Fossils, Evolution and My Faith: Volume One

By D.E.P. Jeyasingh

Evolution is an important concept in Biology. Textbooks on this subject list a number of evidences for organic evolution. One such evidence is what comes from the study of Fossils. In Part I of the book, in chapters 1 to 3, a definition for fossils is put forth and the methods of their study are briefly outlined, thereby introducing the reader to Paleontology, the science of fossil study, Chapters 4 to 7 in Part II of the book, give an exposition of the Thoughts, Observations, Concepts and Theories pertaining to Organic Evolution, the subject matter of Part II in general. These initial chapters are intended to lead the reader to a better understanding of the Fossil Evidences for Evolution among the various groups of organisms, including man, dealt with in the remaining chatters of this part, beginning with the Protists in chapter 8. Volume One terminates at this point, leaving the remaining 11 chapters of Part II to be covered in Volume Two that would also contain Part III on my Faith.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris AU
• Release date: Apr 24, 2015
• ISBN: 9781493136766

D.E.P. Jeyasingh

D.E.P. Jeyasingh, M. Sc., Ph.D. FPbS Scientist/Palaeobotanist/Educationist; b. March 14, 1938 India; m Henrietta, two s and one d; Educ. Madras and Lucknow Univs., India; Lecturer in Botany, 1963- 1979; Prof. of Botany, 1979-1991; Head, Botany Dept, Madras Christian College (Autonomous) 1991-1996, now retired:—Fellow & Life Member, Palaeobotanical Soc. Of India, Lucknow. Former Member: (i) New York Academy of Sciences (USA) (ii) International Soc. of Plant Morphologists, New Delhi, (INDIA). Published more than 40 research articles in National and International journals and leading News dailies in India. Investigated the morphology of plant fossils from (i) the Lower Gondwana sediments in Bihar, India; (ii) the Upper Gondwana sediments & (iii) the Tertiary deposits of the Cuddalore Sandstones, along the East Coast of peninsular India; Participated and presented research papers in many National and International Conferences including the 5th International Palaeobotanical Conference held at Santa Barbara, USA in 1996; Guided students for M.phil and Ph.D. degrees.; Conducted seminars on (i) ‘Fossils, Evolution and Faith’ & (ii) ‘Recent Advances in Plant Sciences’, for the benefi t of students in1994 & 1995; Conducted a workshop on ‘Scope of Palaeobotany and Playnology in the University Curriculum’ for the benefi t of college teachers and research scholars in Tamil Nadu, India in 1995; Co-founder and secretary of the ‘Society of Palaeobiologists’, Chennai, and the founder of the ‘Christian Institute of Palaeobiology’, Chennai. Hobbies: (i) Photography, (ii) Bird watching (iii) Gardening. Address: ‘Nithyam’, 16(14) Maruthi Nagar, 2nd Main Road, Rajakilpakkam, Chennai-600 073, India. E-mail: [e-mail]

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Copyright © 2014 by D.E.P. Jeyasingh. 615577

ISBN:      Softcover            978-1-4931-3677-3

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Rev. date: 01/14/2015

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DEDICATION

The first volume of this work is dedicated to my parents

who would have never thought that I would write a book in my lifetime!

PREFACE

‘Evolution’ is an important concept in Biology. Text books on this subject list a number of ‘evidences for organic evolution’. One such evidence is that, which comes from the study of ‘Fossils’.

As many readers may want to know what fossils are, in Part I of the book, a definition for fossils and the methods of their study, thereby introducing to the reader ‘Paleontology’, the science of the study of fossils, as briefly as possible, in chapters 1 to 3.

Part II of the book then deals with the ‘Evolutionary Concepts’ that have been put forth in the study of plants and animals. As a means of helping the reader to understand this part better, the beginnings of the concepts on organic evolution and the significant contribution made by Charles Darwin on this subject in 1856 and the subsequent elaboration it underwent since the beginning of the 20th century are dealt with in chapters 4-6. Chapter 7 discusses the beginning of life on this planet and chapter 8 deals with the progress made in the understanding of the microorganisms. Chapter 9 to 13 deals with the evolutionary history of the plant kingdom and chapters 14 to 17 deals with the evolutionary history of the animal kingdom, including that of humans.

The conflicts that existed (and which exist even now), between those advocating organic evolution and those following the Christian faith, are discussed in Chapter 18, which , incidentally forms a link with the last part—Part III—of the book.

Part III deals with ‘my Faith’ wherein the author has set out what he believes in, thereby giving some guide lines to the reader who may be troubled by their faith in understanding organic evolution.

Though the book was conceived and written as a single volume, at the time of publication it has been split into TWO volumes. Volume One includes the whole of Part I and the first 5 chapters of Part II. Volume Two will include the remaining chapters of Part II and the whole of Part III.

D.E.P. Jeyasingh

CONTENTS

PREFACE

FOREWORD

A NOTE TO THE READER

PROLOGUE

A. Fossils

B. Evolution

C. My Faith

PART I FOSSILS

INTRODUCTION

CHAPTER 1

A. What Are Fossils?

B. The Rocks That Contain Fossils.

C. The Process Of Fossilization And Kinds Of Fossils.

D. From Where And How Are Fossils Collected?

E. How Are Fossils Identified And Studied?

CHAPTER 2

A. Dating Of Fossils.

B. Fossils And The Geological Time Chart.

CHAPTER 3

Fossils And Continental Drift

A Brief Account Of The Biological And Geological Characteristics Of The Various Eons

FOREWORD

P. J. Sanjeeva Raj Ph.D.(Conn.), Phi  Beta  Kappa; Sigma Xi;(Conn.).

Retd.Professor and Head of Zoology,

Madras Christian College,

Tambaram, Chennai 600 059, INDIA.

The subject Organic Evolution, based on fossils alone, is perhaps the most debated and disputed one in the neo-classical Biology, chiefly because it is more hypothetical and not demonstrable. The debate started with the publication of Charles Darwin’s ORIGIN OF SPECIES in 1859, said to be a ‘bomb shell’ on the then civilized world, triggering a lasting debate between the Biblical account of Creation and the Darwinian Evolution.

The author of this book, Fossils, Evolution and My Faith is a devout Christian and a believer in a Creator God, by his Biblical allegiance, but was daring enough to pursue the contradicting fossil studies successfully for his doctorate at a premier institution in India and has strived to teach and write this book without being daunted by the dilemmas between his academic pursuits and his personal religious convictions. Fossils are only one of the several clues to trace or interpret organic evolution, and the author’s mission is to free the minds of novices and enthusiasts in fossil study, from the bottleneck dilemmas of the debate between Creation and Evolution. Fossils are representatives of the rich biodiversity of the past but now extinct, and their role in evolution depends on the objective interpretations by the palaeontologists concerned. As a conscientious Christian teacher and a scholar with wide reading and original research, the author has made a profound presentation of his fossil studies and the established evolutionary concepts, leading to the omega point of his presentation, namely, the Biblical authenticity of Creation, Biodiversity and the immanent Spirit in all Creation and Evolution!

The classical debate between Creation and Evolution is only an egoistic outburst of the early fundamentalists, and the author has not only survived its onslaughts but has endeavoured to alleviate the younger minds from such fallacious controversies. This is the personal witness of the author, as an ardent champion of fossil studies to write this reconciliating book on Organic Evolution based on fossil studies and his Christian Faith.

P. J. Sanjeeva Raj

A NOTE TO THE READER

This book is written, primarily, for the new entrant into college, either at the undergraduate or the postgraduate levels, who wants to know more about fossils and organic evolution. Those who teach these aspects of biology may also benefit by its contents. Parts I and II are expected to meet the needs of all interested students while Part III is aimed at one who is perturbed in mind about his or her religious convictions vs. the theory of evolution. This last section also brings out the author’s personal viewpoints on this matter.

The book has grown out of many decades of collegiate teaching, research and discussions with young and old—students, colleagues, pastors, authors of both secular and religious literature etc... However, much of the textual matter has been culled from authentically published sources and, wherever needed, these sources are appropriately cited in the ‘Notes’ for each chapter at the end. ‘Notes’ also include extra information and anecdotes for the interested reader who wants to know more on a matter. The text can also be read as a continuous narrative, if one chooses to avoid looking up the ‘Notes’ frequently. Figures and photographs, wherever included, are acknowledged if taken from other sources. General ideas and conclusions are that of the author, who takes the responsibility for all commissions and omissions.

The Book was originally conceived as a single volume with three parts: Part I-‘Fossils’, Part II-‘Evolution’ and Part III ‘my Faith’. However, at the time of the book going to the press, it was found convenient to break it up into TWO VOLUMES. Thus, in VOLUME ONE, Part-I ‘Fossils’ and five chapters of Part II are included. The other chapters of Part II and the whole of Part III will be the subject matter of the next volume, which will follow this one. However, the ‘Prologue’ given below explains graphically, the content of ALL THREE PARTS.

PROLOGUE

A. Fossils

There are scores of High Schools students all over the world who would have heard the word ‘fossil’ and roughly known it’s meaning. To many a High School student, the giant reptiles of the past—the Jurassic age fossil dinosaurs—that would come to mind when they hear the word ‘fossil’. Most youngsters today are fascinated by these dinosaur fossils, and they fascinated me too in my high school days. I read up articles about them in books, took clippings from magazines and newspapers that described the discoveries of fossil bones from Europe, America and other parts of the globe, and preserved pictures of the reconstructions of these giants, with great care and concern. Often I would dream of the scenario of the earth during those distant past and wonder how man survived against such ghastly beasts (it was only when I entered college that I learnt that man came on to the scene many millions of years later and by that time, these giant beasts had vanished from the face of the earth!). Thus, when I chanced upon a book entitled ‘The Lost World’ in one of the book-exhibitions put up in my school premises in 1953, I did not hesitate to spend my entire pocket money of one and half rupees to buy it (it was great money in those days!). It was a PAN book published in l950 and it had an attractive cover with a fearsome looking dinosaur gazing down upon a few tiny human beings!

Many a youngster in the present day (2014 AD) might be familiar with another book by the same title ‘Lost World’ by the author, Michael Crichton, which is a sequel to his earlier book ‘Jurassic Park’, now quite famous, more so on account of the movie by the same title. But ‘The Lost World’ which I bought as a boy was written in 1921 by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the creator of Sherlock Holmes, the famous, fictitious detective. Many might have read the short stories and long novels featuring Sherlock Holmes and his able assistant and friend, Dr. Watson. But it is doubtful whether they would have read ‘The Lost Word’ by the creator of Sherlock Holmes!

In the early 1950s, young and old alike read ‘The Lost World’ of Conan Doyle as a scientific adventure story and derived much amusement. It was so popular that it was even made into a black and white movie in the 1950s. I remember sitting tight and reading most of the book at one stretch. Food, play and sleep became secondary, till I had finished reading it!

Those who have not read the book may want to know a bit more about this novel. Hence, I wish to give its contents in a nutshell. Like Michael Crichton’s ‘Lost World’, Conan Doyle’s ‘Lost World’ too is a story about a few human beings coming face to face with prehistoric dinosaurs that are very much alive. The difference is, while Michael Crichton’s dinosaurs were genetically engineered creatures, those of Conan Doyle were real ones from the Jurassic period, surviving in the Amazonian region in the heart of South America, on a remote, elevated, inaccessible plateau. I still get a ‘kick’ when I read this book. And as a teenage youngster, I secretly told myself that, some day, I would delve deeper into the world of fossils, if I ever get a chance to do so. I had to wait for many years for that chance. It came in 1976, long after I had finished High School, long after I had graduated from college, long after I completed post graduation, long after I joined the same college as a member of the faculty, and 15 long years after teaching Botany (Plant Science) to the undergraduate and post-graduate students!

It came about this way. The University Grants Commission in New Delhi began offering Teacher Fellowships to those who had put in a certain number of years of teaching in a post-graduate college to avail study-leave with full pay, to qualify for a Ph.D. degree in an institution that offered facilities for research. ¹ I availed this opportunity and joined as a research fellow, at the age of 38, in one of the premier research institution in India where research was going on in plant fossils. ² The three years I spent there were useful ones because I had the free access to the wonderful library at the Institute and also the supervision of an excellent guide ³ who encouraged me more by his non-interference in my reading and research than by any act of sharing his ideas or giving me assignments.

I could, for the first time, handle plant fossils, examine them under the microscope, analyze them and photograph them in the way I thought best. ⁴ Not that I had not seen plant fossils earlier. In fact, even by 1970, I had gone fossil-hunting with my illustrious colleague ⁵ who shared the same enthusiasm as mine in knowing more about fossils. But there was a difference between merely collecting and storing fossils, and studying them in depth. Many an amateur fossil hunter stops at the initial step of collecting fossils. There is more fun and challenge in studying fossils and I enjoyed doing it for three years from 1976 to 1979, at the Research Institute. Moreover, I had the opportunity, during these three years, to come face to face with some of the renowned palaeobotanists of the time—some working at the Institute and others working elsewhere in the world and visiting the Institute, on and off.

I have in the previous paragraphs traced my interest in fossils with reference to my personal history, because I believe that a historical background always gives a better perspective of any subject. At the age of 75, I still enjoy collecting and studying fossil. In Part I of the book, I have attempted to share with the reader a bit of that enjoyment. The 1st chapter is aimed at anyone who is curious to know about fossils in general. It would answer questions such as: What can be called a ‘fossil’? Where can fossils be found? How are fossils formed? What are the different kinds of fossils? And what techniques are employed by scientists to study them? The study of fossils and the rocks, in which they are found, has influenced scientist in making certain deductions about the earth and it’s past. Two of these deductions are discussed in chapter 2. Chapter 3 deals with Continental Drift, a concept that was prompted by the distribution of fossils in different continents of the globe, in addition to other evidences.

Fossils also provide important evidences for ‘Organic Evolution’. And no wonder, just as fossils fascinated me in my school days, so did the topic ‘Evolution’ ⁶ that forms the subject of Part II, in which I have followed once again the historical perspective I believe in.

B. Evolution

All that I was able to understand by this word ‘evolution’ at an early stage in my life (I am referring to my high school days) was that, a great scientist ⁷ who lived in England in the late 19th century had said, Man evolved from monkeys! To scores of other youngsters brought up in Anglican Christian tradition, this idea of ‘man coming from monkeys’ was contrary to what is said in the first two chapters of the Bible about the creation of man. ⁸ So, when the time came for me to enter college, I opted for the ‘natural science’ group hoping I will be told all about ‘evolution’. Alas, that was not to be. Nothing about evolution was taught in the Botany class and just a passing mention was made in the Zoology class, towards the end of the course, pointing out that the idea of evolution was that of Charles Darwin. It was only when I took up teaching as my career and when I had to teach ‘evolution’ as a subject to the undergraduate and postgraduate students, did I begin to read seriously ‘The Origin of Species’, the book written by Darwin in 1859. Though it proved to be difficult reading, I could understand what was said therein. In Part II of this book, I have set out to explain the concepts pertaining to Organic Evolution and the overwhelming fossil evidences, both from the plant world and the animal world, that have come to light due to the painstaking and ingenious studies of scores of scientists all over the globe, since Darwin’s time.

C. My Faith

I had already alluded to the fact that there is a conflict in the minds of youngsters who have been brought up in Christian traditions, which emphasize that God Almighty had created everything in the universe, when they are confronted by a concept such as Organic Evolution, which purports to show that the living world has been shaped by Natural Forces that do not require a Creator! I was no exception to this conflict, as I was brought up in an Anglican Christian Tradition from my childhood. Born as the eldest child in a traditional Christian family hailing from South India, I got my school ⁹ and college ¹⁰ education entirely in Protestant Christian Institutions in the city of Chennai (formerly, Madras). So, I imbibed the Indian Christian traditions right from my childhood, both from home as well as from those institutions where I was sent to study. Many persons, ¹¹ other than my parents and close relatives, helped to shape my convictions and it will not be possible to list them all here. Nor can I spell out exactly what part of my convictions was the result of my contacts with whom. Suffice it to say that I had developed these thoughts very gradually, over a period of several years. Teaching religious and moral education to undergraduate students in college during the early years of my teaching career, helped immensely. Not a bit less was the contribution by the Theological Training Course ¹² undertaken voluntarily between the years 1973-1976.

I have narrated earlier how I tried to understand what Darwinian Evolution was all about and how I took pains to read the literature pertaining to it. This quest of mine was progressing side by side with my study of the Bible. I also chanced to read many of the writings of those who rejected Darwinian Evolution on religious grounds. I also came across writings that counteracted these anti-evolutionary writings and upheld the authenticity of biological evolution. So, I was in a dilemma for many years. Can both sides be right? Or, was one right and the other wrong? Should I accept the Biblical account of Creation or should I reject it for another? With all this background, my ideas began to crystallize, when in my mind, I superimposed the study of plant fossils, the collective evidences for Organic Evolution, and what I read in the Bible and other Christian literature. In Part III, ‘my Faith’, I have presented my views on various topics pertaining to Christianity, as I have understood them with the background and convictions of mine. I am not disputing the fact that others of a different faith and other Christians as well, may view these topics in a different light. I have no quarrels with them. If the reader agrees with my views, I am happy. If not, I merely apologize for holding views that are contrary to those of the reader.

If the reader wants my answer for the question, "Do you believe in evolution? all I can say at this point is: Dear friend, please read on to the end of Part III and you will discover what my faith is".

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The book that attracted me as a boy.

NOTES (for Prologue)

1.   The Madras Christian College (MCC), one of the premier institutions of Higher Education affiliated to the University of Madras in the State of Tamil Nadu, India (where I did my Intermediate, undergraduate and postgraduate courses and was then employed as a faculty member since 1961), offered only minimal research facilities for many years, as it was primarily meant to be a teaching institution, when established in 1837. Times have changed now. Most of the departments in the college, which became ‘autonomous’ in 1979 [rated A+ by the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) of India], offer facilities for research degrees, in addition to undergraduate and postgraduate courses of study in their relevant areas.

2.   The Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeobotany (BSIP), Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India. A Govt. of India scientific research institution, it is funded mostly by the Department of Science and Technology. It is one of the renowned centre for research in plant fossils and related areas of knowledge in Asia.

3.   Dr. K.R. Surange, a well-known Indian palaeobotanist, who was the Director of the Institute at the time of my joining. His hands were full with all sorts of administrative matters and he