Science and Culture Today Discovering Design in Nature
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Eric Cassell

harvester ants
Photo credit: Bob Peterson from North Palm Beach, Florida, Planet Earth!, CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons.

Irreducible Complexity in Ant Behavior Triggers a Recognition of Intelligent Design

Recent research draws an unapologetic parallel between human engineering and biological systems. Read More ›
Large_brown_mantid_close_up_nohair
Photo: A large brown mantis, via Wikimedia Commons.

Do Invertebrates Have Feelings?

Just as vertebrates differ greatly in intelligence and sentience, invertebrates may differ greatly too. Read More ›
elephant seal
Photo: Elephant seals, San Simeon Beach, by David Coppedge.

The Elephant Seal in the Room

You’ve heard about salmon, whales, and sea turtles. Now learn what the clumsy-looking elephant seal accomplishes navigation-wise. Read More ›
harvester ants
Photo: Harvester ants, by Donkey shot, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons.

Ants Use Algorithms Similar to Those of the Internet

Optimization algorithms enable the ant colony to decide how many ants to send to a given food source and when to drastically reduce the number. Read More ›
Physics_Book 2
Photo credit: basykes, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons.

Evolution Is Not Like Physics

A new theory of evolution extends Darwinian processes, making them into physical laws based on “learning theory.” Read More ›
goldfish
Photo credit: josullivan.59 @ Flickr

Navigation Ability Crosses Phylum Lines — And That’s a Problem for Evolution

Yes, that is kind of adorable. It took only a few days for the fish to learn to drive. Read More ›
bowerbird
Photo: A bowerbird, by Holgi via Pixabay.

Uncannily Organic: Navigation Is More than Genes

The capabilities of animals to know their positions and make corrections seem beyond the abilities of coded instructions or brain size. Read More ›
Arctic tern
Photo: An Arctic tern, by AWeith, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons.

Watch: Animal Algorithms and the Bluff of Darwinism

Human navigation technology is just catching up to what animals like these can do by instinct. Read More ›
fear
Photo credit: Aarón Blanco Tejedor, via Unsplash.

Teleophobia: Cassell on the Unreasonable Fear of Intelligent Design

What do biologists make of the apparently purposive nature of all these different kinds of complex programmed behaviors? Read More ›
desert ant
Photo credit: Muséum de Toulouse, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons.

Animal Algorithms: Desert Ants and Honey Bees

Eric Cassell argues that these innate skills point to algorithms programmed into the ant’s brain and genome. Read More ›

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