“The theory that birds are the equivalent of living dinosaurs and that dinosaurs were feathered is so full of holes that the creationists have jumped all over it, using the evolutionary nonsense of ‘dinosaurian science’ as evidence against the theory of evolution,” he said.
“To paraphrase one such individual, ‘This isn't science . . . This is comic relief.’” -->(!!!)<--

Evolution of the Feather (Genetic)

I found a reference (Source) to the genetics involved with how the feather evolved.

However, some of the information in the extract has since been shown to be inaccurate, so I took the liberty of correcting some of the statements.

The "Sinosauropteryx" which McConnell refers to turned out to be degraded collagen fibres
See(Proc Biol Sci. Aug 7, 2007)

A new Chinese specimen indicates that ‘protofeathers’ in the Early Cretaceous theropod dinosaur Sinosauropteryx are degraded collagen fibres
(http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2270928/)
This is still being repeated in a publication dated 2013. (?)

"...we investigate feather novelty and homology by comparing transcriptomes from different stages of developing feathers, different scales, and claws.
Transcriptomes were assayed at different developmental stages and in multiple species, including two distantly related birds, Chicken (Gallus gallus) and Emu (Dromaius novaehollandiae), and American Alligator (Alligator mississipiensis). We found that in early development feathers and scutate scales, an asymmetric avian scale, share similar gene expression compared to other scales and claws. However, as development progresses gene expression in feathers becomes distinct, suggesting later stages of feather development are novel. This close relationship between feathers and scutate scales in early development, and subsequent unique expression in later feather development is supported independently by transcriptomes from both epidermis and dermis, as well as across multiple avian species."
(Source)

Amazon
Alibris
Barnes and Noble

A genetic explanation for the evolution of the feather; the modification of the reptilian scale.
Homology, Genes, and Evolutionary Innovation By Günter P. Wagner
Princeton University Press, Apr 13, 2014 - Science - 496 pages
(Source)

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Interesting Related Links

For the Anti-Creationism Darwinist Among Us

Thales of Miletus

My Other Blog:
Genesis in the Ancient World
"The Jews integrated into Greek culture around 300 BC. Notably, much of the modern Biblical literature is actually Greek. Enlightened Greek thought becomes apparent in the opening of Genesis. "One of the first evolutionary theories was proposed by Thales of Miletus (640–546 BC) in the province of Ionia on the coast near Greece followed by Anaximander (550 B.C.) who speculated that life evolved from the water; lower forms of life, in a very primitive precursor to evolutionary theory."

Namely this *ouch!*

Evolution and Paleontology in the Ancient World
"...For Anaximander, the world had arisen from an undifferentiated, indeterminate substance, the apeiron. The Earth, which had coalesced out of the apeiron, had been covered in water at one stage, with plants and animals arising from mud. Humans were not present at the earliest stages; they arose from fish. This poem was quite influential on later thinkers, including Aristotle.
Had Anaximander looked at fossils? Did he study comparative fish and human anatomy? Unfortunately, we have no way of knowing what evidence Anaximander used to support his ideas. His theory bears some resemblance to evolutionary theory, but also seems to have been derived from various Greek myths, such as the story of Deucalion and Pyrrha, in which peoples or tribes are born from the Earth or from stones. His concept of the apeiron seems similar to the Tao of Chinese philosophy and religion, and to the "formless and void" Earth of the Hebrew creation account and other creation myths. However, even though Anaximander's ideas drew on the religious and mythical ideas of his time, he was still one of the first to attempt an explanation of the origin and evolution of the cosmos based on natural laws."
(Source, ucmp.berkeley.edu History)

[Sadly, what the site fails to mention is that the oldest known biblical manuscripts date no earlier than around 300 B.C., therefore, Anaximander (610-545 B.C.) could not have based any of his concepts on Biblical Hebrew. However it can be deduced, the Hebrew Genesis account was borrowed from mainstream Greek philosophy.] [The analysis by Harvard and several other University sources are quite impressive: (Scala Naturae of the Bible, Charles Darwin and Ancient Greek Philosophy)]