Why do people get the Theory of Evolution and Mutation mixed up?

Question

Why do people get the Theory of Evolution and Mutation mixed up?

Answer 1

Well, they kind of go hand-in-hand.  Evolution would not be possible without Genetic Mutation.  One giraffe mutates a longer neck, so it can eat leaves from higher branches, giving him a competitive edge that makes survival more likely.  He's more likely to breed and pass on the genetics to his offspring.  So forth and so on...

Answer 2

Could you give an example of what you mean?

The modern theory of evolution is a sythesis (merging) of natural selection + genetics (understanding mutations) + population genetics (understanding things like 'genetic drift').   So the mechanics of mutation is very very much a part of the modern theory of evolution.

Answer 3

Probably because mutation is one of the two mechanisms of evolution, the other being natural selection.  If you don't know too much about it, that's an easy mistake to make.

What I find much more worrying is that many people think that the big bang is somehow related to evolution.

Answer 4

Because mutation is one of the  processes through which evolution takes place.