the critical notion with the development of complex machines (eye, flight, etc)is that it requires a large number of gene modifications to get from eyeless or flightless to compound eyes and articulated wings.
The argument of incremental evolutionary change is that each of the increments (sometimes unrelated) must provide an advantage. One does not evolve and maintain a gene for enabling pupil dilation if they have not yet a pupil.
This notion, that it takes a bunch of pieces, worthless independently, to build a complex machine that underpins the ideas of "intelligent design".
The best argument for intelligent design comes not from fundamentalists, but Darwin. Darwin's treatise (an appendix in On the Origin of the Species), well-describes the incremental advantages of each stage of development of a complex machine, they eye. Although articulated wing-based flight is complicated, they eye IMO dwarfs it as a study point for complex machine development within the paradigm of incremental change.
Occasionally a particular advantage is massive, and is such situations the species explodes onto the scene.
Upright walking, much more efficient than knuckle dragging, enabling massive distances, multimedia hunting, was such a development. If you were large game and Homo erectus got you in the cross-hairs, it was pretty much over. Upright walking, a pelvis designed for miles instead of trees and power, and of course, the loss of body hair and development of advanced sweat glands.
It is incrementally sound. Climate change reduced the value of swinging in trees. So onto the ground. On the ground more bipedal mobility became valuable (based on out starting point as tree swingers). Heat became an issue. Hair loss. Sweat glands. Complex spacial reasoning of a different sort than tree swinging, and a critical mutation in a gene that determines jaw size and placement begot real estate for huge brains.
Huge brains require massive amounts of calories. 25% of our calories are to feed the brain. It is a massive calorie sink. So, plants will no longer do, we need MEAT. Upright, sweat-based air-conditioning, and a brain to track you till you drop. Homo erecutus exploded, but the trigger was an upright pelvis (IMO).
The jaw mutation was fortuitous, but rapidly leveraged. Hair loss was likely pretty brutal, a few mutants with less, the rest dying of heat exhaustion.
Genetics support the notion that the choke points for human evolution were severe, near extinction. But when Homo erectus got a big brain, and decent air conditioner, and an upright posture in the same building, its been all down-hill since then.
Yes, Wave is unable to observe incremental value. IS the Win8 server debacle a consequence of throwing money at mobile and sales? Have they not yet nailed the PC?
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