Why is evolution important?

Someone recommended the Nova documentary, "Judgment Day" to me the other day. I spent some time viewing it over the past couple of days. Many would probably be uninterested in this documentary because they feel that views regarding evolutionary theory are unimportant and irrelevant to their lives. But, the reality is quite to the contrary.

I could now go into the beauty and elegance that I sense as I view the world through the lens of evolution. I could explain the peaceful connectedness I feel with the earth that my understanding of evolutionary theory has given me. But, I admit these experiences are entirely subjective and would not necessarily be experienced by others.

There is another issue, however, regarding views about evolutionary theory that indeed does affect everyone quite profoundly. Evolutionary theory is largely at the core of a big problem that exists between American society and the field of science. It represents a distrust of the field of science that ought not be there. Scientists are often visualized as the mad professors conducting heinous experiences in their basements or as conspirators joining together to cause great harm to people. For this reason, people often feel threatened by scientists and the advancements they are seeking to make.

People have always been very slow to accept scientific discovery. People were killed for suggesting the world was actually round rather than flat. Convincing people that infectious agents and genetic errors are the driving force behind disease rather than sin or demons has been no small accomplishment. The largest "new" scientific discovery being fought against is the theory of evolution. I use the term "new" lightly in that it is 150 years old. But, the overwhelming evidence for evolutionary theory is quite new when compared to the length of human history.

The evidence for evolutionary theory is indeed overwhelming. And yet, roughly half of American citizens reject it. It goes against the way they have always thought about how human beings came to be, and many feel threatened by this. The rejection of evolutionary theory pushes the idea that scientists are not out to do good and are happy to trick and deceive people. After all, why else would they say something is true if there is no evidence that it is? It also pushes an undeserved disrespect for the scientific process and the scientific method. This affects the funding available for many areas of important research and even affects the kinds of research that are legally allowed to be conducted.

But, getting down to business, why does this matter? Why does it matter if someone wants to believe that evolutionary biologists are conspirators out to destroy man's belief in God and that the stories in the first couple of chapters of Genesis are true? Isn't this a harmless belief? I contend that it is not harmless.

Science has provided so much for us. For many of us, it has saved our lives. I would not be alive right now were it not for a medication science developed about 10 years ago. When we read about human history and the large and frequent plagues of terrible and terrifying diseases that regularly swept across the globe, it becomes clear how few of us would actually be alive if it weren't for scientific advancements. A friend of mine has a 9-year-old son living with leukemia. If he had been diagnosed with leukemia 20 years ago, he would have already died a painful death, leaving his parents in devastation. Instead, because of science, he is receiving treatment that offers him a 90% chance of a full recovery. Computers, etc. have dramatically increased our ability to keep in touch with loved ones that we would have otherwise been forced to be distant from for years at a time. It allows us to travel to places in the world that we otherwise would have never even known about.

Science has done so much for us. And yet, people approach it with great fear and distrust. I remember Sarah Palin making a negative comment about useless scientists doing research on fruit flies and many people, including those who couldn't even stand Sarah Palin, echoed their support of this criticism. They didn't know that we are learning so much about our own genes and genetic disorders and cures for these genetic disorders through this research on fruit flies. Anti-evolutionists charge scientists with questionable motives for advancing evolutionary theory, casting doubt in roughly half of Americans as to the sincerity of almost all scientists and the validity of the scientific method in spite of all that these scientists and the scientific method have provided for them.

This baseless idea inhibits scientific research that can save lives and improve the quality of life for hundreds of thousands...and eventually, millions upon millions...of people. It is in our grasp to develop means of giving everyone an organ transplant that needs one long before they have to wait on very long waiting lists while severely ill, hoping they get one before they die. Diabetes, various forms of cancer, and autoimmune diseases (an area that covers a very large number of disabling diseases) could be a thing of the past. But, getting support, funding, and even permission to conduct these studies has proved difficult due to the distrust in science that many people hold that is spread to others and confirmed through the anti-evolution sector. It is literally costing lives. This is an issue that matters.