In The Beginning Was Information: A Scientist Explains The Incredible Design In Nature (2006) - Plot & Excerpts
After reading George Gilder's Knowldge and Power, I've had a new appreciation for information science. This book also dealt with that realm, but to a totally alternate purpose. I think anyone familiar with what is now called "Information Technology" would do well to get a good foundation in information science to understand the foundation of that technology. And it touches on many things I'm interested in: languages (especially Chinese and the CangJie Input Method), digital electronics, communications and radio technology, mathematics, and ultimately theology, too, if one agrees with Francis Schaeffer that He is There, And He Is Not Silent. And that was the end goal of Professor Gitt's treatise, that the world had to be designed by a magnificently intelligent Engineer.I was excited to see the world of science get a third basic entity, in addition to matter and energy: information. And Gitt provides us with some scientific laws and theorems related to information that he claims are as legitimately in the realm of science as any of Newton's Laws. He aims to mostly use the law that I will paraphrase here: Any codified information cannot be generated by matter or energy, but requires a willful intelligence. He then goes on to show that the genetic code in biological life fits that description, thus delegitimatizing the theory of unguided evolution. It does seem a somewhat clever shortcut to do away with evolution, but I wouldn't put all my eggs in the information science basket in disproving evolution. For me, however, it's one more argument that steers me away from having any confidence in evolution. It's a nice addition to the anti-evolutionary evaluation of the universe I occupy.I wonder if his book was well written, however. Parts of it were repetitive and stylistically dull. Also, his insistence on making it a Christian book that declares Biblical inerrancy, etc., will only cause non-Christians to write the other content off as the ravings of a slightly mad scientist. Even though I'm in agreement with him, I think he may make his case less persuasively by adding so many references to the Christian faith.Many of the scientific facts throughout the book left me amazed. God's design in terms of efficiency and miniaturization cannot be even faintly imitated by our best science and technology. Another reason to give God praise.The book was a mixed bag of pleasures and disappointments, but still well worth the read for anyone who puts himself in the science and technology or linguistics "nerd" category.
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