Unlocking the mystery of Life : the scientific case for intelligent design DVD Illustra Media, 2002
65 minutes £14.99 Available online from Oxfam
The origin of life is a puzzle that has exercised the human mind for centuries.
At present, two serious proposals vie with each other, both claiming their explanation to be true while they each claim that the other is unlikely if not altogether untrue. Both require faith, one is a naturalistic case relying on time, chance and natural selection; the other posits an intelligent designer.
Although Charles Darwin was not the first to propose the idea of evolution, he was the first (with Alfred Russel Wallace) to put it on to a firm, scientific, evidential footing. Darwin’s theory gained support at the time and continues to do so to this day
In the 1990s, American scientists put forward some interesting evidence that supported the concept of an intelligent designer or creator.
This DVD explores their proposal in some detail with interviews with academic biologists and philosophers. Among the interviewees is a professor (Dean H Kenyon) who published a book ;Biochemical Predestination' in 1969 together with Gary Steinman. Professor Kenyon subsequently came to see the weakness if not improbability of his conclusions and subsequently realized the strength of the arguments for intelligent design.
The DVD examines Darwin's theory, explores some of its flaws in the light of much scientific research since the publication of 'The Origin of Species; in 1859.
Time is spent on the subject of the cell, a core principle of biology, which is explained in detail with state-of-the-art computer animation to aid understanding.
Research into the part played by DNA reveals that information is key to grasping the compelling force of intelligent design and the inability of Darwin's theory of evolution to account for how life began.
While the ideas of intelligent design do not prove the existence of an intelligent designer, they clearly point strongly in that direction. It is a credible explanation but not conclusive for everyone.
This DVD is aimed at the general public and is a worthwhile contribution to the ongoing discussions about the origin of life – chance or deliberate design.