Page 38 - The Error of the Evolution of Species

The Error of the Evolution
of Species

This state of affairs can be com-

pared to a library with nearly 2 mil-
lion books, but no ordered index that
lists them all.
The lack of a catalog including
all species naturally gives rise to
some confusion. In order to
eliminate this, many scientists

are trying to collect the names
Carl Linnaeus
of all known species under a com-
prehensive index. For example, the Species 2000 program is
19
one such study, intended to catalog all known species. By
the end of 2001, this project, had listed some 250,000
species, and existing global species databases may present-
ly account for some 40% of the total known species. 20
Other studies are being carried out to identify as yet un-
known species. Thousands of scientists from many coun-

tries, particularly the USA, are now researching the species
on Earth. The total budget set aside for this endeavor is hun-
dreds of millions of dollars. Many institutions whose objec-
tive is to discover and understand diversity are active today.
Within the framework of this research, 2001 and 2002
were declared to be International Biodiversity Observation
Years, and a special study to which eminent biologists, en-

vironmentalists and experts are participating was initiated in

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