Evolution 2.0: Breaking the Deadlock Between Darwin and Design

Evolution 2.0 is a remarkably meticulous dissection of the experimental evidence on evolution. Forget the dogmatic Neo-Darwinist assumption that new species originated only through gradual accumulation of random mutations. Weismann and Wallace were demonstrably wrong and their theory needs to be replaced with an integrative synthesis. Perry Marshall and I have entered this debate from entirely different fields. He starts from information theory and practice, I started from research on the heart's pacemaker, but we have come to almost identical conclusions. —Denis Noble, Oxford University, Fellow of the Royal Society of Great Britain and author of "Dance to the Tune of Life: Biological Relativity" “ Evolution 2.0 is clearly the best book I have read on the topic. It helped me far better understand the fallacy of random mutations and how they are really introduced. This is something I was never taught in genetics in undergrad or medical school.” —Joseph Mercola, M.D., New York Times bestselling author of The No-Grain Diet and Effortless Healing Evolution 2.0 is engaging, thought-provoking, and challenges us to ‘reboot’ the riddle of evolutionary biology. By re-examining Darwin, Marshall asks us to reconsider the most important question we face—what is life? —Dr. John S. Torday, professor, Evolutionary Medicine Program, UCLA There can be few topics that have generated as much misunderstanding in the entangled relationship between science and religion as the origin and evolution of life. It is remarkable that we seem to know more about the origin of the universe than we do about the origin of life. In contrast to much previous emphasis on life as replicating systems, Perry Marshall brings new insight into the concept of life as information management. Drawing on his background as an electrical engineer, he asks how code can arise spontaneously. He describes his own 10-year journey in pursuit of this question, challenging much of what he had learnt from traditional accounts of the process of evolution by natural selection. The result is a fresh account which stands up to scrutiny and challenges many generally held positions. If you want to read a book that will stimulate you to rethink evolution, read this. -Andrew Briggs, Oxford University; Author, The Penultimate Curiosity "Marshall writes in a practical style so that all of his readers can come to understand evolution and can make a thoughtful conclusion on a controversial topic. Recommended for . . . students of biology, history of science, and religious studies, as well as researchers and scholars." — Library Journal “Standing on the knife-edge between traditional evolutionary theory and Intelligent Design, this book will inflame both dogmatic Darwinists and Creationists. It’s irritating to both because it’s friendly to the idea of evolution itself, and because it judges Darwinism too close-minded and reductive. . . . While most scientists submit to self-censorship and dare not question cherished assumptions, the boldest scientists like Albert Einstein, Francis Crick and Stephen Hawking never feared such taboos. Whether agnostics, atheists or believers, they never shrank back from big questions or unconventional solutions. Evolution and design are not either-or, but both-and.” —Jean-Claude Perez, author, Codex Biogenesis and retired IBM Biomathematics and Artificial Intelligence Interdisciplinary Researcher “Marshall is making an invaluable contribution toward more open and honest discussion on the subject of evolution versus creation. The book is well written, often witty, and is extremely thought provoking. . . . It is amazing that this ‘non-biologist’ has analyzed life phenomena at the cellular and molecular levels to such depth and width by applying information gained by cutting-edge methods in the life sciences!” —Dr. Kwang Jeon, Editor, International Review of Cell and Molecular Biology , and Professor Emeritus, Department of Biochemistry, University of Tennessee “Any person of faith who cares about how creation reveals God—and how evolution is actually a devastating arsenal of evidence against atheism—should add Evolution 2.0 to the extreme tippy-top of their reading list. Evolution 2.0 is equally shocking to both atheists and Christians, a genuine eye-opener in a category of its own.” —D. Bnonn Tenant, ThinkingMatters.org.nz “A very readable book and a devastating attack on the neo-Darwinist orthodoxy that evolution is nothing but natural selection acting on random variation.” —Peter Saunders, co-director, Institute of Science in Society, and Emeritus professor of Applied Mathematics, King’s College, London “With considerable wit and amazing insight, Marshall delivers a compelling and forceful synthesis that sets a new standard for discussions about the relationship between science and faith. The result is no less than astonishing.” —Mark McMenamin, Professor of Geology, Mount Holyoke College “The book is wonderfully thought-provoking, as Perry brings a fresh perspective to the increasingly arid (and acrimonious) debate between Intelligent Design and methodological naturalism.” —Crofton Brierley, MS Biochemistry, Oxford University, former department head, Marconi Optical “A remarkable and useful resume of the state-of-the-art of this great problem of science.” —Stuart Pivar, author, Lifecode and On The Origin of Form , and cofounder, New York Academy of Art “I am committed to Young Earth Creationism, and thus cannot agree with some of Perry's conclusions. However, I highly recommend this book to any skeptic who is committed to a purely materialistic paradigm. The science presented here - from the latest research to the most engaging minds on this subject—make this the one book you should read.” —Ray Glinski, MS in Biochemistry, Pastor at Grace Church of DuPage “ Evolution 2.0 is a modern philosophical marvel unlike anything I have read in my years of study. It allowed me to put down my guard. The author was not compelling me to believe in an ideology, but rather taking me alongside his journey of self-discovery. I came into this book hesitant. As a staunch creationist I found myself trying to fight with Marshall early on, but his arguments and presentation were flawless and compelling. It was refreshing to see someone examine both sides honestly.” —Marie Sarantakis, Comparative Religion Scholar, Carthage College “Armed with computer science and electrical engineering, Perry fights an uphill battle to unite the space between those who believe evolution is random and those who believe species are designed by God, who in some cases deny evolution itself. . . . Judge this book by the science within its pages—and enjoy the story.” —Andras Pellionisz, Biophysicist, Founder of Fractogene; PhD, Computer Technology, PhD, Biology, PhD, Physics “Sometimes the only way a puzzle gets solved is when someone looks at it with fresh eyes. Perry Marshall is an engineer who started to investigate biology. His book could signal a paradigm shift in the battle between Darwinian evolution and creation/ID. Maybe the war is over. Respond, criticize and debate it . . . just don't dismiss it.” —Justin Brierley, host, Unbelievable? radio program and podcast No one is indifferent to the question of "Creation-Evolution." Everyone wants to know. When I explain the discoveries in this book to people of all walks of life, they're immediately fascinated. Yes, even at dinner parties.I presented this at a secular business function in Chicago. Afterward, person after person thanked me for resolving, in one woman's words, "this ridiculous conflict between science and religion." (She happened to be a Buddhist.) Others thanked me for revealing science no one else bothered to tell them. One entrepreneur, an owner of a multi-million dollar company, borrowed ideas from nature and re-invented his business. Recently I gave evolution / intelligent design talks to two different conservative Christian home school groups. Both times, the organizers were besieged beforehand with hand-wringing emails from concerned parents, wondering what I was about to teach their kids. Most embraced creationism and were wary. But afterwards, nothing but gratitude. An eager group of parents and kids stayed for two hours after, hammering me with curious questions. Contrary to what Creationists always told you, evolution is not a hoax. Scientists engineer new species in the lab at breathtaking speed every day. The mystery behind this is the cell's spectacular ability to produce and modify code. Contrary to what Darwinists always told you, evolution is not steered by blind mutations. Rather it is fueled by the ability for nearly every cell in existence to cut, splice, re-arrange and re-engineer its own DNA.They do this in direct response to hundreds of inputs from their changing environment.This book is the first to explain the Extended Evolutionary Synthesis in language regular people can understand. The new paradigm is a far more complete formulation of evolution that rejects numerous pillars of old-school Darwinism, including randomness and gradualism. Life evolves in real time and new generations benefit immediately from their parents' adaptations. To get to the bottom of this mystery, I've formed an investment group, Natural Code LLC. We are offering a technology prize for Origin of Information. The prize caps at ten million dollars. It seeks a material answer to the question: "How do you get a non-living, non-programmed system to organize a sequence of predictive choices - machine-building instructions like 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 - without a designer?" This problem is trickier than it first appears.Origin of life demands an answer to this question; meanwhile, cells do this every day... but how do they do it?Every technology innovation we seek has already been solved in the cell, we just need to study it. This book bridges the gap between two opposing sides (creationism and Darwinism), each of which told you less than half the story . This book shatters traditional boundaries between science and religion, showing the way to new medical and technological breakthroughs. As this book has come to fruition, many people have come out of the woodwork, expressing almost identical frustrations at how both extremes in the debate have ceased looking for answers, and only push their tired dogmas. The task of discovery is never done. My dream for this book is that it will usher in a 2nd Renaissance of curiosity, wonder and exploration about the universe we are part of. " Evolution 2.0 could signal a paradigm shift in the battle between Darwinian evolution and creation/Intelligent Design. Maybe the war is over." -Justin Brierley, Host, Unbelievable? radio program and podcast "Standing on the knife-edge between conventional evolutionary theory and Intelligent Design, this book will inflame both dogmatic Darwinists and Creationists." -Jean-Claude Perez, author, Codex Biogenesis "It is amazing that this 'non-biologist' has analyzed life phenomena at the cellular and molecular levels to such depth and width by applying a wide range of available information gained by cutting-edge methodologies in life sciences." -Dr. Kwang Jeon, Editor, International Review of Cell and Molecular Biology "Marshall delivers a compelling and forceful synthesis that sets a new standard for discussions about the relationship between science and faith. The result is no less than astonishing." -Dr. Mark McMenamin, Professor of Geology, Mount Holyoke College "Any person of faith who cares about how creation reveals God--and how evolution is actually a devastating arsenal of evidence against atheism--should add Evolution 2.0 to the extreme tippy-top of their reading list." -D. Bnonn Tenant, ThinkingMatters.org.nz "As a staunch creationist, I was often finding myself trying to fight with Marshall early on, but his arguments and presentation were flawless and compelling. It was refreshing to see someone examine both sides of the debate honestly." -Marie Sarantakis, Comparative Religion Scholar, Carthage College "Fluid reasoning; vivid, readable explanations; easy style and enjoyable storytelling." -Andras Pellionisz, Biophysicist, Founder of Fractogene "A very readable book and a devastating attack on the neo-xadDarwinist orthodoxy that evolution is nothing but natural selection acting on random variation." -Peter Saunders, coxad-director, Institute of Science in Society, and Emeritus professor of Applied Mathematics, King's College, London Perry Marshall is an author, speaker, engineer and world-renowned business consultant in Chicago. With a decade of research, he brings a fresh perspective to the 150-year old evolution debate. Bill Gates of Microsoft and the founders of Google revolutionized software and the Internet through their status as outsiders. Similarly, this book harnesses a communication engineer's outsider's perspective to reveal a century of unrecognized research and discoveries. Evolution 2.0 resolves the conflict between Darwin and Design, opening new avenues of science research and raising tantalizing new questions.Perry's work in digital communication networks, control systems, acoustics and e-commerce bring practical insight to questions about nature and science. His books include 80/20 Sales & Marketing , Ultimate Guide to Google AdWords , and Industrial Ethernet . He has a degree in Electrical Engineering. He's consulted in over 300 industries, from computer hardware and software to finance and health care. Read more