Review of Computer Viruses, Artificial Life and Evolution
1993, American Eagle Publications, Mark Ludwig
Ludwig takes an interesting method at looking at the creation/evolution debate and asks how we might find if a primitive life form can evolve. His subject is computer viruses.
Ludwig embarks on a very scientific, mathematical, and computerized discussion of the issues involved. Most people will not be sophisticated enough to understand the math involved (the book seems written for a physics major) or understand the computer programming. Those who want to ignore these discussions will find the philosophical discourse fascinating. Part two starts with a discussion of philosophy and the importance of it. Ludwig concludes, as do many theists, that scientists are biased toward their own world view, despite their claims to be unbiased. He later engages in a discussion of atomistic scientific presuppositions and emergent behavior presuppositions and shows the contradictions between the two. Atomistic believers want to break everything down into its parts and then declare that all parts are subject to natural laws and hence the whole is subject to natural laws. Those who subscribe to the claim of the existence of strong emergent properties (Ludwig defines it as so: "a system exhibits strong emergent behavior when one or more aspects of its behavior is theoretically incalculable") believe that when certain structures are combined, new traits develop. Ludwig says there are "cracks" in the fundamental atomistic
philosophy, something that would be suspected long ago by those who insist consciousness cannot be explained by atomistic claims.
Near the end of the book Ludwig goes back to philosophy. He says he used to be a thoroughgoing materialist and enjoyed lambasting the Jehovah's Witnesses when they came to knock on his door. Yet, he was a witness to a remarkable psychic experience which seemed to convince him that the supernatural may be probable. Ludwig also read an interesting book by T. L. Osborne called Healing the Sick, a book that leads Ludwig to remark, "Either this guy's seen some real miracles or he's the biggest liar who ever lived." All in all, Ludwig says, "I have to admit the supernatural into my world view" and declares Darwinism a dead proposition - "hypercharged with philosophy." At least Ludwig admits to the bare minimum any theist would ask for when one starts his journey toward exploring the truth.
Oh, I should mention, if you don't like Ludwig's philosophy, there's a neat BASIC program near the end that you can type on your computer if you like that sort of recreation.
Jeffrey Stueber