You probably have never seen the words lanugo and epistemology in the same sentence. But to understand the power of evolutionary thinking we need to understand both words. Lanugo is a fine hair we grow about six months after conception and then lose before birth. Epistemology, on the other hand, is the theory of knowledge. How do we know what we know? How can we know that what we know is true? It's a complicated subject and science avoids many of the quandaries by simply positing hypotheses that make predictions. Think of the process as an IF-THEN statement. IF the planets circle the sun, THEN we should observe retrograde motion. Epistemologically speaking, the IF-THEN statement is very safe. It makes no claims about ultimate truth, it simply states that if a particular hypothesis is true, then a particular event should be observed. And if the event is observed then the hypothesis may or may not be true. All we can say is that it has not been falsified. If the event is not observed, on the other hand, then the hypothesis is false or at least needs to be modified. As you can see it is not easy to make progress with the IF-THEN statement. If all we can do is not falsify a hypothesis how can we ever establish any truths? This is where evolutionary thinking comes in.

Evolutionary thinking smashes through the IF-THEN log jam by instead using the IF-AND-ONLY-IF-THEN statement. Here's an example: If and only if it is Friday, then evolutionists play poker. In this example, if we observe evolutionists playing poker then it must be Friday. There is no other possibility. Unlike the IF-THEN statement, the IF-AND-ONLY-IF-THEN statement allows you to establish truths.

Evolutionists have used this powerful technique to establish the truth of evolution. Consider perhaps the most famous phrase in evolution today: "Nothing in biology makes sense except in the light of evolution." This was written by the famous twentieth century evolutionist Theodosius Dobzhansky and the phrase continues to be celebrated by evolutionists today. It is equivalent to claiming that "Everything in biology only makes sense in light of evolution," or in the IF-AND-ONLY-IF-THEN statement format as: "IF-AND-ONLY-IF evolution is true, THEN will we find what we find in biology."

It is all suddenly so simple--of course evolution is true. It is a wonder that creationists ever doubted this obvious truth. From where else can you get that kind of certainty except evolutionary thought?

The power of the IF-AND-ONLY-IF-THEN statement, as you can see, is that it covers the water front. It provides knowledge of all possible explanations. Evolution, and only evolution, can explain biology. No other explanation works.

Philosophers such as Kyle Stanford have worried that science is vulnerable to the problem of unconceived alternatives. How can we really know that no other explanation works? How can we even know what are all the possible alternatives? But as usual philosophers fail to comprehend the power of evolutionary thought.

Evolutionists have powerfully used the IF-AND-ONLY-IF-THEN statement for centuries to prove their ideas. They have provided true-truth like no other tradition in the history of thought. And for that we must thank them gratefully. To fully appreciate the power, and simplicity, of evolutionary thought, here is how the Reverend Jerry Coyne applies this logic to lanugo. Here is the Word of Coyne:

One of my favorite cases of embryological evidence for evolution is the furry human fetus. We are famously known as "naked apes" because, unlike other primates, we don't have a thick coat of hair. But in fact for one brief period we do--as embryos. Around sixth months after conception, we become completely covered with a fine, downy coat of hair called lanugo. Lanugo is usually shed about a month before birth, when it's replaced by the more sparsely distributed hair with which we're born. ... Now, there's no need for a human embryo to have a transitory coat of hair. After all, it's a cozy 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit in the womb. Lanugo can be explained only as a remnant of our primate ancestry: fetal monkeys also develop a coat of hair at about the same stage of development. Their hair, however, doesn't fall out, but hangs on to become the adult coat. And, like humans, fetal whales also have lanugo, a remnant of when their ancestors lived on land. [80:1]

As usual Coyne skillfully presents evolutionary truths with a gentle and loving message. How obvious it now is that lanugo can only be explained by evolution (or in other words, IF-AND-ONLY-IF evolution is true, THEN will we have lanugo). Now you can see why evolution is true.

Published February, 2010, in the Post Register.

On the southeast side of Mackay’s Main Street there stands an abandoned building that most folks will pass by without noticing, despite the treasures in evidence on its exterior walls.

On one side of the building is painted an enormous sign advertising Thomas Pilash, Tailor, which once was housed in the building. Below that, the sign promotes Levi Strauss. On the other side of the building is a beautiful sign advertising Mountaineer-O-All suspenders, available at ZCMI.

The building was so severely damaged in the 1983 Borah earthquake that it had been recommended for razing as a potential safety hazard. Whether it should have remained standing is open to debate, but the fact that the building and its signs are still there should be a delight to anyone remotely interested in the history of a community.

Signs such as these are called “ghost signs.” Originally created using durable (but dangerous) lead paint in the early to mid-20th century, they have faded over time and most have been destroyed or painted over. But some remain around eastern Idaho, providing a reminder of another era.

The most prominent ghost sign in Idaho Falls the beautiful Hotel Rogers sign above Park Avenue and B Street downtown, painted on the side of the hotel building built on that site in 1937. But there are less obvious ghost around the area.

For example, there’s a Kress ghost sign at 451 N. Park Avenue on the building that used to house the nationally famous five-and-dime chain.

For a special treat, wander over to Oneida Street, where a long brick building that has served as everything from a supper club to an auto shop and bar. Take some time and wander around the building – on one end it advertises Owyhee Candies and on the street side you can still make out very old signs for various automotive products dating back to the Thirties and Forties.

"There was no interstate at the time and all the traffic drove right past the shop," Jim Winborg said told the Post Register last summer. Jim’s father, Con, owned the building at one time. "In the old days, there were quite a few hotels on that street, a lot of businesses."

The next time you’re heading down 1st Street in Idaho Falls, check out the north side of the 300 block, where you’ll find a large sign advertising Harvey’s Store, which had been a beer-and-fishing supply store back in the day.

But perhaps the best ghost sign in Idaho Falls is its simplest, a few blocks away between First Street and Lomax streets. There, visible above a fence on the top part of a small and obviously old building, is this simple ghost sign: “Auto Laundry.” There’s a story behind that sign, but maybe it’s just as interesting to make one up.