Sarda Sahney "challenges" Darwin theory

Sarda Sahney – a PhD student and her colleagues at University of Bristol have come out with research published in Biology letters (read/download research paper in pdf), which the media is claiming points to Charles Darwin being “wrong”.

Sarda et al argue that availability of the living space as opposed to competition may have been the main reason for evolution.  Some are not so convinced.  For example, Yale University evolutionary biologist, Stephen Stearns thinks that underlying Sahney’s research findings is the factor of competition after all:

“They have an interesting pattern, but I think they misinterpreted it. Basically, what they show is that a lot of evolution is driven by organisms moving into new roles or onto land or into new areas, and they argue that that’s evidence that competition is not so important,”

Further still, when Steven Newton, the Programs and Policy Director for the National Center for Science Education, writes in Huffington Post that he called Sarda Sahney up and she said clearly:

We are not in any way suggesting Darwin was wrong.

Sarda’s research has been in Past and present biodiversity, Terrestrial community structure, and Tetrapod evolution.

If it’s true that our species is alone in the universe, then I’d have to say that the universe aimed rather low and settled for very little. – George Carlin

It should be debatable if Darwin’s theory actually represents the truth of evolution or not.  And in that direction, there should be an honest discussion.  But unfortunately, in the US in the past few years two camps have emerged – Evolutionists and Creationists.  The latter insist that the stuff written in Genesis (part of Bible) is the truth.  While the Evolutionists, led by “Atheists” claim that that is all bunkus and science (material science) is the right way to go.

The Creationists (Bible enthusiasts) have taken this story and gone gung-ho, while the Evolutionists have gone on a campaign to repudiate any challenge to Darwin or his legacy.  Just as Jesus is a sacred cow for the Creationists, Darwin is the sacred cow for the Evolutionists.  No one wants to discuss honestly and clearly.  They have their camps and positions and you just play according to the “party line”.  That is the unfortunate part of how Science is being dealt with today.

Don’t you feel that Scientists are as close minded as the religious bigots are?