The Fallacies of Intelligent Design Theory
Another point to emphasize regarding entropy is the difference between "open" and "closed" systems. Open systems can, and do, become more orderly by their interaction with other systems. Our earth is such an open system, because the sun provides for the energy and thus the generation of order on earth, including that contained in living organisms. Thus, evolution is consistent with the second law because the law permits order to arise in localized areas of the universe as long as a localized energy source is available.
If we hypothesize that the universe is a closed system, meaning nothing in and nothing out, both the first and second laws of thermodynamics would seem to have been violated at the time of creation. The first law is equivalent to energy conservation, and a reasonable question is, "Where did the current matter and energy of the universe come from?" Current observational data suggests the total mechanical energy of the universe is zero, with the positive kinetic energy of motion exactly balanced by the negative potential energy of gravity. As for matter or mass energy (the rest energy of bodies), the inflationary big bang cosmological model allows for this to be generated during the early expansion of the universe, during which the pressure of the vacuum is negative and the universe does work on itself, as allowed by the first law.
The second law of thermodynamics would seem to require that the universe began in a state of low entropy and is evolving toward a final state of ultimately maximum entropy. Thus, theists have argued, even if local order can occur naturally, supernatural design is evident in the existence of the highest level of order at the creation. This argument had great weight in the 19th century, when the universe was regarded as a firmament of fixed stars. However, we now know that the universe is expanding. As it expands, its maximum allowable entropy increases, leaving increasing room for order to form. As long as the universe keeps expanding, and physicists tell us that it is likely that the expansion will go on forever, there will always be a place for more entropy as order occurs locally.
Even a basic introduction to complexity (chaos) theory makes it clear that some kind of order underlies any chaotic system. The weather is a chaotic system because every input (sunlight, wind direction and velocity, ocean currents, etc.) affects every other variable so we are not able to predict what the weather will be in Ottawa three years from now. We can, however, predict certain trends, such as it will be cold next January 15 and it will probably be raining in Vancouver.
Physicists well understand that order occurs by chance all the time. Ordered objects that no one would consider as designed do arise spontaneously in our disordered universe: water freezes into ice crystals that form in intricate and unpredictable patterns, snowflakes form from random water vapor molecules, salts form when water evaporates from a solution, and seeds sprout into flowering plants. The statement that no two snowflakes are alike is profound: each unique and intricate pattern is accidental.
In fact, the formation of a snowflake is not assured when a droplet of water crystallizes in the air. Under certain conditions, triangular or hexagonal crystals may form instead. The formation of such crystals depends on the chance occurrence of unusual weather conditions. Thus, the formation of a snowflake depends on both chance and law. Further, the difference of one snowflake from another depends on the continuously changing conditions of temperature and humidity that the snowflake experienced as it fell through the atmosphere.
Alternative Universes and Fine Tuning
As is obvious, the universe exists with 100% probability (assuming the idealist who believes everything exists only in one's own mind is incorrect). Astrophysicist Victor Stenger, Professor Emeritus of Physics and Astronomy, University of Hawaii, and Adjunct Professor of Philosophy at the University of Colorado, has made estimates of the probability that a chance distribution of physical constants can produce a universe with properties sufficient that some form of life would have, in all likelihood, had sufficient time to evolve (Stenger: 2001). The same laws of physics that exist in our universe were assumed. According to our universe's well-established laws, he found that the values of three fundamental constants were sufficient to determine the gross physical properties of matter, from the dimensions of atoms to the length of the day and year and, most important, the average lifetime of main sequence stars. These constants were the strength of the electromagnetic interactions and the masses of the electron and proton.
<NEXT>
The Case for Design Based on the Anthropic Coincidences: Pages 1, 2, (3), 4, 5
