Talk:Evolution as fact and theory/FAQ

FAQ's and Terms of Reference This article covers an advanced topic on evolutionary biology that falls under the philosophy of science. The FAQ covers questions that have been commonly raised in past discussions. In answering these questions, the answers provide general guidelines for editors and information to assist with aims of this kind of article.

Further information: Talk:Evolution/FAQ

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Q1:What is this article about?

A1:This article is about "evolution as fact and theory", which is different from the claim that evolution is either of these. The goal of this article is not to combat religious or unsubstantiated claims, such as "evolution is only a theory". This is not a centre for debating the veracity of evolution, it is not a topic for religion, nor is it the place to settle the science. As an encyclopaedic reference this page offers descriptive and not prescriptive entries on the nature of evolutionary science.

Q2:What kind of information should be added?

A2:Entries that are acceptable in this kind of article must be related to the philosophical understandings of fact and theory as it relates to evolution. There are no hard and fast rules for what is fact and what is theory in science under the rubric of the scientific method. Philosophers have been contemplating the concepts and tools of science for thousands of years. Some scientists are materialists, some are persistent reductionists, and some see fact through theory. These different philosophical underpinnings means that there are diverse conceptions, understanding, and knowledge of fact and theory as it relates to evolution. This article should include an overview of published works on the nature of evolution with specific reference too and an emphasis on fact and theory. Demonstrative or specific examples on evolutionary theory or fact can also assist in the style of content and explanation of the concepts. Comparative and popular examples from diverse branches of science and philosophy in relation to the concepts and methods, where fact and theory also apply, may assist in the descriptive style and explanation of this complex topic. However, it is important to maintain a coherent and tightly structured article that does not diverge too deeply into the philosophy of science, but stays focused on evolution in reference to fact and theory.

Q3:What is the goal of this article?

A3:This article offers a resource for readers interested in learning about fact and theory as it applies to evolutionary biology. Evolution is not a singular concept and as such any claim that "evolution is a fact" or "evolution is a theory" is so general in nature that it is unspecific in its meaning. Which fact or which theory of evolution is being referred too? If it is referring to evolution as a whole and, if so, what does this mean? This article provides the context of information that can help to answer these kinds of questions.

Q4:Why should we believe what scientists say about evolution?

A4:Evolutionary biologist Leigh van Valen claimed that "there is no single way to do science." Scientists have and continue to subscribe to different philosophies or practice, where understanding is subject to interpretation and varies as such. For example, evolutionary biologists can be realists in accepting that there is a separation between subject and object, where the later exists in the world outside the mind of the observer; "idealism denies any such separation". Evolutionary biologists that subscribe to forms of scientific realism note that empirical findings in life sciences supports the main thesis in Charles Darwin's original formulation of evolutionary theory.

In particular, Darwin's theory is based on overarching observations that: 1) the constituency of individual traits varies in populations over time, 2) there is a traceable line of inheritable decent, and 3) lineages of populations are modified across generations by the differential extinction versus survival of individuals that vary. These are the manifest facts of populations that Darwin proved to exist; i.e., "confirmed to such a degree that it would be perverse to withhold provisional assent". When framed as a theory of natural selection, the change or departure from an ancestral stock of individuals is logically entailed in the conclusion. The theory of natural selection has been called a meta-theory that has generated different research programs in evolutionary biology. However, natural selection is not the only theory to offer explanations for evolutionary phenomena. Specific theories are tested in various research programs, such as the synthesis of Mendelian genetics with natural selection, neutral theory of molecular evolution, group selection, and even ecology.

The late Stephen J. Gould was a notable evolutionary biologist of the 20^th century who claimed that evolution is a fact. In another publication, Gould (2000) clarified the nature of objective science in the context of realism, truth, and factual reality:

"On the other side, who would wish to deny the probable truth value of science, if only as roughly indicated by increasing technical efficacy through time—not a silly argument of naïve realism, by the way, but a profound comment, however obvious and conventional, about the only workable concept of factual reality...The true, insightful, and fundamental statement that science, as a quintessentially human activity, must reflect a surrounding social context does not imply either that no accessible external reality exists, or that science, as a socially embedded and constructed institution, cannot achieve progressively more adequate understanding of nature's facts and mechanisms."

Hence, evolutionary biology is a science that can access reliable knowledge through rational inference on evolutionary theory as it relates to factual reality. Science produces knowledge of facts and demands publicly verifiable evidence of their existence and relevance to an inference. Evolutionary theory is based on a rational understanding and logical explanation of cause-effect relations referring to fact(s) or phenomena. Rational understanding is acquired through the iterative and illuminating practice of experimentation where deductive reasoning is applied and theories may perish. In particular, it is the puzzling observations or surprising facts that capture the most attention in critical tests of a theory. Evolutionary biologists make no exception to these scientific principles in their practice and claims about evolutionary facts and theories.

Q5:Is evolutionary theory complete?

A5:The mechanisms leading to the diverse reticulations, complexities, and hierarchical phenomena that is expressed among organisms may be as diverse as life itself. Accepting this kind of reality means that there are infinite supplies of research possibilities and inferences for evolutionary scientists to work with. Moreover, evolutionary biologists have been necessarily restricted to the study of life on our planet and as such remain agnostic about the possibilities on other planets. Hence, evolutionary biologists subscribing to scientific realism accept that evolution by means of natural selection is a theory that explains real phenomena while accepting that other mechanisms are possible, even probable.