cewagner
Posts: 41
Joined: April 2005
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AndyG wrote:
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You are claiming the microglial system is the result of intelligent forces. So go ahead, show us the evidence.
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I make no such claim. I offer it as a possibility. No one, not you, not I knows how the microglial system emerged nor does anyone have the empirical evidence to support such a claim.
I admit freely that I have no empirical evidence to support a claim that this system is the product of intelligent design.
My argument is one of analogy, that since no such systems have ever arisen without intelligent input, it seems highly unlikely that this one did. After all, science doesn't prove things, it merely tries to determine what is most likely.
So, if you are making the claim that the microglial apparatus evolved by some mechanism of random mutation and natural selection then you must explain where the insight came from to assemble the components, the physical structures and the processes in such a way that they are integrated together and in such a way that they support the functions of the other components and work together to achieve a specific outcome, which is the protection of the brain from insult and energy.
If you cannot do this, then you always have the option of admitting that your mechanism is only a just-so story, one that is unsupported by any empirical evidence and that your claim has no more merit than mine does.
When intent can be demonstrated, as it has with this system, then insight is a prerequisite. And insight only comes from intelligence it doesn't come from random, accidental occurrences. How do you get around that simple fact?
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Meanwhile, do some reading on teh relationship between microglia and macrophages.
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I happen to know quite a bit about macrophage since it was an important component of my Masters thesis. Microglia are sometimes characterized an the macrophage equivalent of the CNS. So anything I say about microglia probably applies equally to macrophage. The same questions I would have about the etiology of the microglial system could be asked in a more general way about macrophage behavior.
One must wonder where the insight came from that allows these cells to transform from the "resting state" to the activated state in the presence of a threat. It requires insight to recognize such a threat and it requires insight to know what the correct response should be. Where did this insight come from?
In addition, the activation of these types of systems involves cascade types of responses which are made up of many steps, each one dependent on the outcome of the preceeding step. Where did the insight come from that assembled these steps into a functionsl cascade that could result in t useful output? How did these cells aquire the ability to recognize a dangerous signal as well as to sense a functional disturbance?
As the integrative aspect of microgial/macrphage activation becomes clearer, it becomes harder and harder to attribute to random chance the beneficial potential of these fascinating cells.
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