In the view of modern culture, how could anyone be so foolish as to doubt evolution? After all, its defenders point to all kinds of examples to back their beliefs. A thoughtful look, though, at two categories of examples—past and present—reveals how far the grand story of evolution strays from reality.

Geologists reassessed the abundance of fossils in Earth’s uppermost rock layers this year, and they believe they found a remarkable sixth global extinction event.¹ Their discovery has two significant implications.