Which came first, the Chicken or the Egg?

Teh_Hawkinator wrote:

The egg would be harder to genetically create its chemical make up, but with the chicken, the chemical make up would be easier to create

That means that there were aliens on our planet that were capable of creating random creatures out of organic structure... Why would we genetically modify chemical substances to create chickens?

Teh_Hawkinator wrote:

The egg would be harder to genetically create its chemical make up, but with the chicken, the chemical make up would be easier to create

You seriously think that everything is like the creature creator in space stage? People just make creatures? Well, you're wrong. Chickens evolved from a creature that was similar to a chicken. A genetic mutation is when there is an error in DNA transcription during reproduction. So the chicken-like species had a genetic mutation when they laid the chicken egg. Then the chicken hatched from the egg. Therefore, the egg came first.

The fossil record indicates the egg is a clear 450 million years earlier than the chicken, I thought we'd already established that?

Vektrix wrote:

The fossil record indicates the egg is a clear 450 million years earlier than the chicken, I thought we'd already established that?

We're making the discussion more interesting by discussing chicken eggs, not any kind of eggs.

In that case the fossil record would say the chicken came first, because the egg that hatched the first chicken would have been laid by a creature that preceded the chicken. The embryo inside would have had one or more genetic mutations, but not enough changes would have happened to prevent it mating with creatures that are similar to it's parents.

Evolutionary theory then dictates that one of more of these mutations would stick because the new chicken would then have some trait that improves some aspect of it's life. This in turn eventually becomes the norm... hence we have a new species, The Chicken. An example is the new chicken is less susceptible to a disease, or is simply stronger, or faster... or some other trait that give it an advantage over other species.

This question really has no answer because it is revolving cycle. But, what about the first living creature ever? did it hatch from an egg? or was it just not there and then there?

Skybubbles wrote:

This question really has no answer because it is revolving cycle. But, what about the first living creature ever? did it hatch from an egg? or was it just not there and then there?

Fossil record states it evolved from amino acids - it was a bacteria, about 2.5 billion years ago.

Vektrix wrote:

In that case the fossil record would say the chicken came first, because the egg that hatched the first chicken would have been laid by a creature that preceded the chicken.

You said it... but this egg still contains a chicken embryo inside it... So it is technically a chicken egg... But you are right about the fact that it was NOT laid by a chicken... So the answer simply depends on the definition of what a chicken egg is...

Chaos wrote:

Vektrix wrote:

In that case the fossil record would say the chicken came first, because the egg that hatched the first chicken would have been laid by a creature that preceded the chicken.

You said it... but this egg still contains a chicken embryo inside it... So it is technically a chicken egg... But you are right about the fact that it was NOT laid by a chicken... So the answer simply depends on the definition of what a chicken egg is...

Ah, now we are talking on a more complex, and uncertain level.

It depends on what you define an egg by. What laid it, or what hatches out of it. Personally I'd say what lay it, since Cuckoos lay eggs and then make other birds sit on them, aren't the birds sitting on the egg then convinced it is their own egg? However, the egg was laid by a cuckoo and will hatch out a cuckoo, so it is not quite the same. But in the mind of other bird, it is an egg that they laid.

Vektrix wrote:

Ah, now we are talking on a more complex, and uncertain level.

It depends on what you define an egg by. What laid it, or what hatches out of it. Personally I'd say what lay it, since Cuckoos lay eggs and then make other birds sit on them, aren't the birds sitting on the egg then convinced it is their own egg? However, the egg was laid by a cuckoo and will hatch out a cuckoo, so it is not quite the same. But in the mind of other bird, it is an egg that they laid.

But don't forget that in this case the hatching specimen has different properties (to some extend) from its parents...