Irreducible Complexity
From ResearchID.org
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Introduction (?)
Irreducible Complexity is a characteristic of systems "wherein the removal of any one of the parts causes the system to effectively cease functioning."[1]
According to William Dembski in his No Free Lunch, Irreducible Complexity is explained as:
- "A system performing a given basic function is irreducibly complex if it includes a set of well-matched, mutually interacting, non-arbitrarily individuated parts such that each part in the set is indispensable to maintaining the system's basic, and therefore original, function. The set of these indispensable parts is known as the irreducible core of the system."[2]
Michael Behe has also proposed a definition applicable to evolutionary pathways:
- "An irreducibly complex evolutionary pathway is one that contains one or more unselected steps (that is, one or more necessary-but-unselected mutations). The degree of irreducible complexity is the number of unselected steps in the pathway."[3]
What does this loss of function mean for biological adaptation? Certain biological structures in nature exhibit a specific type of interdependence between parts which could elude current evolutionary explanation. Understanding Irreducible Complexity could bring clarity to the nature of these structures.
See: IC List for a list of Irreducibly complex components.
Type (?)
Level (?)
ALL (Undergraduate, Graduate, Doctorate, Postdoctorate)
Definition (?)
Research and study resources concerning Irreducible Complexity and contribute to this body of knowledge.
Objectives (?)
- Find biological structures which can be classified as Irreducibly Complex.
- Define the relationships between evolutionary mechanisms and structures which exhibit Irreducible Complexity.
Questions (?)
- Are there structures in living organisms which are Irreducibly Complex?
- What structures are candidates?
- What role might direct or indirect evolutionary mechanisms have in the development of Irreducibly Complex structures?
Keywords (?)
Irreducible Complexity, biological structure, biological function, mutation, cooption, evolvability, evolutionary mechanisms, biochemical systems, selection pressures, adaptation, exaptation, coevolution
Monographs (?)
- Darwin's Black Box, Dr. Michael Behe, 1996, ISBN 0743290313.
- No Free Lunch, Dr. William Dembski, 2001, ISBN 0742512975.
- Signs of Intelligence: Understanding Intelligent Design, William A. Dembski and James M. Kushiner (Eds.), 2001, ISBN 1587430045.
- The Design Revolution, William Dembski, 2004, ISBN 0830823751.
eResources (?)
- Irreducible Complexity -- ISCID "Encyclopedia of Science and Philosophy" article]
- Irreducible Complexity Revisited -- Document on DesignInference.com
- Molecular Machines -- Michael Behe at ARN.org]
- Irreducible Complexity Revisited -- Mike Gene at IDthink.net
- Irreducible Complexity: What it is and Popular Misconceptions: "crevo"
- The Miracle of Co-option -- Critical thinking on co-option by GilDodgen at UncommonDescent.com
Criticism (?)
- Evolution in (Brownian) space: A model for the origin of the bacterial flagellum, 2003, by N. J. Matzke
- Irreducible Complexity and Michael Behe: Do Biochemical Machines Show Intelligent Design? From TalkOrigins.org
- A Darwinian explanation of the blood clotting cascade by Kenneth Miller
- Irreducible (Complexity) - A Formal Definition, a mathematical analysis of the concept of irreducible complexity by Mishkin Berteig.
- Cataloguing Criticisms of Specified Complexity: ISCID Brainstorms Micah Sparacio Member 6, 12. April 2003
- From The Origin of Species to the origin of bacterial flagella MJ Pallen & NJ Matzke, Nat. Rev. Microbiol. 2006 Sep 5.
Status (?)
Current
Dr. Michael Behe, Lehigh University, Discovery Institute
Extend (?)
- Are there different types of Irreducible Complexity?
- Can different fields identify Irreducible Complexity in their subjects?
- Are there other non-biological systems in the universe that are Irreducibly Complex?
- Are there cosmological systems which are Irreducibly Complex? Galactical systems? Stellar systems? Planetary systems?
- Are there geological systems related to Privileged Planet research that are Irreducibly Complex?
Searches
- Irreducible complexity: Google Scholar
- Irreducible complexity: Google Books
- PubMed enter Irreducible complexity
Related (?)
References and notes
- ↑ Behe MJ (1996) Darwin's Black Box. ISBN 0684834936, p.39.
- ↑ Dembski, WA (2001) No Free Lunch, ISBN 0742512975, p. 285.
- ↑ Behe, MJ (2002) "A Response to Critics of Darwin’s Black Box." PCID, Vol. 1.1, January-March, 2002; http://www.iscid.org.
