Looking for your best argument for evolution/against creation.

Simply: the evidence is overwhelming.

We know that:

  • the Earth is old, due to a number of separate but agreeing methods of dating.
  • mutations happen.
  • some mutations are favoured over others.
  • populations of organisms become isolated for a variety of reasons.
  • over long periods of time, genetic differences between isolated populations accumulate.
  • with large genetic differences between organisms , it becomes difficult and eventually impossible for interbreeding (see ligers or mules as "border" examples.)

And so on.

You know those paternity tests they do on the Maury Povich show to determine whether some guy is indeed the father of some kid? That same technology can be used to test whether two people are cousins, or if they are from the same ethnic group, or if they are from different continents. That same technology can be used to determine whether your ancestors interbred with Neanderthals or not. That same technology can be used to determine how closely related you are to any other living organism on the planet, whether it's your first cousin, a chimp, a great white shark, or a banana. If you compare a large number of pairs of organisms and put them together, you get a tree - a family tree.

This family tree closely agrees with the fossil record.

This cross-checking happens everywhere in biology: the theory is used to make testable predictions about what should be true if evolution is true. When scientists test these predictions, they are comparing the idea of evolution with reality. So far, it matches incredibly well. It is the current best explanation for the variety of life on this planet.

Our understanding of evolution is also very useful. Not only does it help us learn more about the history of life on this planet, it also helps us solve practical problems in fields like ecology and immunology. It's no wonder that John Marburger, George W Bush's science advisor, once remarked that evolution is the cornerstone of modern biology.

/r/DebateAnAtheist Thread