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Irreducible complexity is the argument that some biological systems are too complex to have evolved by natural selection, and therefore imply design by an intelligent agent. The concept is central to the creationist movement of intelligent design, but has been rejected by the scientific community as pseudoscience.
Learn how irreducible complexity, a concept by biochemist Michael Behe, challenges the gradual evolution of complex biological systems. See examples of irreducibly complex structures in cells and organisms, such as the cilium and the bacterial flagellum.
Michael J. Behe argues that many biological systems are irreducibly complex, meaning they require multiple interacting parts to function, and are therefore difficult to evolve by natural selection. He cites the bacterial flagellum as an example of an irreducibly complex molecular machine that poses a problem for Darwin's theory.
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A chapter from a book that introduces design arguments in biology, focusing on the concept of irreducible complexity. It explains what irreducible complexity is, how it is used to infer design, and what are its limitations and criticisms.
The article challenges the anti-evolution argument that the bacterial flagellum is an irreducibly complex structure that cannot be produced by natural selection. It reviews the scientific evidence that refutes the argument and exposes its logical flaws and fallacies.
Irreducible complexity is the argument that some biological systems are too complex to evolve by natural selection. Learn about the concept, examples, criticism and scientific rejection of this creationist idea.
Irreducible complexity is a term used by some proponents of intelligent design to argue that evolution cannot account for complex systems. Learn about its history, definition and critique from a biologist's perspective.
