william wrote:
>
> Am I the only one here who has heard of the "Missing Link"?

Of course, everyone here has heard the term "Missing Link". But 
William, I'm wondering what you mean by "the". Which missing link are 
you referring to? The more scientific term is "transitional fossil". 
In some ways every fossil we find can be looked at as a transitional 
fossil. Australopithecus africanus is transitional between 
Australopithecus afarensis and Homo habilis. Homo erectus is 
transitional between Homo habilis (or Homo ergaster) and Homo sapiens. 
Homo heidelbergensis is transitional between H. erectus and H. 
neanderthalensis. It's no different for the hominid line than for any 
other extant species, so I'm wondering where along the line you see a 
"missing link" or a gap that presents an obstacle for the plausibility 
of human evolution. It's very rare for remains to be fossilized in the 
first place, and then even rarer for us to find them. Remains are 
usually chewed up, ground down, and washed away or dispersed. There 
are only a small number of fossil examples of any one of these phases 
that have ever been found, so the fossil record is loaded with gaps. 
Archeology/paleoanthropology keeps on finding things to fill in gaps. 
For example, until they found homo habilis in the early sixties there 
was a large "missing link" between Australopithecus afarensis and Homo 
erectus. So there was a "missing link". Until they found it, that is. 
Now, perhaps, they will find something transitional between habilis 
and erectus. This all fits under the umbrella of the theory of 
evolution, and you haven't presented anything that challenges it. It 
is a very solid theory (*not* a hypothesis). Of course, it's not 
"proven". As others have pointed out, science doesn't prove things 
true. You can only prove things false in science (unlike mathematics, 
which I suppose is more axiomatic). Nevertheless, it is solid at this 
point, and has not been challenged successfully in spite of the 
creationists and ID folks. And William! But seriously, what missing 
link do you mean?

Here are some relevant quotes from the wikipedia page on "Transitional 
fossil":
"A popular term used to designate transitional forms is "missing 
links". The term tends to be used in the popular media, but is avoided 
in the scientific press as it is inaccurate and confusing. In reality, 
the discovery of more and more transitional fossils continues to add 
to knowledge of evolutionary transitions."

"The idea of a "missing link" between humans and so-called "lower" 
animals remains lodged in the public imagination. The concept was 
fuelled by the discovery of Australopithecus africanus (Taung Child), 
Java Man, Homo erectus, Sinanthropus pekinensis (Peking Man) and other 
Hominina fossils."

"Transitional fossils (popularly termed missing links) are the 
fossilized remains of intermediary forms of life that illustrate an 
evolutionary transition. They can be identified by their retention of 
certain primitive (plesiomorphic) traits in comparison with their more 
derived relatives, as they are defined in the study of cladistics. 
Numerous examples exist, including those of primates and early 
humans."

Sorry to go on so long, but this has been on my mind since you first 
mentioned it a couple of months ago.

Hilary