Stern, David L. “Perspective: Evolutionary Developmental Biology and the Problem of Variation,” Evolution 2000, 54, 1079-1091. A contribution from the University of Cambridge. “One of the oldest problems in evolutionary biology remains largely unsolved…Historically, the neo-Darwinian synthesizers stressed the predominance ofmicromutations in evolution, whereas others noted the similarities between somedramatic mutations and evolutionary transitions to argue for macromutationism.”
Simons, Andrew M. “The Continuity of Microevolution and Macroevolution,” Journal of Evolutionary Biology 2002, 15, 688-701. A contribution from Carleton University.”A persistent debate in evolutionary biology is one over the continuity of microevolution and macroevolution — whether macroevolutionary trends are governed by the principles of microevolution.”
"It must not be forgotton that mutation is the ultimate source of all qenetic variation found in natural population and the only new material available for natural selection to work upon." *E. Mayr, Populations, Species and Evolution (1970), p. 103.
(1) RARE EFFECTS -
"It is probably fair to estimate the frequency of a majority of mutations in higher organisms between one in ten thousands and one in a million per gene per generation." *F.J. Ayala, "Teleogical Explanation of Science, March 1970
"Although mutation is the ultimate source of all genetic variation, it is a relatively rare event." *F.J. Ayala, "Mechanism of Evolution, "Scientific American, September (1978), p. 63.
(2) RANDOM EFFECTS -
It remanes true to say that we know of no other than random mutation by which new hereditary variations come into being, nor any process other than natural selection by which the hereditary constitution of a population changes from one generation to the next." *C.H. Waddington, The Nature of Life (1962), p. 98.
"It is our contention that if 'random' is given a serious and crucial interpretation from a probabilistic point of view, the randomness postulate is highly implausible and that an adequate scientfic theory of evolution must await the discovery and elucidation [a clarifing explanation] of new natural laws." *Murray Eden, "Inadequacies of Neo-Darwinian Evolution as Scientific Theory," in *Mathematical Challenges to the Neo-Darwinian Theory of Evolution (1967), p. 109.
(3) NOT HELPFUL
"But mutations are found to be a random nature, so far as their utility is concerned. Accordingly, the great majority, certainly well over 99%, are harmful in some way, as is to be expected of the effects of accidental occurrences." *H.J. Muller, "Raditation Damage to Genetic Material", in American Scientist, Janurary 1950, p. 35
(4) HARMFUL EFFECTS
"A proportion of favorable mutations of one in a thousand does not sound like much, but is probably generous, since so many mutations are lethal, preventing the orginism from living at all, and the great majority of the rest throw the machinery slightly out of gear." *Julian Huxley, Evolution in Action, p. 41. "One would expect that any interference with such a complicated piece of chemical machinery as the geneic constitution would result in damage. And, in fact, this is so: the great majority of mutant genes are harmful in their effects on the oranism." *Julian Huxley, op. cit., p. 137.
"A number of molecular biologists believe there is more to the extra DNA than the evolutionary theories imply.") "genetic decay," any hypothetical favorable mutant in one gene would invariably be coupled to harmful changes in other genes. As mutational load increases with time, the survival of the species will be threatened as matings produce a greater percentage of offspring carrying serious genetic defects.1,3 1. *Ayala. Francisco, "The Mechanisms of Evolution," Scientific American, V. 239, No. 3, 1978, pp. 56-69.
3. Pai, Anna. Foundations of Genetics New York: McGraw-Hill Book Co., 1974, pp. 248-249.
Mutations are "pathologic" (disease-causing) and only "modify what pre-exists," as French zoologist *Pierre-Paul Grassé says, so mutations have "no final evolutionary effect."4 4. Grassé, *Pierre-Paul, Evolution of Living Organisms, New York: Academic Press, 1977, as quoted by *William Bauer,"Review of Evolution of Living Organisms" Acts and Facts, Impact No. 76, 1979. Creation, Mutation, and Variation by Gary Parker, Ed.D.http://www.icr.org/article/171
"The majority of evolutionary movements are degenerative. Progressive cases are exceptional. Characters appear suddenly that have no meaning toward progress [i.e., that do not evolve into anything else] ...The only thing that could be accomplished by slow changes without value for survival." *John B.S. Haldane, quoted in Asimov's Book of Science and Natural Quotations, p. 91 [English geneticist]
"The very sucess of the Darwinian model at a micro-evolutionary [sub-species] level...only serves to highlight its failure at a macroevolutionary [across species] level." *Michael Denton, Evolution: A Theory in Crisis (1985), p. 344
"Increase of knowledge about biology has tended to emphasize the extreme rigidity of type, and more and more to discount the idea of transmutation from one type to another--the essential basis of Darwinism." *McNair Wilson, "The Witness of Science, "Oxford Medical Publishlications (1942).