Monday, 31 October 2011

Evolution vs. Creation Debate

Throughout history mankind has struggled to explain how the universe came into existence. Over time many ideas and assumptions have been conceived in an attempt to explain just how the universe was formed. Throughout the ages many of these ideas have been disproved yet many are continuing to undergo scientific investigation. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The creation vs. evolution debate is a question of origins. It concerns the question of how man, as well as animals and plants came to exist in their present form, whether they were created as they currently are by the intelligent design of a Creator, or they evolved through natural selection from primitive life forms. Obviously these two models are overly simplified, and there are several theories behind either of them.

How did we get here? Were we created or did we evolve randomly? Are we the product of purposeful intelligence or are we merely the end result of countless cosmic accidents? Does it even matter?


Sunday, 2 October 2011

Research Question

"The universe is a cosmic accident and does not display intelligent design"



REVISED RESEARCH QUESTION:

"Creationists and Scientists can agree about the origin of the universe"



Proposed Search/Research Strategy

SEARCH TOOLS

The search strategy that I will use to answer the hypothesis question will be to use a number of keywords to search in encyclopedias, library catalogues and online databases as well as informative and authoritative websites.

I will access various encyclopedias and online databases using the eResources available through the State Library of NSW.



SOURCES

  • Encyclopedia Britannica
  • World Book
  • Proquest - Science and Technology
  • Science Reference Centre
  • Subject specific books
  • Relevant authoritative websites


SEARCH TERMS

The keywords that I will use in my searches are "universe", "cosmology", "big bang" and "creation". I will take many different approaches in searching for these words and try to search for every angle of the subject matter.

Library of Congress subject heading searches will include:

  • Universe
  • Big Bang
  • Creation
  • Astronomy -- research
  • Cosmology -- research
  • Life -- origin



I am mindful that there may also be synonyms and related terms of these keywords too and will research these also so that my search will be insightful.


I will make certain that the resources I use to investigate the subject will be in plain language and easy to read and avoid articles use overly scientific or difficult to understand terms and language. With consideration to all the above I hope to with some supportive and interesting information on the origin of the universe.

Concept Map

I have created the following concept map as a visual introduction to my research topic. I anticipate that it will assist me in researching my topic more thoroughly.


The Origin of the Universe

The universe is the whole cosmic system of matter and energy of which earth is part. The universe includes earth, everything on earth and within it, and everything in the solar system. The solar system contains the sun and the planets that orbit it along with millions of smaller bodies, such as comets, asteroids, and meteoroids.

Is the universe eternal? Has it always been here? Or did it have a start at some point in time? For thousands of years philosophers, theologians and scientists have debated the question of the origin of the universe. Many have avoided it as an impenetrable mystery. Others have tried to define it away. This debate has revolved around two basic questions. First, is the universe eternal and therefore "uncaused," or did the universe have a beginning in time and space?

If nothing happens without a cause, then something must have caused the universe to appear. But then the inevitable question of what caused that something. One evasive tactic is to claim that the universe didn't have a beginning, that it has existed for all eternity. However, there are many scientific reasons why this obvious idea is unsound.

The universe had an absolute beginning. It came from something. This something, however, cannot be a something like the things around us with their fragile hold on existence. It must be conceived as the source or foundation of Existence.

When faced with the question of the origins of the universe there are two possible options. We can say it came from nothing, or we can say that it came from something, a something when posed leads to all sorts of philosophical and religious questions.

There are only two legitimate options for the origin of the universe:



1) The universe made itself (Random Chance)

2) Someone made the universe (Intelligent Design)


Before the 1920s, most people believed that the universe did not have a beginning. People thought the universe was eternal. In the 1920s however, new facts from science made people question the standard view of the universe.

By 1929, the picture was changing. Edwin Hubble was discovering other galaxies, and found that the farther away they were, the more the light from them was shifted towards the red end of the spectrum, an effect known as the Doppler Effect, indicating that they were moving away and the universe was therefore expanding. Physicists like Alexander Friedmann and George LemaĆ®tre and others had uncovered Einstein’s apparent mistake with regard his theory of general relativity.

In cosmology, it was the big bang versus steady state. The "big bang" theory was thought to be false by people who accepted the "steady state" theory of the universe. A new finding in 1965 gave the big bang theory a new boost. At the very least, the big bang theory may explain how and when the universe began. Today it is by far the most popular theory in science today and has moved to the forefront of cosmology.

Science ultimately cannot explain the universe's beginnings because it cannot go that far back. Science can only explain what is here now and even that is speculative.

Theories such as these are often based on the assumption that the universe cannot have "come out of nothing". Theories stating that earth and its life forms were created by a God are referred to as creationism. One of the oldest theories about where it all began suggests that a God exists and that it was this God who created the universe.

In religion, it was the Judeo-Christian creation of the world versus the Hindu-Eastern repetitions of endless cycles. Some in the Judeo-Christian tradition put more stock in God as sustainer, Thus, the affirmative creative act of the Judeo-Christian God may bring the universe into being by a creation from nothing (creatio ex nihilo) or it may be a continuing creative sustaining of the universe (creation continua), or both.

There are many areas that the statement "what is the origin of the universe" has difficulty explaining and providing answers for, and even though I am a way off ascertaining a theory which explains the origin of the universe, I will attempt to discern through much research, the most truthful and accurate theory of the origin of the universe.