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Macroevolution | Large, hypothetical changes which occur in an individual or in a population of organisms which produce an entirely new category or novel trait. These changes have never been observed to occur within living populations. |
Macrogenesis | the generation of many or large new traits, as in the theory of punctuated equilibrium |
Macromolecule | molecule, such as protein, nucleic acid, or polysaccharide with a molecular mass greater than a few thousand Daltons |
Magma | molten rock deep in the Earth from which igneous rock is formed |
Magmatic | pertaining to magma |
Magnetic dipole moment | the vector which gives the strength and direction of the magnet |
Magnetic field | the region of space near a magnetized body within which magnetic forces can be detected |
Main Sequence Star | a sequence of stars on the color-magnitude diagram, containing the majority of stars, that runs diagonally from the upper left to the lower right |
Mammal-like reptiles | a large, varied group of fossilized reptiles that possessed certain characteristics usually associated with mammals, thus they are assumed by evolutionists to be transitional forms between reptiles and mammals. The mammalian characteristics include some or all of the following: a secondary palate, a double occipital condyle, differentiated teeth, an enlargement in size of the dentary jaw bone and reduction in size of the other lower jaw bones, and mammal type squamosal-dentary jaw joint |
Mandibles | the lower jaw |
Mantra | a holy syllable that manifests eternal words or sounds. In Mantra Yoga, om is the sacred sound. |
Marxism | the philosophical, social, and economic theories of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels; Marxism predicts for the more or less immediate future the decay of capitalism, an inevitable and victorious revolution of the workers, and the establishment of socialism under the dictatorship of the proletariat. It looks forward to the ultimate goal of "the withering away of the state" leading to a classless society, communistic in economy and self- regulatory in politics. |
Materialism | in philosophy, the theory that physical matter is the only reality and that everything can be explained in terms of matter and physical phenomena |
Mechanistic | happening naturalistically; by natural processes or mechanisms |
Megaevolution | macroevolution |
Megafaunal* | large animals |
Melanism | a dark-color phase in comparison with the usual color |
Mendelian genetics | the three principles of hereditary phenomena discovered and formulated by Gregor Mendel (1) the law of independent unit characters, which states that characteristics such as height, color, etc. are inherited separately as units (2) the law of segregation, which states that body cells and primordial germ cells contain pairs of such unit characters and that when gametes are produced, each gamete receives only one member of each such pair (3) the law of dominance, which states that in every individual there is a pair of determining factors for each unit character, one from each parent; if these factors are different, one character appears in the organism, the other being latent |
Meningocele | a protrusion of the cerebral or spinal meninges, in the form of a tumor, through an opening in the skull; hernia of the brain |
Mesoamerica | a region extending south and east from central Mexico to include parts of Guatemala, Belize, Honduras, and Nicaragua |
Mesonychids | fossils representing terrestrial ungulates; they may have been carnivorous (based on jaws and teeth); they were the size and proportions of wolves; found in the middle Paleocene through early Oligocene, they are thought by evolutionists to have been the ancestors of whales |
Metamorphic rock | rock formed in the hard state by heat, pressure, and chemicals acting on sedimentary materials |
Metaphysics | (1) the branch of philosophy that deals with first principles and seeks to explain the nature of being or reality and of the origin and structure of the world (cosmology): it is closely associated with a theory of knowledge (epistemology) (2) speculative philosophy in general |
Meteor | the luminous phenomenon observed when a particle enters the Earth's atmosphere and burns up |
Micritic limestone | a limestone consisting of less that 10% allochems and more than 90% micrite (semi-opaque crystalline matrix of limestone consisting of chemically precipitated carbonate mud with crystals less than 4 microns in diameter) |
Microevolution | small adaptation within a population of organisms which allow a certain trait to be expressed to a greater or lesser degree than before; variation within a category. These are regularly observed to occur within living populations. |
Micron | A unit of length equal to one-millionth of a meter, or one-thousandth of a millimeter. |
Microtubules | filaments consisting of dimers of tubulin; one of the three major classes of filaments in the cytoskeleton |
Milankovitch mechanism | solar radiation curve devised by Melankovitch which shows that there are periodic changes in the amount of radiation received on Earth caused by eccentricities in the Earth's orbit. These lead to cyclical climate changes, causing glacial periods, etc. |
Milky Way Galaxy | a galaxy of stars in which the solar system is located |
Miller's experiment | the first experimental test of the Oparin-Haldane hypothesis of abiogenesis in which Miller synthesized amino acids in a closed chamber containing supposed simulated conditions of the early atmosphere |
Mineralogic | of or pertaining to the study of minerals |
Missing mass | an attempt to salvage the Big Bang theory by imagining the presence of missing matter in the form of unseen cold dark mass |
Mitochondrion (plural mitochondria) | membrane-bound organelles, about the size of a bacterium, that carry out oxidative phosphorylation and produce most of the ATP in eucaryotic cells |
Model | a conceptual framework, an orderly system of thought, within which one tries to correlate observable data and even to predict data |
Model of creation | the scientific evidence for a sudden creation of complex and diversified kinds of life, with systematic gaps persisting between different kinds and with genetic variation occurring within each kind since that time |
Model of evolution | the scientific evidence for a gradual emergence of the present life kinds over aeons of time, with emergence of complex and diversified kinds of life from simpler kinds and ultimately from non- living matter |
Modern Synthetic Theory | (neo-Darwinism) the slow gradual evolution of one plant or animal into another by the gradual accumulation of micromutations through natural selection of favored variants |
Molecular clock | a concept based on the assumption (often a daring one) that mutations accumulate at a steady rate, used to estimate the time at which two evolving lineages diverged |
Molecular evolution | the supposed progressive change in gene sequence that explains mutation rate and evolutionary substitution rate |
Molecule | a combination of two or more atoms bound together; the smallest particle of a chemical compound or substance that exhibits the chemical properties of that substance |
Mollusks | invertebrates characterized by a soft, unsegmented body enclosed, in most instances, partly or wholly in a calcareous shell of one or more pieces and having gills, a foot, and a mantle (e.g. clams, snails, squid) |
Monobaramin | a term from the discontinuity method of systematics that refers to a group containing only organisms related by common descent, but not necessarily all of them. A group sharing a common ancestor. (ReMine, W. 1993. The Biotic Message: Evolution versus Message Theory. p. 444.) |
Monocline | A fold structure in gently dipping strata in which the strata flex in only one direction from the horizontal. The East Kaibab Monocline, in the extreme eastern Grand Canyon, forms a north-south-trending structure that elevates strata on the west by almost 3,000 ft., forming the Kaibab and Coconino Plateaus. |
Monoplacophoran | any mollusk belonging to the class Monoplacophera, characterized by nearly bilateral symmetry and internal serial repetition |
Monotheism | the doctrine of or belief in the existence of only one God |
Morphology | the study of the form and major structure of living things |
Mosaics | unique combinations of non-unique characteristics; examples—Duck-billed Platypus and Archaeopteryx |
Mother Earth or Mother Nature | the deification of the Earth as the originator of all living things and the director of evolution |
Mousterian | designating or of a Middle Paleolithic culture, associated with the Neanderthal cave people and characterized by the use of flaked hand axes, scrapers, etc. |
Multi-culturalism | an educational movement designed to facilitate awareness and appreciation of diverse cultures. In post-modern ideology, it teaches that all cultures should be empowered to preserve, unchanged, their unique cultural reality. Any effort to change or reform a cultural group is actually repression, domination, and colonizing of one group by another. |
Multiple creation | a theory about the origin of the universe that accepts long geologic ages by saying that the initial creation was followed by millions of years, and was destroyed by a catastrophe, and was "re-created" |
Mutation | describes any change in the sequence of genomic DNA; a sudden inheritable change not previously seen in any immediate ancestor |
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Natural Law | the concept of there being a natural law in some prescriptive sense, in addition to the positive law or written law of a society |
Natural selection | that process in nature by which individuals (of a species) best fitted for the conditions in which they are placed survive, propagate, and spread, while the less fitted die out and disappear |
Natural Theology | a book written by William Paley to present evidence that order in the universe points to a designer |
Naturalism | a philosophy denying that any event has supernatural influence or significance |
Nautiloid | a mollusk of the genus Nautilis (characterized by many-chambered shells separated by transverse walls, and housing a squid-like animal |
Nebula | a cloud of interstellar gas or dust |
Neo-catastrophism | the doctrine that ancient geologic changes occurred largely in response to rapid and catastrophic processes, which were interposed between periods of slow and gradual change |
Neo-Darwinism | the slow gradual evolution of one plant or animal into another by the gradual accumulation of micromutations through natural selection of favored variants |
Nephesh (Hebrew) | soul; roughly equal with consciousness; this quality is only ascribed to man and some animals, but never to plants |
Neutrino | a fundamental particle that has little or no rest mass and no charge, but that does have spin and energy |
Neutron | an uncharged particle in the nucleus of an atom |
New Age religion | of or pertaining to a contemporary cultural movement characterized by a concern with spiritual consciousness and variously combining belief in reincarnation and astrology with such practices as meditation, vegetarianism, and holistic medicine |
New Consciousness | Dewey’s philosophical escape from pragmatic idealism into empirical evaluation of consciousness without psychological constraints on thought or knowledge |
Nietzschian | of or pertaining to Nietzschism (the doctrine of Friedrich Nietzsche (1844 - 1900) a German philosopher) based on the theory that man can perfect himself through forcible self- assertion |
Noah's Flood | A year long, global flood which profoundly affected the earth and life. The flood is described in Genesis, chapters 6 - 9. |
Nonsingular tepid little bang | another imagined stage in the Big Bang theory |
Northeaster | a storm or strong wind coming from the northeast |
Nuclear decay constant | the probability that a radioactive parent atom will decay during a one year period of time |
Nucleoside (e.g. Adenosine) | compound composed of a purine or a pyrimidine base linked to either a ribose or a deoxy-ribose sugar |
Nucleotide | a nucleoside with one or more phosphate groups joined in ester linkages to the sugar moiety |
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Obligate | in biology, limited to a certain condition of life |
Occidentalism | the spirit, character, culture, customs, etc. of the western countries (West of Asia) |
Odontocete | toothed whales |
One-world government | the vision of establishing one global governing body to manage the affairs of mankind |
Ontogeny | the life cycle of a single organism; biological development of the individual |
Organic | any matter consisting of, or produced by, living organisms |
Organic Evolution | theory that life (organisms) transmuted over time and was sequentially selected by nature for increasingly fit individuals |
Ornithology | the branch of zoology dealing with birds |
Overthrust | a mass of rocks pushed over on top of another |
Oxidation | loss of electron density from one atom, as occurs during the addition of oxygen to a molecule or when an hydrogen is removed |
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Paleoanthropologists | those who study the earliest of men |
Paleomagnetic | the study of the magnetization locked into rocks at the time of their formation |
Paleontology | the scientific study of fossils |
Paleopathology | the study of ancient diseases |
Paleoplains | remnants of old paleosurfaces of low relief |
Paleothermometer | an instrument for measuring temperature in the past |
Pantheism | the doctrine or belief that God is not a personality, but that all laws, forces, manifestations, etc. of the self- existing universe are god; the belief that God is everything and everything is God |
Pantheistic evolution | the theory of origins that says that the Earth and universe are conscious entities and are manifested in different forms—the river, the earth, etc. |
Parallax | an apparent displacement of an object due to a motion of the observer |
Parsimony | extremely frugal; stinginess; miserliness |
Peneplain | low-lying, low relief surfaces |
Percolation | to pass (a liquid) gradually through small spaces or a porous substance |
Perissodactyls | hooved animals that have an uneven number of toes |
Perspicuous | clearly expressed or presented; easy to understand; lucid |
Petrel | any of various related small, dark sea birds with long wings |
Petrification | the process of becoming hard like a rock |
Petrogenesis | the origin and history of rocks, especially igneous rocks |
Petrologic | of or relating to the study of the composition, structure, and origin of rocks |
Phenotypic | of or characteristic of a type that is distinguished by visual characteristics rather than by hereditary or genetic traits |
Phosphodiester bond | a covalent chemical bond formed when two hydroxyl groups are linked in ester linkage to the same phosphate group, such as adjacent nucleotides on RNA or DNA |
Photodissociation | the breaking up of a substance, especially a chemical compound, into simpler components by the action of radiant energy |
Photoelectrically | of or having to do with the electric effects produced by light, especially as in the emission of electrons by certain substances when subjected to light or radiation of suitable wave length |
Photolysis | decomposition brought about by the action of radiant energy, particularly by light |
Phreatic theory | a theory for the formation of limestone caves that claims that cavities formed when the limestone was below the level of groundwater and the cavities were completely filled with water |
Phreatic water | CO2 poor, oxygen poor, organic rich, and high salinity |
Phyletic evolution | transformation of an unbranched lineage of organisms to a state different enough from the ancestral population to justify renaming it as a new population |
Phylogeny | the supposed evolutionary history of an organism, or the lines of evolutionary descent of a group of organisms |
Phytoplankton | the microscopic plant life found floating or drifting in the ocean or in bodies of fresh water, used as food for fish |
Piping | the production of underground conduits by removal of fine particles by water driven by pressure through poorly consolidated materials |
Placer | deposit of mineral (e.g. gold, tin, etc.) that has been concentrated by mechanical action. Placer minerals generally have high density and resistance, and therefore may concentrate during various types of weathering |
Plasma theory | a cosmological model to explain the origin of the universe |
Plasmid | autonomous, self-replicating, extra-chromosomal, circular DNA |
Plate tectonics | the motion of segments or plates of the outer layer of the Earth over the underlying mantle |
Pleochroic halos | colored spheres in rocks produced by radioactive decay |
Ploidy | refers to the number of copies of the chromosome set present in a cell; a haploid has one copy, a diploid has two copies, etc. |
Pointuniverse | equivalent of the cosmic egg starting point of the Big Bang story |
Polemicist | a skilled debater or writer of polemic discussions |
Polymer | a large molecule consisting of many identical or similar molecules linked together |
Polyploid | more than two sets of chromosomes—triple or quadruple, or more |
Polystrate fossil | a fossil which spans more than one strata layer; most common examples are trees, stumps, and branches, but animal bodies have also been found |
Polytheism | the belief in or worship of many gods, or more than one god; opposed to monotheism |
Porphyrin | any of a group of pyrrole derivatives of hemoglobin and chlorophyll containing no iron or magnesium |
Positivism | a system of philosophy, originated by Auguste Comte, based solely on observable, scientific facts and their relations to each other: it rejects speculation about or search for ultimate origins |
Postcranial skeleton | the skeleton excluding the skull |
Post-diluvian | living or happening after the Flood |
Post-Enlightenment | the period of time following the Age of Enlightenment (a mainly eighteenth-century European philosophical movement characterized by a reliance on reason and experience rather than dogma and tradition and by an emphasis on humanitarian political goals and social progress); sometimes refers specifically to the Post-Modern era |
Post-Modernism | the movement in late-twentieth century thought that rejects enlightenment rationalism, individualism, and optimism. Postmodernism is characterized by nihilism and radical subjectivity. "Affirmative" postmodernists believe that social reality can be changed by activism. |
Potassium-Argon dating | technique for obtaining an "age" for a rock using the proportions of radioactive potassium-40 to stable decay product argon-40. The method makes four main assumptions. It assumes that the nuclear decay rate or half-life has always remained constant. It assumes that the initial proportions of parent to daughter are known. Thirdly, it assumes that the isotopic composition of rock samples has not been changed by fractionation over time. And lastly it assumes that rock samples have been a closed system over time with no migration of parent or daughter elements into or out of the rocks. |
Pre-Cambrian | All strata and rocks that were part of the earth's crust before the Cambrian system was deposited. |
Precipitite | term coined by Dietz and Woodhouse to describe a rock formed by crystallization from solution rather than from evaporated residue |
Presuppositions | things, facts, or ideas which are assumed to be true beforehand |
Prima facie | at first sight, on first view; before further examination |
Primary atmosphere | an explanation for the early faint sun paradox in which there was first a hydrogen atmosphere |
Primates | the order of mammals that includes monkeys, apes, and man |
Primeval | original, primitive; belonging to the first or earliest period |
Principle of cause and effect | (or principle of causality) states that every effect must have an equal or greater cause. As an argument for the creation of the universe, the principle of causality states that "Everything that comes to be is caused by another. The universe came to be. The universe was caused by another." If there were ever absolutely nothing (including God), then there would always be absolutely nothing (including God). |
Principle of relativity | principle that all observers in uniform relative motion are equivalent |
Procaryotes | Single-celled organisms without internal membranes or organized chromosomes (bacteria) |
Process creation | a theory for the origin of the universe that accepts long geologic ages by saying that God used natural processes to create |
Progressive creation | the belief that God interjected occasional creative acts in the evolutionary ages of historical geology |
Progressive diversification | change that leads to evolution from simple to more complex |
Propitiatory | atoning, reconciling |
Proton | a heavy subatomic particle that carries a positive charge; one of the two principle constituents of the atomic nucleus |
Pseudo- scientific | false, pretended, or counterfeit science |
Ptarmigan | a bird of the grouse family that changes color seasonally |
Pterygoid plates | the two bone plates which unite at their distal end to form the pterygoid process which connects the lower jaw to the palate |
Punctuated equilibrium (Hopeful monster) | a theory of evolution advocating spurts of relatively rapid change followed by long periods of stasis |
Punctuational evolution | a theory for a naturalistic origin of the universe that proposes that extinction opens up ecological niches that can be filled by a newly immergent species |
Puritan-Pilgrim ethic | a view of life that promotes hard work and self-discipline as a means to material prosperity |
Pyroclastic flow | a dense, turbulent avalanche or ground-hugging slurry of gases and volcanic fragments created at the neck of a volcano by an explosive, magmatic eruption |
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