In the Beginning: Science and
Genesis 1-11
“If the foundations are destroyed, what can the
righteous do?“ Psalm 11:3
Geologic Column
Coconino Sandstone
Bioturbation?
Hermit Shale
Pierre-Paul Grasse, Chair of
Evolution at the Sorbonne
“Naturalists must remember that the process of
evolution is revealed only through fossil forms. A
knowledge of paleontology is, therefore, a
prerequisite; only paleontology can provide them
with the evidence and reveal its course or
mechanisms.”
Standard 15: Diversity and Evolution
of Living Organisms Evolution is the fundamental concept
underlying all of biology and is supported by
multiple forms of scientific evidence.
Benchmark 15.1:
Explain how evolution is supported by the fossil
record…
Darwin on Transitional Fossils:
“But as by this theory
innumerable transitional forms
must have existed why do we
not find them embedded in
countless numbers in the crust of
the earth?”
“the case at present must remain
inexplicable and may be truly
argued as a valid argument
against the views here
entertained.”
What Does the Fossil Record Say?
Fossil
Record
Millions of Years Ago
540
650
Classic Cambrian Critters…
Opabinia…Five-eyed Oddity
Anomalicaris
Hallucigenia
Examining the Evidence
Actual
Data
Time
(540
mya)
Supposed Tree of life
Cambrian
Sudden appearance of Precambrian
complex creatures created
after their kind Darwinian
(Gen 1:24-25) Model
Morphology
The Great Fossil Mystery

Darwin predicted that the fossil record
would abound with transitional fossils,
but we find…

Two Great Facts of the Fossil Record:
 New
types appear abruptly –
Abrupt Appearance
 New
types stay the same –
Stasis
Crab
Abrupt
Appearance
Stasis
Horseshoe Crab
Abrupt
Appearance
Stasis
Turtles
Abrupt
Appearance
Stasis
Starfish
Abrupt
Appearance
Stasis
Shrimp
Abrupt
Appearance
Stasis
Sea Horse
Abrupt
Appearance
Stasis
Bee
Abrupt
Appearance
Stasis
Dragon Flies
Abrupt
Appearance
Stasis
Bats
Abrupt
Appearance
Stasis
Jelly Fish
Abrupt
Appearance
Stasis
Fossil Fish 2 02083
Zeramaroo:
Tigabit
Hawish
Stephen Jay
Gould, late
Harvard
paleontologist:
“The extreme rarity of intermediate forms
persists as the trade secret of paleontology.”