ICR:Gish debates Miami Professor

   Dr. David Fisher, Professor of Cosmochemistry, University of Miami
Rosentiel School of Marine Sciences, holding a Ph.D. in nuclear physics
from the University of Florida, was Dr. Duane Gish's opponent in a
debate held in Vero Beach, Florida, on Monday evening, February 26.
Martin Schnepper, debate coach of Vero Beach Senior High School and
author of the debate rules used in the high schools of the state of
Florida, served as moderator. The debate was sponsored by Vero
Christian Church.

   By the flip of a coin it was determined that Gish would be the first
speaker. After briefly outlining the scope of the debate, Gish
presented the powerful, positive evidence for creation based on the
science of thermodynamics, complexity and probability, and the fossil
record. He closed his presentation by challenging Fisher to provide an
evolutionary explanation for the origin of metamorphosis.

   Fisher began his lecture by stating that no scientist should be
arrogant when talking about the origin of the universe or the origin of
life, since we have no answers here. He claimed that if the Second Law
of Thermodynamics really contradicted evolution, no scientist would be
an evolutionist. He then claimed that crystallization showed that order
can arise in spite of the Second Law and that energy from the sun made
evolution possible. Fisher described evidence for an expanding
universe, and claimed that the background radiation (the 2.7K
radiation observed in every direction in space) provided data that fit
the theory of an expanding universe perfectly. He claimed that
evolutionists argue about the mechanism of evolution, but have
established the fact of evolution. He concluded by showing a series of
slides illustrating the visit of our unmanned spacecraft to the surface
of Mars. He stated that the results of the search for life and the
search for organic molecules on Mars were totally negative, saying that
ultraviolet light from the sun probably destroyed everything on the
surface.

   In his rebuttal, Gish pointed out that the only attempt on the part
of Fisher to present any evidence for evolution was based on the theory
of the Big Bang origin of the universe and the background radiation. He
then noted that although this background radiation did correspond to
theory, it was devastatingly contradicted by the real universe. Since
massive superclusters of galaxies and great voids in space recently
have been discovered by astronomers, the background radiation, if it
also has resulted from the same supposed Big Bang, should not be
uniform in all directions either, but should vary in intensity to
reflect the "lumpiness" of the real universe. The background radiation,
perfectly uniform in all directions, is thus contradictory to present
theory, and evolutionists are actually left with no theory. Gish
asserted that crystallization has nothing to do with evolution--the
process of evolution would be opposite to that of crystallization. He
pointed out that Fisher had stated that no scientist should ever claim
to know the truth, but later proclaimed evolution to be a fact. Gish
reminded the audience that Fisher had stated that ultraviolet light had
probably destroyed everything on Mars, including every single organic
molecule, but yet he believed that ultraviolet light may have created
life on the earth.

   In his rebuttal, Fisher insisted that the scientific method excludes
consideration of any explanation for origins which required
supernatural intervention. His defense against Gish's evidence, based
on the fossil record, was his claim that the fossil record was horribly
incomplete. He asserted that life may have evolved in areas of the
ocean where ultraviolet light was less intense or where heat from vents
may have provided the energy.

   The debate closed with questions from the audience.

