to have evolved.

[b4Hecomes]

"The fool hath said in his heart there is no God." What do you say, DrNotaclue?

[2Dlion]

"The fool hath said in his heart there is God."

[engiskhan]

Are you implying that evolutionists deny creationism because of fear? That is ridiculous. You Christians are the ones governed by fear. You are so afraid to see that one day you are going to die. Who is the coward, the person that can face that or the person that insists upon believing a fairy tale of eternal life?

[b4Hecomes]

Hey, you evolutionists down there! You are looking for me on the wrong mountain. I am up here on "Mount Reality" enjoying God's grand creation! You will never know the wonder of creation without knowing the Great Creator!

[b4Hecomes]

How about this evidence: 4 1/2 billion years of evolution on this earth. Myriads of dinosaur fossils found, many complete skeletons (even one T-Rex with soft tissue still in the bone, unfossilized), yet there has not been one trasitional fossil found to date. There would have to be billions, upon billions! Where are they? Just one, that's all.

[DrMontague]

b4Hecomes is one of natures mistakes. He stuck on one of those little peaks at the bottom of mount improbable so don't try and educate him. Remember what Dawkins said 'the rule of evolution is that u can't go back down and then back up the mountain again. once u start u can only go up hill. b4Hecomes is trapped on a little peak so let him talk to someone on his wave length i'e. a slug. He believes that there was a talking snake in a garden of Eden

[DrMontague]

ahhh u been hiding from me b4Hecomes

Hi amarbleinspace just to let u know that this creationist cretin can't tell his arse from his elbow.

check my other Dawkin vids. Look at the comments and u will c what an imbacile b4Hecomes really is. You'll get a good laugh.

[amarbleinspace]

b4ecomes. well he cant very well demonstrate the hundreds of thousands of generations that it took now can he? use your brain (hundreds of thousands of generations) +(millions of years) it was gradual and it took a long long time. you should look evolution up on wikipedia. if i am surprised by somthing within science then i look it up, i read about it and guess what their honest brokers; there really are sensible reasons for why they think things no matter how absurd they may first seem.

[b4Hecomes]

Are you saying that in spite of "hundreds of thousands of GENERATIONS" of these species and not one transitional fossil have been found? At Wikipedia I found words like "traditionally considered", "estimated", "hotly contested." Every so called link has been debunked as fraudulant. Give me a website that I can go to.

[jkun17]

maybe if you learned how fossils were made you'd understand why it's so difficult to find fossil specimens of any creature

also, lack of evidence does not amount to disproof, it's simply lack of evidence

[DrMontague]

I know what you mean. Dumb arse creationists expect that fossil should be as extremely well ordered, as if it's like simply going to the library. If you want a horror story you go to to the horror section,if you want crime story you go to the crime section and so on. Or perhaps they think that living creatures went around looking for an ideal place to die and so become part of the fossil record. Creationists are not thinkers, they have minds like Swiss cheese!

[b4Hecomes]

Evolution of the eye! And we get to watch it all right here. These videos are amazingly devoid of science of any kind. Does anyone really believe this?

[theinquisitor]

What kind of evidence would be required to prove evolution to you? Would anything short of a time machine ride into the past be enough?

[b4Hecomes]

How about a single, that's "ONE", transitional fossils! Oh yea, I forgot that in the light of the absence of one, now evolutionists say that changes happened so fast that there are none. Lots of dinosaurs tough!

[theinquisitor]

There are so many that scientists get into argumemts about whether to call some species mammal-like reptiles or reptile-like mammals. You are very very misinformed.

[b4Hecomes]

Type in the website address so I can read it. I would love to get to input from any evolutionist, as I have yet to recieve any.

[theinquisitor]

Unfortunately youtube wont let me post links in a comment, however there are numerous good documentaries about evolution on google video. If you search for "Ken Miller" you'll find a 2 hour lecture rebutting intelligent design. Search for "Blind Watchmaker" and you'll find Dawkins talking about evolution. With that search you'll also find daniel dennet, he's a very interesting philosopher talking about consciousness.

[theinquisitor]

Another one is if you search for "hovind shermer" you'll find a debate between Kent Hovind (a creationist) and Michael Shermer (from skeptic magazine) about evolution. You might be able to find these on youtube too. google video is: video dot google dot com