# Well, it probably won't shut up creationists... \[self-replicating RNA enzyme systems\]

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-it-probably-wont-shut-up-creationists-self-replicating-rna-enzyme-systems/480901>\
**Category:** Great Debates\
**Created:** [January 12, 2009, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-it-probably-wont-shut-up-creationists-self-replicating-rna-enzyme-systems/480901 "2009-01-12T12:08:54Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 11

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**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\
**Post date:** [January 15, 2009, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-it-probably-wont-shut-up-creationists-self-replicating-rna-enzyme-systems/480901/201 "2009-01-15T00:11:36Z")

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I don’t think it’s necessarily malice, it just seems to me that **kanicbird** is actively hunting around for anything that even remotely fits his worldview.

What we’re seeing in this thread is a lot of the reason why I abandoned Creationism myself - My mind wasn’t allowed to be free to see things and imagine that _they are the way they appear to be_ - everything had to be interpreted through a bizarre set of filters to try to bring it into line with scripture. It’s a prison for the mind.

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**Author:** ![Anaglyph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Anaglyph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaglyph)\
**Post date:** [January 15, 2009, 7:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-it-probably-wont-shut-up-creationists-self-replicating-rna-enzyme-systems/480901/202 "2009-01-15T07:51:37Z")

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> [@Snarky\_Kong](#):
>
> Right. How much more complex are they though?

They are long polymer chains with a defined sequence of four building blocks. They are molecules that are similar to DNA that contains our genetic information. Indeed, some viruses use RNA (the molecules used in this experiment) as genetic information.

In todays living organisms, the genetic information in the DNA is copied to RNA, and these RNAs specifiy in which order amino acids are stringed together to form proteins. The proteins are the main catalysts for the chemical reactions in a living cell. Interestingly, some very important chemical reactions are still catalyzed by RNA enzymes. In particular, the active center of the ribosomes, (which make proteins according to the instructions encoded in the RNA) consists of RNA. Therefore we think that the earliest lifeforms used RNA both a genetic material and as catalysts. Only later in evolution RNA as genetic material was replaced by the related, but chemically more stable DNA, and the more versatile proteins replaced RNA as catalysts.

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**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\
**Post date:** [January 15, 2009, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-it-probably-wont-shut-up-creationists-self-replicating-rna-enzyme-systems/480901/203 "2009-01-15T16:06:43Z")

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> [@Kobal2](#):
>
> Well, we did lose the knowledge of Greek Fire, and the secret of Damascus steel for example (similar to Japan losing many techniques of blademaking because of the tradition of secrecy of their swordsmiths). Also, we can’t turn lead into gold anymore ☹
> 
> 🙂

And somebody’s dad forgot how to get to Atlantis and wouldn’t stop for directions.

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