--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If you search the scientific literature…" description: "\"If you search the scientific literature on evolution, and if you focus your search on the question of how molecular machines - the basis of life - deve..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/453/michael-behe-14142_accounts_if-you-search-the-scientific-literature_2229822.jpg" --- # If you search the scientific literature on evolution, and… ![“If you search the scientific literature on evolution, and if you focus your search on the question of how molecular machines - the basis of life - developed, you find an eerie and complete silence. The complexity of life's foundation has paralyzed science's attempt to account for it; molecular…” quote by Michael Behe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/453/michael-behe-14142_accounts_if-you-search-the-scientific-literature_2229822.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/453/michael-behe-14142_accounts_if-you-search-the-scientific-literature_2229822.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/453/michael-behe-14142_accounts_if-you-search-the-scientific-literature_2229822.jpg) > “If you search the scientific literature on evolution, and if you focus your search on the question of how molecular machines - the basis of life - developed, you find an eerie and complete silence. The complexity of life's foundation has paralyzed science's attempt to account for it; molecular machines raise an as-yet-impenetrable barrier to Darwinism's universal reach.” [Michael Behe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-behe/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote argues that scientific research finds no clear explanation for how complex molecular machines originated, suggesting a gap in evolutionary theory. **In simple terms:** It says science can’t explain the origin of life’s complex parts. Key Takeaway Recognize limits of current explanations. Themes science evolution complexity Mood skeptical thoughtful Type analytical controversial When to use this quote - research proposals - debates on origins - educational curricula Key Concepts irreducible complexity philosophy of science Questions to Reflect On - What evidence could bridge this gap? - How does this view affect public understanding of evolution? A Different Perspective Critics argue the claim misrepresents scientific consensus. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Barriers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/barriers/) [Biology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/biology/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Complexity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/complexity/) [Computers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/computers/) [Darwinism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/darwinism/) [Eerie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eerie/) [Evolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evolution/) [Focus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/focus/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Literature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literature/) [Machines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/machines/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Silence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/silence/) ## Related quotes > [In many biological structures proteins are simply components of larger molecular machines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-behe/in-many-biological-structures-proteins-are-simply-components-of/) [Michael Behe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-behe/) > [After realizing that we would eventually be able to build molecular machines that could arrange atoms to form virtually any pattern that we wanted,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-eric-drexler/after-realizing-that-we-would-eventually-be-able-to-build-molecular/) [K. Eric Drexler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-eric-drexler/) > [Most of the people who claim to be doing systems biology are really studying simple and complex molecular machines and how they function, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leroy-hood/most-of-the-people-who-claim-to-be-doing-systems-biology-are-really/) [Leroy Hood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leroy-hood/) > [The other advantage is that in conventional manufacturing processes, it takes a long time for a factory to produce an amount of product equal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-eric-drexler/the-other-advantage-is-that-in-conventional-manufacturing-processes/) [K. Eric Drexler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-eric-drexler/) > [Protein engineering is a technology of molecular machines - of molecular machines that are part of replicators - and so it comes from an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-eric-drexler/protein-engineering-is-a-technology-of-molecular-machines-of/) [K. Eric Drexler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-eric-drexler/) > [Manufacturing takes place in very large facilities. If you want to build a computer chip, you need a giant semiconductor fabrication facility. But nature…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-merkle/manufacturing-takes-place-in-very-large-facilities-if-you-want-to/) [Ralph Merkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-merkle/) > [I had been impressed by the fact that biological systems were based on molecular machines and that we were learning to design and build…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-eric-drexler/i-had-been-impressed-by-the-fact-that-biological-systems-were-based/) [K. Eric Drexler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-eric-drexler/) > [“Molecular machines display a key signature or hallmark of design, namely, irreducible complexity. In all irreducibly complex systems in which the cause of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-a-minnich/molecular-machines-display-a-key-signature-or-hallmark-of-design/) Scott A. Minnich > [I wanted to rewrite the code of life, to make new molecular machines that would solve human problems.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-arnold/i-wanted-to-rewrite-the-code-of-life-to-make-new-molecular-machines/) [Frances Arnold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-arnold/) > [The interior deprives men of their senses. Here, the eerie stillness of the wilderness and the darkness of night render the men both deaf…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/the-interior-deprives-men-of-their-senses-here-the-eerie-stillness-of/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) > [What we, thanks to Jung, call "synchronicity" (coincidence on steroids), Buddhists have long known as "the interpenetration of realities." Whether it's a natural law…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/what-we-thanks-to-jung-call-synchronicity-coincidence-on-steroids/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [“If the vibrant and frolicking merry-go-round of our daily living has been ousted by an eerie void of an intractable vacuum, only inspiriting memories…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-pevernagie/if-the-vibrant-and-frolicking-merry-go-round-of-our-daily-living-has/) [Erik Pevernagie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-pevernagie/) > [That we don't design agriculture to be sustainable is totally eerie. We design it to be a disaster, and of course, we get a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/that-we-don-t-design-agriculture-to-be-sustainable-is-totally-eerie/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [I want my shows to be eerie and mysterious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paloma-faith/i-want-my-shows-to-be-eerie-and-mysterious/) [Paloma Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paloma-faith/) > [They call them the haunted shores, these stretches of Devonshire and Cornwall and Ireland which rear up against the westward ocean. Mists gather here,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dodie-smith/they-call-them-the-haunted-shores-these-stretches-of-devonshire-and/) [Dodie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dodie-smith/) ## More by Michael Behe > [As the number of unexplained, irreducibly complex biological systems increases, our confidence that Darwin's criterion of failure has been met skyrockets toward the maximum…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-behe/as-the-number-of-unexplained-irreducibly-complex-biological-systems/) [Michael Behe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-behe/) > [As commonly understood, creationism involves belief in an earth formed only about ten thousand years ago, an interpretation of the Bible that is still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-behe/as-commonly-understood-creationism-involves-belief-in-an-earth-formed/) [Michael Behe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-behe/) > [I find the idea of common descent (that all organisms share a common ancestor) fairly convincing, and have no particular reason to doubt it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-behe/i-find-the-idea-of-common-descent-that-all-organisms-share-a-common/) [Michael Behe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-behe/) > [Thus it seemed to Haeckel that such simple life could easily be produced from inanimate material.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-behe/thus-it-seemed-to-haeckel-that-such-simple-life-could-easily-be/) [Michael Behe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-behe/) > [Proteins are the machinery of living tissue that builds the structures and carries out the chemical reactions necessary for life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-behe/proteins-are-the-machinery-of-living-tissue-that-builds-the/) [Michael Behe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-behe/) > [I believe the evidence strongly supports common descent. But the root question remains unanswered: What has caused complex systems to form?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-behe/i-believe-the-evidence-strongly-supports-common-descent-but-the-root/) [Michael Behe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-behe/) > [In private many scientists admit that science has no explanation for the beginning of life… Darwin never imagined the exquisitely profound complexity that exists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-behe/in-private-many-scientists-admit-that-science-has-no-explanation-for/) [Michael Behe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-behe/) > [The theory of undirected evolution is already dead, but the work of science continues.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-behe/the-theory-of-undirected-evolution-is-already-dead-but-the-work-of/) [Michael Behe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-behe/) > [Many people, including many important and well-respected scientists, just don't want there to be anything beyond nature. They don't want a supernatural being to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-behe/many-people-including-many-important-and-well-respected-scientists/) [Michael Behe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-behe/) > [If you take away a rock from a pile of rocks you haven't changed much. It's still a heap of rocks - just a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-behe/if-you-take-away-a-rock-from-a-pile-of-rocks-you-haven-t-changed-much/) [Michael Behe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-behe/) > [It is often said that science must avoid any conclusions which smack of the supernatural.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-behe/it-is-often-said-that-science-must-avoid-any-conclusions-which-smack/) [Michael Behe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-behe/) > [The question is: exactly how did life get here? Was it by natural selection and random mutation or was it by something else? Everybody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-behe/the-question-is-exactly-how-did-life-get-here-was-it-by-natural/) [Michael Behe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-behe/) > [Under my definition, a scientific theory is a proposed explanation which focuses or points to physical, observable data and logical inferences. There are many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-behe/under-my-definition-a-scientific-theory-is-a-proposed-explanation/) [Michael Behe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-behe/) > [As can be seen even by this limited number of examples proteins carry out amazingly diverse functions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-behe/as-can-be-seen-even-by-this-limited-number-of-examples-proteins-carry/) [Michael Behe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-behe/) > [It is a shock to us in the twentieth century to discover, from observations science has made, that the fundamental mechanisms of life cannot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-behe/it-is-a-shock-to-us-in-the-twentieth-century-to-discover-from/) [Michael Behe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-behe/) [Explore all 47 Michael Behe quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-behe/) ## More Accounts quotes > [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/) [Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/) > [Think of these things, whence you came, where you are going, and to whom you must account.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/think-of-these-things-whence-you-came-where-you-are-going-and-to-whom/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/believing-with-you-that-religion-is-a-matter-which-lies-solely/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [There is nothing that we can properly call our own but our time, and yet everybody fools us out of it who has a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seneca-the-younger/there-is-nothing-that-we-can-properly-call-our-own-but-our-time-and/) [Seneca the Younger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seneca-the-younger/) > [The Hindus have a peculiar slovenliness in business matters, not being sufficiently methodical and strict in keeping accounts etc.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/the-hindus-have-a-peculiar-slovenliness-in-business-matters-not-being/) [Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/) > [With the Truman book, I wrote the entire account of his experiences in World War I before going over to Europe to follow his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mccullough/with-the-truman-book-i-wrote-the-entire-account-of-his-experiences-in/) [David McCullough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mccullough/) > [A great read; an exciting, frightening account of organized crime today. 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