Page 168 - Once Upon a Time There Was Darwinism

they lived in, or the selective forces to which they were sub-
jected could be tested empirically. The outcome is the evolu-
tionary scenario or, rather more pejoratively, the "Just-so
Story". 118
The subject that Patterson and Kemp deal with—that
"just-so stories" cannot be tested and therefore have no scien-
tific value—is only one aspect of the problem. A second, per-

haps more important, aspect is that apart from the fact that
Once Upon a Time There Was Darwinism
these stories have no scientific support, they are impossible
nonsense.
To explain why, let us return to the story of the "homi-
noids that started to walk on two feet."
Jean Baptiste Lamarck invented this myth in the unso-
phisticated scientific world of 150 years ago. However, mod-

ern genetics has shown that a characteristic acquired over a
lifetime is not passed down to the next generation. The rele-
vance of this lies in the supposition that the so-called ances-
tors of human beings evolved with characteristics they had
acquired during their lifetime. This scenario claims that
hominoids stood up on their hind feet to see above the vege-
tation, freeing their hands for use, and as a result, their intelli-
gence developed. Nothing of this sort ever happened.
Besides, it is not possible for a creature to acquire characteris-

tics simply by trying to stand up straight and by using hand
tools. Even if we accept the possibility of such acquisition
(which is scientifically impossible), these skills cannot be
passed on to the next generation. Therefore, even if the im-
possible did take place and one ape could force its skeleton

166