"At
this time, the prosecution calls upon Professor Alan Yardley," proclaimed Mr.
Mayfield. As he uttered the name, he looked back toward the audience.
A tall,
thin, bearded man, who appeared to be in his late thirties or early forties stood up in
the area where Mr. Mayfield was looking. The man strode to the witness stand and remained
standing while the oath was administered by a court officer: "Do you promise to tell
the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help you God?"
The witness
answered: "I do."
The court
officer then informed him: "You may be seated." Once the witness was settled in
his chair, the court officer said: "Will you state your name and address for the
record, please."
"My
name is Alan Ross Yardley," he replied. "I presently reside at One Finch Beak
Road, Daphne Major, the Galapagos Islands."
The court
officer returned to his seat. Mr. Mayfield approached the witness.
"Dr.
Yardley," he requested, "will you state your current occupation and title."
"I hold
the Charles Darwin Chair for Biological Sciences at the University of Galapagos," he
responded. "I am a full professor and teach a variety of courses dealing with
different facets of evolutionary biology."
"How
long have you held your present position, Dr. Yardley?" Mr. Mayfield inquired.
"For
seven years," Dr. Yardley answered.
"Professor,"
Mr. Mayfield said, "would you be kind enough to list your major publications."
Dr. Yardley
was about to begin when the defense lawyer arose. "If it please the court, your
Honor," Mr. Tappin indicated, "in the interests of saving time, the defense is
quite prepared to acknowledge the expertise of Professor Yardley in the field of
evolutionary biology. His reputation as a first-rate scholar is recognized
internationally, and we feel there is no need to go through the usual procedures for
establishing expertise with respect to this witness."
"So
noted," acknowledged Judge Arnsberger. "Thank you for expediting matters, Mr.
Tappin."
The defense
lawyer nodded his head and sat down. He began writing something on a piece of paper
and, when finished, showed it to his assistant.
"Your
Honor," the prosecutor said, "before beginning my examination of this witness, I
would like to introduce into evidence, at this time, the People's Exhibit, marked
"A"." While saying this, he had returned to his table, picked up a
document, checked its identity, and delivered the bundle of papers to Judge Arnsberger.
The Judge
examined the papers briefly and made a few notations, presumably, in her own log of the
trial. Having done so, she said: "You may proceed Mr. Mayfield."
Having been
given the green light by the judge, Mr. Mayfield handed People's exhibit 'A' to Dr.
Yardley and said: "These papers, Professor, which have just been introduced
into evidence as People's Exhibit "A", constitute a detailed curriculum for the
courses on evolutionary biology which are being taught by the defendant, Mr. Corrigan. Dr.
Yardley, have you had a chance to study these papers prior to the beginning of this
trial?"
The
professor quickly worked his way through the pile of documents."Yes, prior to the
beginning of these proceedings, I have looked through this set of documents,"
confirmed the professor.
"What
is your opinion, Professor Yardley, of the educational merit of these curriculum materials
as far as the teaching of evolutionary biology is concerned?" the prosecutor
inquired.
"Well,
in certain ways," he asserted, "they appear to be reminiscent of the kind of
material which is taught under the misleading title of creation science. And ..."
"Objection,
your Honor," Mr. Tappin blurted out.
"On
what grounds?" Judge Arnsberger asked.
"Your
Honor, as has been clearly stated in the defense's opening statement, Mr. Corrigan's
position is not that of the so-called "creation scientists". Unless the
prosecution demonstrates in what way the position of Mr. Corrigan is
"reminiscent" of the position of the creation scientists and unless the
relevance of that reminiscence to the present case can be established, then all references
to creation science are really immaterial and irrelevant to these proceedings, as well as
being quite prejudicial to the interests of my client."
"Mr.
Mayfield," inquired Judge Arnsberger, "does the prosecution intend to provide
the court with the sort of demonstrations and connections about which Mr. Tappin is
concerned?"
"No,
your Honor," indicated the prosecutor.
"Very
well," she said. "The objection of the counsel for defense is sustained, and the
statement of the witness will be stricken from the records. You'll have to begin again,
Mr. Mayfield."
Nodding his
head in compliance with the directive, the prosecutor turned backed to the witness.
"Professor Yardley, in the light of what has just transpired, how would you sum up
your objections to the curriculum materials of Mr. Corrigan?"
"Perhaps,"
the professor began, "the most diplomatic way to state what is problematic about the
content of Mr. Corrigan's course material is that it is consistently antagonistic toward
the precepts, findings, conclusions, principles, orientation and general framework of the
modern theory of evolutionary biology. In other words, Mr. Corrigan seems to want to
debate and question issues and themes which, for the most part, have long been accepted as
settled among the vast majority of scientists all over the world."
"Dr.
Yardley, is this "antagonistic" flavor of Mr. Corrigan's teaching material, only
directed at specific aspects of evolutionary theory, or is the tenor of his attitude more
general in character?" the prosecutor asked.
"Quite
general, I would say, but it is manifested in specific ways at virtually every level of
evolutionary inquiry. For instance, Mr. Corrigan seems unwilling to accept much of what
has been agreed upon with respect to issues involving prebiotic chemistry, the origins of
the first proto cells, the emergence of prokaryotic and eukaryotic forms of life, as well
as ..."
"Professor
Yardley, I'm sorry for interrupting you," Mr. Mayfield apologized, "but three or
four terms, in quick succession, have occurred in the testimony, and I feel they should be
explained by you - in a brief fashion if possible - for the benefit of the jurors. Perhaps
you could start with the term "prebiotic".
"Certainly,"
the professor said, "I would be most happy to do so. "Prebiotic" chemistry
refers to the study of all chemical processes, whether inorganic or organic, which are
thought to have occurred prior to the appearance of biological or living systems on Earth.
"These
prebiotic chemical systems are believed to have evolved, over the course of millions of
years, into, first, quite primitive cellular forms of life, known as "proto
cells". Such proto cells were, however, sufficiently developed to exhibit three
properties.
"First,
they contained some kind of membrane mechanism which provided a certain amount of
protection for, as well as enclosed an area involving, a variety of chemical reactions
necessary to sustain life on some minimal basis. Secondly, there would have had to be a
method of metabolism which would permit the coupling of certain sources of energy with the
building up and tearing down of chemical substances which result in the regulation of cell
functioning and structure. Thirdly, such a proto cell would need a means of storing and
replicating information concerning the capabilities of the proto cell which would enable
the entity to reproduce itself and generate other proto cells of a similar enough nature
to be able to perpetuate the life cycle in future generations.
"Before
proceeding, however, I should point out something. Among evolutionary biologists, as far
as the issue of proto cells is concerned, the aforementioned three m's - that is,
membranes, metabolism and memory, may operate in ways which are quite different from what
goes on in the current, modern life forms with which we are familiar, such as prokaryotes
and eukaryotes.
"Prokaryotic
forms of life consist of single-celled organisms in which the genetic material of such an
organism is not enclosed by a true nucleus within the cell but, instead, floats freely in
an area known as the nucleoid. By and large, most prokaryotes are one species or another
of either bacteria or blue-green algae.
"Eukaryotic
forms of life, on the other hand, include all those organisms whose cells contain a true
nucleus, consisting of a bilayered or double membrane, which ropes off, so to speak, a
roughly circular area within the cell that stores the genetic blueprints for the cell.
These eukaryotic organisms may be either single-celled or multiple-celled in character
and, for the most part, involve all forms of life other than the aforementioned bacteria
or blue-green algae prokaryotic life forms."
"Thank
you, Professor Yardley, for your very concise definitions of the technical terms,"
said Mr. Mayfield. "I'm sure we will be relying on this ability of yours quite a lot
in the testimony which lies ahead of us.
"Dr.
Yardley, you have indicated in your previous testimony that Mr. Corrigan's curriculum
materials take exception with well-established, and generally agreed upon, issues and
themes at virtually every level of evolutionary theory. Maybe the most effective way in
which to proceed is to spend some time providing an overview for the members of the jury
concerning the theoretical framework for modern evolutionary biology.
"In
this manner we will be able to develop, hopefully, a much clearer understanding of that to
which Mr. Corrigan stands in opposition. Moreover, in the process of coming to this
understanding, you can provide evidence which, when contrasted with the material in
Exhibit "A", will demonstrate the truth of the allegations contained in the
People's charges against Mr. Corrigan.
"Let's
start, Professor Yardley, with first principles. Could you provide us with an outline of
the currently accepted understanding of the formation of the Earth and what ensued from
that as far as the conditions which are believed to have arisen to give expression to the
prebiotic environment out of which life is said to have originated."
"Objection,
your Honor," Mr. Tappin asserted. "While the defense is willing to concede Dr.
Yardley has expertise in the specific area of evolutionary biology, we are not prepared to
concede his expertise in areas of cosmology, meteorology, climatology or geophysics."
"Under
other circumstances, Mr. Tappin," the judge indicated, "I might be inclined to
agree with you. On the other hand, earlier on, you waived your right to establish the
precise nature of the parameters within which the expertise on evolutionary biology falls.
"Furthermore,
unless I am mistaken, Mr. Tappin, in your opening statement you seemed to indicate that,
in order to set the stage for the case of the defense, you wished to concentrate on what
the science of our day claims to be the best version of the evidence in support of
evolutionary theory. Why don't we give them a chance to stick their head into the lion's
mouth before trying to lop it off?
"I'm
going to allow the witness to answer this line of questioning. Objection overruled.
"However,
Mr. Mayfield, let's understand what is being said here. I don't want you taking undue
advantage of the latitude which is being extended to you by the court, or else I will step
in and revoke your privileges in this regard. Have I made myself clear?"
"Like a
Norwegian fiord, your Honor," acknowledged the prosecutor.
"Dr.
Yardley," he said, "let me rephrase, somewhat, my previous question to you.
Among evolutionary biologists, what is the generally agreed-upon understanding concerning
the conditions prevailing on Earth during prebiotic times?"
"To
properly answer your question in even a cursory manner," stated the professor,
"one must understand that prebiotic times entail a number of different stages and
kinds of interacting evolutionary forces. These include: the evolution of the solar system
as it relates to planetary formation; geological evolution; atmospheric evolution;
hydrological evolution of the physical character, distribution and effects of the waters
of the Earth; together with chemical evolution, especially as this development relates to
the generation of increasingly complex forms of hydrocarbons which are the bread and
butter of organic chemistry.
"I'll
try to give a brief overview of all but the last of these areas. The topic of chemical
evolution will require considerably more time.
"Obviously,
my brief account of the issues outside of chemical evolution will be leaving out a great
deal of detail. Nonetheless, I believe people will be able to grasp the character of the
general picture which is being constructed.
"To
begin with ... ahh! Mr. Mayfield ... it is alright that I proceed in this way, isn't
it?" he asked.
"Of
course, Professor Yardley," the prosecutor confirmed. "If I feel any
clarification is necessary, I'll be sure to intervene.
"Moreover,
Professor, I realize some minimum degree of technical language and explanation will be
necessary. However, if you can, while avoiding as much distortion and oversimplification
as possible, try to make your account as clear and succinct as possible.
"This
is probably asking the impossible of you. Nonetheless, I believe the more you are able to
approach the "impossible" as a limit, the more easily will the jurors understand
the validity of the allegations being made against Mr. Corrigan."
