is evolution a scientific fact?

Answer 1

no, it's still a theory, meaning it's the best guess we have but we haven't been able to prove it conclusively.

Answer 2

The trouble with evolution is that it really does require a good understanding of such things as sources of variation in living organisms, the tendency for living organisms to produce far too many offspring, and that environments are always changing, to be able to really get the picture. Throw in more information about genes, gene pools and mutated genes and you'll be even better informed and should be able to be able to decide for yourself.

The term 'selection of the fittest' often used in describing evolution has nothing to do with training type fitness. The 'fittest' are those individuals in a variable population which are best equipped to handle the prevailing environmental conditions - and therefore are most likely to live long enough to have babies which themselves would be more likely than otherwise to possess the same qualities of the parents. So long as the environment stays the same, that's how things will stay, but if the environment changes, evolution will change direction and so the individuals which were fittest before may not be any longer. That in a nutshell is how evolution works.

Yes there are billions/trillions of scientific evidences which leaves absolutely NO room for doubt:

- EVOLUTION BY NATURAL SELECTION IS TRUE

Answer 3

There is no such thing as scientific fact there is just scientific theory, Ok we can be 99.99999% sure that evolution is correct, I mean what intelligent person doesn't believe it, but we must remember that most science theories are just that ..theories and as our culture progresses so does our understanding of the natural world and has been shown through-out history so to does what we believe as scientific fact. For example in medieveal times medicine was based on the principle of the four humours whereas now we know it is down to germs ,bacteria etc. So while learning the science of today we should still be aware of the fact that we don't know everything and that the things we think we do know may change as new discoveries are made and we learn more about life the universe and everything.

Answer 4

A scientific fact? Facts are facts, being scientific doesn't make them more certain. Evolution is just a scientific theory that works. If you look at other scientific theories eg Newton's Theory of motion it was 'true' for about 400 years until Einstein came along and showed where it was wrong. Relativity is still a great theory but scientists keep chipping away at it to find out things it cannot explain.

What I am trying to say is that scientist keep investigating theories to show they are wrong, then they need a better one. Now evolution works. That IS a fact. The question really is 'Does it always work?'

Well, so far no one has shown that evolution is wrong, but that does not mean that there is no God. We do know that there are going to be questions we can't explain for a long time ,but that doesn't mean that evolution is wrong either,

Incidentally it seems to me that people who think that our feeble attempts to get to know this fabulously complex and intricate world can show there is no God are a little short on faith.

Answer 5

Evolution is a scientifically valid theory which basically explains how change occurs over time in a population of living organisms. It has been proven a fact on a small scale - diseases becoming resistant to drugs that once easily treated them, germs becoming resistant to disinfectants, insect populations surviving against poisons once used to kill them off, even the finches that Darwin studied on the Galapogos islands have exhibited changes today that were not evident during Darwin's time.

Macro-evolution (how one distinct species gives rise to another) however has a lot of holes in it, which may or may not be filled with valid evidence or explanation. As such, Evolution will remain a theory.

For the record - trying to ignore or fill these holes by the power of the all-mighty (creationism, intelligent design, etc) is not by any means scientific.

Answer 6

Evolution is about as close to a scientific fact as you can have for something that isn't directly observable and repeatable.

The only theories which I'd call fact are those which can be tested repeatedly. And even those are only fact within the domain of points which have been tested. Bible-beaters generally admit to something they call "micro-evolution", the evolution of species in short time scales by strong selective pressure or selective breeding. "macro-evolution" or evolution from life to non-life or between species requires us to examine the historic fossil record and many other things. We can't do it in a laboratory, because it takes too long.

Evolution requires us to draw conclusions based on circumstantial evidence. Extremely compelling evidence, but not really fact.

Still, evolution is overwhelmingly likely to be correct, and there is no viable alternative hypothesis. Don't let creationists get away with the knock that evolution is "just a theory". That argument just betrays their ignorance of the scientific method.

Answer 7

Yes. It is in as much as anything scientific can be because science is based on theories. Scientific "facts" are only there until a better theory comes up and is tested.

The facts are what we can see and measure. The theory of evolution seems to fit these facts better than other theories.

Answer 8

Yes. Evolution simply means a change in allele frequency over time, what creationists and intelligent design people call, " micro-evolution " It has been observed and tested. I think what you mean is, " the theory of evolution by natural selection ". What scientists call speciation and creationists and intelligent design people call " macro evolution ". This is theory, but do not misunderstand theory. A collection of facts supporting an explanation of a natural phenomenon. Theories can be refined to ever sharper points. Take Newtons theories; they were not replaced by Einsteins theories, as some would have you believe, we still use them for normal earth bound computations. Einsteins theory was a sharpening and a completing of Newton's theories. Such is the way with speciation theory. It has been refined since the day of Darwin, but it is still the same, basic theory and the corner stone of all biology.

Answer 9

Yes, it is a fact that evolution happens.

There is also a theory of evolution, which explains _how_ evolution happens. In the same way as there is a fact of gravity - things fall to the ground - and a theory which states how things fall.

In science, there isn't some sort of ladder with 'theory' underneath 'fact'. Theories never become facts - they're different things. Facts are observations, and theories explain the facts.

We have observed creatures evolving, so this is a fact. The theory of evolution explains how.

For an excellent explanation, see the Talkorigins archive, especially this page, Evolution is a Fact and a Theory: http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/evolution-fact.html

Answer 10

As much as there are any facts in science, evolution is a fact. It has been demonstrated, repeatedly, in laboratories. The fossil record with its vast number of transitional forms is a fact. Evolution occurs. The mechanism - how evolution works - is a theory.

A theory is as good as it gets in science. You should never say "only a theory" as ignorant creationists do. It is proudly a theory, up there with gravity, electricity, electromagnetism. relativity, germ theory of disease and all the rest.

There is more and stronger evidence for evolution than there is for gravity so why don't people object to the theories of gravity? The germ theory of disease goes completely against Biblical teaching on the spread of illness so why don't Biblical literalists insist that Biblical medicine be taught in our hospitals and medical schools?

There is a huge amount of information out there in support of evolution. Against it are Biblical literalists who seem to think their faith is threatened. They discourage the teaching of science and the lack of scientific knowledge among creationists is appalling. There is no science in creationism. Take a look at the Index to Creationist Claims
http://talkorigins.org/indexcc/list.html
to see some of the lies being spread by so-called Christians

As a theory, evolution has more evidence than many others and at this stage there is no other idea that explains all the evidence as well as evolution does.

Answer 11

If you know anything about science, you'll know that there is no such thing as "fact". This is the single most important tenet of modern science.

Hypotheses are tested through experiment and become theories when evidence suggests a hypothesis to be true. If _anything_ can be shown to contradict the theory then it is not valid in its current form and must be re-worked.

Evolution is a THEORY. Evidence has shown the hypothesis of evolution to be true. There is no contradictory evidence which would disprove the theory of evolution so it remains a working theory.

I hope this clears a few things up.
Cheers.