WORLD - Intelligent Life on Earth a Fluke?
An influential scientific thesis—called the “hard steps” theory and first presented in 1983—has held […] that the emergence of technological-level intelligent life on Earth or elsewhere was highly improbable. But perhaps this result was not so unlikely after all, according to scientists who are now advancing an alternative theory.
Physicist Brandon Carter devised the hard steps theory. It stresses that the long road to the emergence of humankind necessitated passage through various intermediate steps, each highly unlikely.
Over the years, scientists have tried to identify some of these hard steps. These include the emergence of single-celled living organisms on primordial Earth, the initial oxygenation of the atmosphere by photosynthesis, the evolutionary transition from prokaryotic cells that lack a nucleus and other internal structures to eukaryotic cells that have them, and the appearance of complex organisms such as multicellular animals.
The new theory was devised by a team of two geobiologists and two astronomers.
“Biological innovations proposed as hard or unlikely might actually occur quickly—geologically speaking—as soon as the environment permits,” said Penn State microbiologist Jennifer Macalady, one of the researchers.
“Understanding the probability of intelligent life emerging helps us understand our own place in the world,” said Dan Mills, a postdoctoral researcher in geomicrobiology at the University of Munich and lead author of the study published in the journal Science Advances. “Are we humans a cosmic fluke, as the hard steps model predicts? Or are we instead the more expected and typical outcome of a living planet, as our alternative framework suggests?”
-www.reuters.com, 14 February 2025
Arno's Commentary
While we respect true science, we caution against “science falsely so called” (1 Timothy 6:20b). We notice the words, “improbable … perhaps … alternative theory … unlikely … probability.” That does not indicate true science.
When it comes to evolution—which today is overwhelmingly accepted at virtually all levels of higher education—it is still a theory.
Here are three simple ways to contradict the theory of evolution:
1. Information. Here we point to Dr. Werner Gitt’s book Information. He argues scientifically that “life has never come from non-life.” Dr. John Sanford, university professor of genetic engineering, pioneer, and inventor of the “gene gun,” testifies about Gitt’s book: “Dr. Gitt’s central thesis is profound that information is a non-material entity foundational to all life and can never arise spontaneously from strictly materialistic processes.” Gitt has challenged leading universities to disprove his central thesis. After many years, he is still waiting for an answer.
In plain words, evolutionary theory teaches that once upon a time, one rock spoke to another and said, “Let us exchange information.” That’s not science.
2. Age. True science confirms that age deteriorates. That’s applicable to vegetation, animals, humans, and all physical material. Older people experience this more practically when looking into a mirror. Evolution, in short, says age renews. That’s not science.
3. Soil. This is something simply most of us experience on a daily basis when passing construction sites. Giant, earth-moving equipment removes the topsoil. Interestingly, it measures about 50-80 cm (20-30 in). Where does topsoil come from? Vegetation. A Google search attempts to explain that the formation of one inch of topsoil can take 500 to 1,000 years, depending upon climate, topography, bedrock, and living organism. These statements are not based on true science but on estimations. One thing becomes apparent: If, for example, planet earth has existed for 100,000 years, then on average there should be 133 inches of topsoil (about 11 feet). In summary, go to the nearby woods where no human activity has been recorded, dig through the topsoil, and one will find the young earth to be scientifically true.
It is always best to rely on Scripture: “And God said, Let there be light: and there was light” (Genesis 1:3). “God said”—that is information, without which nothing could exist. In verse 2 we read: “And the earth was without form, and void…” The spoken Word of God created order. Here, the first three verses of John 1 are applicable: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.”
Arno Froese is the executive director of Midnight Call Ministries and editor-in-chief of the acclaimed prophetic magazines Midnight Call and News From Israel. He has authored a number of well-received books, and has sponsored many prophecy conferences in the U.S., Canada, and Israel. His extensive travels have contributed to his keen insight into Bible prophecy, as he sees it from an international perspective.
