No Evolution Found in Human Facial Differences | The Institute for Creation Research
No Evolution Found in Human Facial Differences

One common question asked of creation scientists is “If all mankind descended from two humans, then where did all the ‘races’ come from?” New research, published in the journal Evolution no less, supports the creation-based answer to this question.

Studying ancient skulls in Argentina and surrounding areas, researchers discovered that the wide variety of head shapes they found was not generated randomly. And since typical evolutionary processes such as mutation and genetic drift supposedly occur randomly, other possible causes must be considered. The authors of the study proposed that climate and diet were “capable to generate large craniofacial divergence in a short period of time.”1

However, there must be more to the story than weather and food. Diet and climate had a limited external influence on the internal biological development mechanisms, which themselves could not have evolved. The authors admit, “The relationship between diet and facial shape…and general size variation could be related to phenotypic plasticity.”1 This “plasticity” is probably what creation researchers increasingly point to as the major cause of “variation within a kind.”2

This research adds to a growing list of biological examples of recent, rapid variation within kinds,3 which would be expected within a living world made only thousands of years ago. The apostle Paul referred to the Genesis account of human origins as real history: “[God] hath made of one blood [Adam and Eve] all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth” (Acts 17:26). Thus, the visible differences between peoples today, except for those caused by mutation, represent traits that were either exhibited by or were latent in Adam and Eve.

In considering questions of human origins, one common assumption is that immediate descendants always look quite similar to their parents. This can be true, but not always, as the results of the study from Argentine researcher S. Ivan Perez in Evolution demonstrated.1 Even today there is a great deal of potential for marked variation in a single generation (and there was undoubtedly much more 6,000 years ago). For example, a British couple with medium skin tone recently had twins, one with dark skin and the other with light.4 If human skin coloration follows the polygenic inheritance pattern, then it is quite possible that Adam and Eve had dark and light-skinned grandchildren. Thus, the first parents likely had medium-toned skin.

The pertinent question deals with where the mechanisms required for growth and development came from, complete with their blueprint for mankind’s unique general head shape, as well as its potential for plasticity of that shape within limits. Like Darwin in his famous book, these authors described how features vary, but not how they originated. The Creator has clearly addressed origins, and He indicates unequivocally that humans were made by Him and for Him, just as the evidence indicates.5

References

  1. Perez, S.I., and L. R. Monteiro. 2009. Nonrandom Factors in Modern Human Morphological Diversification: A Study of Craniofacial Variation in Southern South American Populations. Evolution. 63 (4): 978-993.
  2. Parker, G. 2006. Creation: Facts of Life. Green Forest, Arkansas: Master Books, 126-146.
  3. See, for example, Thomas, B. Snail Changes Outpace Evolution’s Slow Crawl. ICR News. Posted on icr.org April 14, 2009, accessed April 20, 2009.
  4. One Twin’s White, the Other’s Black: Twins’ Parents Both Have White Mothers, Black Fathers. ABC News. Posted on abcnews.com April 7, 2006, accessed April 20, 2009.
  5. Colossians 1:16: “For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him.”

* Mr. Thomas is Science Writer at the Institute for Creation Research.

Article posted on May 1, 2009.

The Latest
NEWS
Shark Jaws
Sharks are back in the news, and it’s in regard to their most formidable and fearsome structure—their jaws. Zoologists recently studied...

CREATION.LIVE PODCAST
Established Day 4 | Creation.Live Podcast: Episode 13
Humans have long been fascinated by the night sky. As Psalm 19:1 reminds us, "The heavens declare the glory of God"—His creative signature...

NEWS
Physical Evidence Trumps Evolution Theory
One of the hallmarks of good science is to formulate a cogent theory based on the physical evidence. For example, if the physical evidence (e.g. a fossilized...

NEWS
Solar System Symmetries
Most all school children can recite the planets in our solar system using memory devices such as: “My Very Easy Method Just Speeds Up Names”...

NEWS
Does Iron Toast Union Rescue Long Ages?
The puzzle persists after all these years. On the one hand, biochemists perform decay rate studies that show biochemicals cannot last a million years...

CREATION PODCAST
The Industrious Efficiency of Bees | The Creation Podcast: Episode...
Bees? BEES! When it comes to these incredible insects, we often think of hives and honey—and stingers. But these little creatures are incredibly...

NEWS
Blinking Fish Transitioned to Land?
The mudskipper (Boleophthalmus caeruleomaculatus) of the order Perciformes, is a fascinating fish whose evolutionary origins are quite unknown. They...

NEWS
Man: Created to Walk Upright
One of the many serious problems with “human evolution” is how, when, why, and where our alleged apelike ancestors decided to rise and walk...

NEWS
''Prehistoric'' Reptile Designed to Swim
Locomotion in the human and animal world means the power to move from one place to another. Recently, evolutionists have published research regarding...

NEWS
Human Neurons with 'Tricks Up Their Sleeves'
Who isn’t curious, at some level at least, about how human brains process all the complicated inputs and outputs that our daily lives require?...