Darwin Devolves: The New Science About DNA That Challenges Evolution

Michael J. Behe, author of Darwin's Black Box, presents new scientific research challenging evolutionary theory and supporting intelligent design. He argues that recent discoveries weaken Darwinism's explanatory power. Behe contends that natural selection acting on random mutation cannot create new biological systems. Instead, he proposes that evolution operates through devolution—a process that damages DNA to produce changes at the cellular level. Because this mechanism tears down existing structures rather than building complex ones, Behe argues it cannot account for the origin of life itself. Behe distinguishes intelligent design from evolutionary theory by emphasizing causation. While evolution describes how organisms changed over time through descent with modification, intelligent design asks what caused these changes and what mechanism drove them. For Behe, this focus on causation is what makes intelligent design a more complete explanation for life's complexity.