Living Without AIR?

When little or no oxygen is dissolved in the blood of most animals or humans, death quickly follows. The chemistry by which our cells generate energy to stay alive needs oxygen. When oxygen runs short, a second, temporary, energy producing system kicks in. This system doesn't need oxygen, but it produces lactic acid that can kill living cells. Therefore, this second energy system is an emergency measure, used only when seriously starved for oxygen.

In order to avoid this dangerous situation many amphibians and reptiles that hibernate in ponds, lakes, and rivers have the ability to remove oxygen directly from the water through special tissue on their throats. However, the painted turtle and the mud slider hibernate as close to the freezing line below the water as possible. As a result, they often hibernate in water where the oxygen is quickly used and have lived completely without oxygen for up to 120 days. How do they do it?

During the summer the turtle stores large amounts of a carbohydrate that can provide energy without using oxygen. The turtle has a unique built-in system that detoxifies the poisonous lactic acid that is built up. As a result the turtle can live for months with no oxygen in its blood or in the water around it.

This unique ability is based on a sophisticated understanding of biochemistry. It's clearly not the result of a genetic accident. It can only be the work of the unique creativity of our Creator!

2010 Christian Nature

“Remember His marvelous works which He has done, His wonders, and the judgments of His mouth…” Psalm 105:5

References: Natural History Magazine

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People Want Evolution and Creation Both Taught

A few years ago, a news release revealed the result of a poll on what Americans prefer to have taught in public schools about origins. The poll was done for an organization that favors a dogmatic teaching of evolution. The news release stated only that a huge majority of Americans, 83 percent, favor the teaching of evolution in the public schools. The people at Creation Moments were led to investigate this poll more closely since this poll result runs contrary to other recent polls.

The professional polling organization polled 1,500 people about whether creation or evolution should be taught in the public schools. Indeed, 83 percent said they believe that the theory of evolution should be taught in the public schools. However, what was not included in the popular reporting of the poll was that 79 percent of those polled said that creation should also be taught in the schools. Only 20 percent of those polled felt that evolution only should be taught.

Clearly, Americans prefer both creation and evolution presented to the students so that they can make up their own minds. Equally notable is that almost half of those polled agreed with the statement that evolution is "far from being proven to be scientific."

While the statement that 83 percent of those polled favor evolution being taught is true, it leaves out the most important part of the poll's findings. Clearly, ordinary people want to hear about God's creation.

2010 Christian Nature

Deceit is in the heart of those who devise evil, but counselors of peace have joy. Proverbs 12:20

References: Christian News

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Jupiter Defies Naturalistic Explanation

According to evolutionary naturalism, the solar system began as a disk of hot, rotating gas. The sun began to form first. At the same time, the planets began to form as they collected material out of the gaseous disk. This process generated more heat, with the largest planets collecting more of the heat than smaller planets. The amount of heat collected by the large, heavy planets like Jupiter compared with a planet like the Earth accounts for the different elemental composition of the planets.

When scientists began studying Jupiter, they expected it to have certain lighter elements in the same proportion as the sun. Large planets like Jupiter would have been too hot at formation for lighter elements to condense.

However, researchers using the Galileo space probe have discovered that Jupiter has more than twice as many gases as the sun.

Jupiter has nearly three times as much krypton and xenon gas as the sun.

Jupiter has over three-and-a-half times as much ammonia as was expected. Scientists are trying to figure out where these gases came from. However, evolutionary scientists admit that they cannot find a satisfactory naturalistic explanation for the chemical composition of Jupiter. They have even speculated that they might find the same problems with the other outer planets.

That the planets differ in composition is exactly as stated in the Bible "…for one star differs from another star in glory"(I Cor. 15:41). That these differences don't fit evolutionary theory further witnesses to God's glory as Creator.

2010 Christian Nature

There is one glory of the sun, another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for one star differs from another star in glory. I Corinthians 15:41

References: Nature, 11/18/99

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IBM Super Self-Healing Computer Inferior To Man

A healthy person with a minor injury heals without any thought required for the healing process. More severe injuries may require medical attention, but no amount of thought concentration on the healing process will speed healing along. This automatic healing process could not have evolved because without the power to heal in the first place, any injury to any creature would be ultimately fatal.

IBM is working on a super supercomputer that would run 500 times faster than any computer known today. It will be used to produce three-dimensional models showing how proteins fold as they do their work. It is hoped that the models will help medical researchers design more effective medicines.

The computer system working on this task will have over one million processors linked to adjacent processors. The adjacent processors will monitor the main processors. If one of the main processors becomes faulty, the adjacent processor will remove it from the computing system electronically. If it works, the entire system will be known as a self-healing computer.

While the computer may be able to heal itself, it will have to "think" about healing constantly. And despite its speed, its healing and computing abilities are still slower than ours.

God has given us great powers of healing. But we can do nothing to heal ourselves spiritually. For that we must rely on Jesus Christ and the salvation He brings.

2010 Christian Nature

'I create the fruit of the lips: peace, peace to him who is far off and to him who is near,' says the LORD, 'And I will heal him.' Isaiah 57:19

References: New Scientist, 12/11/99

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Thousands of Eyes, But No Brain?

We generally associate eyes with our brain because they are two closely working parts of our nervous system. Our brain is necessary to interpret what our eyes see. However, the brittlestar, a relative of the starfish, has thousands of eyes and no brain.

The brittlestar’s body is covered with a pliable crystalline material. Inserted in this material are literally thousands of perfectly shaped lenses that collect light. Each of these lenses is about half the diameter of a human hair.

Researchers commented that these lenses are much finer than anything we can engineer. Studies show that all of these lenses work together to act as one giant eye. They seem to work rather like the compound eye of the fly. The lenses focus incoming light on photoreceptors.

Researchers believe that this arrangement allows the brittlestar to form a rough image of its surroundings and tell what time of day it is. If the light becomes too bright, the brittlestar can darken its skin, in effect, putting on sunglasses. Even more amazing is that the brittlestar does all of this, despite the fact that it doesn’t have a brain! As one researcher put it, "This is very clever engineering."

The wonders that have come from God’s creative hand can lead even evolutionists to use the language of creation. Yet, God’s greatest wonder is His plan for our salvation.

2010 Christian Nature

“Better is the sight of the eyes than the wandering of the desire...” Ecclesiastes 6:9a

References: Discover, 11/01

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The Muddy Water Self-Cleaning Plant

Perhaps you have a self-cleaning oven in your kitchen, and if you have small children in your house, you’ve probably wished for self-cleaning walls. Self-cleaning clothes would be nice, too!

Lotuses often grow in muddy water where mud can accumulate on leaves. Yet, for efficiency in collecting sunlight, their leaves need to be clean. And, yes, they stay clean despite the environment in which they grow.

Close examination under a powerful electron microscope reveals why. The top of the leaves are covered with tiny spikes that feel waxy. They are so tiny that they can even hold up a particle of dust that settles on a leaf. As a result, any water that lands on the leaves rolls right off. As it rolls off, it collects any dirt that may be on a leaf. These leaves are self-cleaning!

Researchers realized that this microscopic spike structure could be used to make self- cleaning products. For example, self-cleaning paint for homes is already in use under the product name Lotusan. Self-cleaning food containers are being developed as well. And one day we may even have self-cleaning clothes, including swimming suits that never get wet.

However, when it comes to our standing before God, we are not self-cleaning. We must rely on the cleansing from our sin won for us by our Lord Jesus on the cross.

2010 Christian Nature

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9

References: Science Illustrated, 7/8/08

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Water Purification From A Vegetable Tree!

"This is an amazing prospect, and one in which a huge amount of human potential could be released. This is particularly mind-boggling when you think it might all come down to one incredibly useful tree."

A low-cost water purification technique published in Current Protocols in Microbiology could help drastically reduce the incidence of waterborne disease in the developing world. The procedure, which uses seeds from the Moringa oleifera tree, can produce a 90.00% to 99.99% bacterial reduction in previously untreated water, and has been made free to download as part of access programs under John Wiley & Sons' Corporate Citizenship Initiative.

A billion people across Asia, Africa, and Latin America are estimated to rely on untreated surface water sources for their daily water needs. Of these, some two million are thought to die from diseases caught from contaminated water every year, with the majority of these deaths occurring among children under five years of age. Michael Lea, a Current Protocols author and a researcher at Clearinghouse, a Canadian organisation dedicated to investigating and implementing low-cost water purification technologies, believes the Moringa oleifera tree could go a long way to providing a solution.

"Moringa oleifera is a vegetable tree which is grown in Africa, Central and South America, the Indian subcontinent, and South East Asia. It could be considered to be one of the world's most useful trees," said Lea. "Not only is it drought resistant, it also yields cooking and lighting oil, soil fertilizer, as well as highly nutritious food in the form of its pods, leaves, seeds and flowers. Perhaps most importantly, its seeds can be used to purify drinking water at virtually no cost."

Moringa tree seeds, when crushed into powder, can be used as a water-soluble extract in suspension, resulting in an effective natural clarification agent for highly turbid and untreated pathogenic surface water. As well as improving drinkability, this technique reduces water turbidity (cloudiness) making the result aesthetically as well as microbiologically more acceptable for human consumption.

Despite its live-saving potential, the technique is still not widely known, even in areas where the Moringa is routinely cultivated. It is therefore Lea's hope that the publication of this technique in a freely available protocol format, a first, will make it easier to disseminate the procedure to the communities that need it.

"This technique does not represent a total solution to the threat of waterborne disease," concluded Lea. "However, given that the cultivation and use of the Moringa tree can bring benefits in the shape of nutrition and income as well as of far purer water, there is the possibility that thousands of 21st century families could find themselves liberated from what should now be universally seen as19th century causes of death and disease. This is an amazing prospect, and one in which a huge amount of human potential could be released. This is particularly mind-boggling when you think it might all come down to one incredibly useful tree."

Reference: Life Science

2010 Christian Nature

You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being. Revelation 4:11

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Music, Mozart, and Magpie Larks

Precision in communication is highly important. This is especially true of the type of communication called music, whether you are talking about Mozart or magpie-larks.

Only about three percent of bird species are known to sing duets. In a duet, one mate begins singing, and the other mate begins a half second later. Among Australian magpie-larks, pairs that are newly mated usually lack that precision. However, in pairs that have been together for two years, the lag time of the duet usually varies by only a few hundredths of a second. Time counts!

Researchers also discovered that this precision serves a purpose. Male magpie larks respond to perceived threats by increasing their singing. When they played the less-precise duets to 12 pairs of other magpie-larks, the males only responded in this way seven times in five minutes.

However, the more-precise duets resulted in nine responses in five minutes.

In short, other magpie larks are more intimidated by pairs that sing with precision than by those who do not. This is important in preserving an established couple's territory from invasion by new couples.

Communication with precision is yet another fingerprint of God on the creation. In Scripture, the ultimate in precise communication, God even points us to the birds as He urges us to recognize His involvement in the creation.

2010 Christian Nature

A man can no more diminish God's glory by refusing to worship Him than a lunatic can put out the sun by scribbling the word, 'darkness' on the walls of his cell. CS Lewis

References: Science News, 6/9/07

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Monument Plant - The Good Mother

Different kinds of creatures have different ways of taking care of their children. It is the father sea horse who carries the eggs until they hatch. Mother ostriches totally ignore their eggs and hatchlings, leaving all the care to father ostrich.

While these examples may be odd, we would normally think it even stranger if some mother plants cared for their young. Yet two different species of plants have been found where the mother plant does indeed help her seedlings survive.

Both plants live the very harsh setting of cold, dry mountain slopes of western North America. One of the plants is a thistle; the other is the monument plant. (Photo is the Monument Plant.) Both plants live for decades, growing only a little every year. But the mother plant is saving energy and storing water for her babies.

Then, at flowering time, both plants send up a tall flower stalk. Once the seeds are ripe, the plant falls over dead. The seeds are not dispersed, but hidden in mom's vegetation. As mom decays, the seeds begin to germinate, using all the water that the mother plant saved up.

In addition, as they grow under the protection of mom's remains, the seedlings will not have to compete with mom.

Scientists who studied seed germination rates of both plants concluded that the mother plant's saved water provides a big advantage to the seedlings.

Protected monument seedlings survived twice as well as those without protection.

Four times as many thistle seedlings survived when protected.

God cares for all His creatures, and mothers are one means He uses to take care of our needs when we're young. That's even true for some plants!


2010 Christian Nature

“Then God said, 'Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb that yields seed, and the fruit tree that yields fruit according to its kind, whose seed is in itself, on the earth'; and it was so.” Genesis 1:11

References:Science News

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Why Don't Birds Need Socks?

Have you ever wondered why it is that ducks can spend all day in near-freezing water and it doesn't seem to bother them? For that matter, birds never seem to be bothered about cold feet. If we ran around in the ice and snow with bare feet, it wouldn't be very long before we had a good case of frostbite. So why don't birds need socks?

Birds have a network of arteries that take the blood down to their feet. These arteries are interwoven with the veins that return the blood from the feet. This network of arteries and veins is called a "wonder net."

The blood going down the arteries is hot at 106 degrees but the temperature of the blood returning in the veins may be as cool as 37 degrees as it leaves the foot. The warm blood reheats the cold blood coming from the foot before it enters the body. The result is that the bird loses very little body heat, and the blood going into the foot never becomes dangerously cold in normal winter weather.

The wisdom of this design is obvious. Could birds have survived having their feet frozen off before they learned to evolve this special arrangement? Hardly! The most reasonable conclusion is that there is a Creator Who cares for all His creation, including you and me!

2010 Christian Nature

Reference: Creation Moments Radio

“But now ask the beasts, and they will teach you: and the birds of the air, and they will tell you: Who among all these does not know that the hand of the LORD has done this?” Job 12:7, 9

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Eosimias Is Not In MY Genealogy!

Scientists who believe in evolution have a faith just as much as any Bible-believing Christian. However, it is a very different faith than Christianity. This fact was illustrated when some secular scientists declared the bones labeled "Piltdown man" an ape-like human ancestor. Only after a couple of generations did they bother to actually study the bones and discover them to be an obvious hoax. They did the same with "Nebraska man," which turned out to be a pig!

Several years ago, scientists announced the finding of some fossil bones of the very first primate. Naming it E-o-sim-ias or "dawn monkey," they said that it led to monkeys, apes and finally to us. Eosimias weighed less than an ounce and could have stood on your thumb. Scientists found no complete skeletons.

However, after examining foot bones the size of grains of rice and some lower limb bones, they declared it to be our ancestor. They interpreted the foot bones to be primate-like. They concluded that the lower limb bones showed that Eosimias had grasping hands and feet that enabled it to walk on branches like monkeys.

I'm sorry, but this is major stupid, in my opinion. Even if I wasn't a Bible-believing Christian Creationist, I would wonder how anyone could be devoid of common sense enough to believe this! I can't help but remember what the Bible says about men being deluded in the 'last days' and wonder if we're there now.

They will perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. For this reason God sends them a powerful delusion so that they will believe the lie and so that all will be condemned who have not believed the truth but have delighted in wickedness.
2 Thessalonians 2:11-12

The Bible warns that God will curse those with ever more foolish notions who reject the obvious fact that He is Creator. He does this so that they might see their foolishness and repent for placing the creation over the Creator. In this case they have done that by saying that it was not the Creator, but rather this tiny monkey that led to humanity.

2010 Christian Nature

Professing to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man; and birds and four footed beasts and creeping things. Romans 1:22-23

References: International Herald Tribune, 3/17/00

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Mount St Helens, The Flood, and The Raven

On May 18, 1980, Mount St. Helens exploded, devastating over 200 square miles in Southwestern Washington State. The heat spewing from the volcano melted the snow that covered its heights, creating mud flows that covered the surrounding area. The grim prediction was that forests and wildlife would never be found on or near the mountain within our lifetimes.

Mount St. Helens' recovery from the devastation provides us with a comparatively small-scale model of the recovery from the great Flood at the time of Noah. Only ten years after the eruption, much of the plant and animal life in the devastated area had returned.

Today, evergreens stand taller than a man, fish swim in the lakes and rivers, and frogs are in the ponds. Even larger animals like elk can be found in the once-desolate area. This suggests that it would not have taken generations for the foliage that God preserved in the Flood waters to re-grow forests and jungles, providing homes for the growing, migrating population from the Ark.

Before that could happen, Noah had to know that there was somewhere for the animals to go. So he first sent out a raven.

Mount St. Helens illustrates why Noah decided to send a raven first. Among the first new colonizers at Mount St. Helens was the raven. They are part of God's army of scavengers to remove the dead and can live in a wide variety of conditions.
Here again we see that even the small details recorded in the Bible are true to real life.

2010 Christian Nature

Then he sent out a raven, which kept going to and fro until the waters had dried up from the earth. Genesis 8:7

References: Creation, 3-5/00

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Literally Becoming One Flesh

“Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.” Genesis 2:24

Did you know that some fish actually go fishing? Yes, the female angler fish lives deep down where it is cold and dark, and she has a six-inch-long fishing pole fixed to its top lip with a little orange light on the end. When the angler is not fishing, the rod fits into a groove on the top of her head. The angler's victim swims along and sees the orange light - the bait - to him, it looks like a good lunch for a small fish. He moves in, but it jumps out of reach, and the next thing he knows, he becomes the angler fish's lunch!

But the strangest part of the angler fish's life is its mating practices. While the female is over three-feet long - and the mouth takes up almost half this length - the male angler fish is only a half-inch long. He has no fishing pole and no light.

Mating starts when the tiny male swims up to the female and sinks his teeth into her side. He never lets go for the rest of his life. In fact, soon his skin and circulatory system actually join the female's, and through this union they become, literally, one flesh. Eggs are eventually laid.

Our Creator has an infinite variety of ways to reproduce the species, but this one demonstrates quite literally the one flesh principle of human marriage.

At virtually every wedding we remember the presence Christ at the wedding at Cana where He did the first miracle of His ministry. I would venture to guess that wedding lasted a lifetime.

2010 Christian Nature

^{John 1-3} Three days later there was a wedding in the village of Cana in Galilee. Jesus' mother was there. Jesus and his disciples were guests also. When they started running low on wine at the wedding banquet, Jesus' mother told him, "They're just about out of wine." ... ^6-7Six stoneware water pots were there, used by the Jews for ritual washings. Each held twenty to thirty gallons. Jesus ordered the servants, "Fill the pots with water." And they filled them to the brim.

⁸"Now fill your pitchers and take them to the host," Jesus said, and they did.

^9-10When the host tasted the water that had become wine (he didn't know what had just happened but the servants, of course, knew), he called out to the bridegroom, "Everybody I know begins with their finest wines and after the guests have had their fill brings in the cheap stuff. But you've saved the best till now!"

References: Bob Devine, Uncle Bob's Animal Stories, Moody Press, Chicago, IL

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Insect Flight - Watch For the Figure Eight!

Flying insects have been a huge mystery to scientists, especially those who believe in evolution. Until recently, scientists didn't know how flying insects could fly. Wind tunnel tests on insect wings showed that their wings produce anywhere from a third to half as much lift needed for flight, depending on the species. Yet, horseflies have been clocked flying at up to 90 miles per hour!

Detailed research on the bio-mechanics of insect flight has now revealed how they manage to fly. Insect flight does not use quite the same principles as airplane flight. Unlike the wings of a modern airplane, insect wings trace a figure eight during flight.

If an airliner's wings attack the air at an angle of more than 18 degrees, the vortex that provides lift to the top of the wing pulls away from the wing and the result is a stall.

Insect wings, however, attack the air at a much steeper angle. Why doesn't the lifting vortex pull away from an insect's wing, leaving the insect in a stall? Researchers learned that because the insect's wing is moving faster at the tip, the lifting vortex does not pull away from the wing and gives the insect a 70 percent increase in lift. How cool is that?

Evolutionists depict today's flying insects as descendants of ancient insects that could only glide. Then, over supposed millions of years they developed the wings and flight skills of modern insects. This recent research, however, reveals that insect flight is no chance development. It was carefully engineered by a Creator from the very beginning.

2010 Christian Nature

He [God] spoke, and there came swarms of flies, and lice in all their territory.
Psalm 105:31

References: Discover, 4/00, Wikipedia

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James Clerk Maxwell Believed Genesis Creation

Albert Einstein said that James Clerk Maxwell made greater contributions to physics than anyone except Isaac Newton.

Maxwell developed complex theoretical and mathematical explanations for all the forces in the universe except gravity and nuclear forces.

He also made scientific contributions in the fields of thermodynamics and mathematics. In other words, Maxwell was a scientist of gigantic proportions who remains greatly respected today.

By today's standards, Maxwell would be called a "fundamentalist." Maxwell lived at the same time as Charles Darwin and was very aware of evolutionary theory. He felt strongly that evolution was anti-scientific and wrote a powerful and important refutation of evolutionary writings.

He also offered a very careful mathematical refutation of the theory that the solar system had evolved from a cloud of dust and gas.
The great scientist Maxwell believed that Jesus Christ is the Savior God has provided to deliver humanity from the results of sin - including eternal death. A writing of his, found after his death, states that the motivation for his work was that God had created all things just as Genesis says. And since God has created humans in His image, scientific study is a fit activity for one's lifework.

I pray today for the work of those in science who are convinced that You are indeed the Creator as described in Genesis. Though they are opposed by men, bless their work and move more of our Christian young people to follow in their footsteps.

2010 Christian Nature

“. . . that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.” I Corinthians 2:5

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Rocks, Spark Plugs, Ventura County, and Beautiful Video

I have written before that rocks simply don't take millions of years to form. It is not unusual for rocks to form rapidly.

I also live in Ventura County, California where even more proof has been discovered on one of our beautiful beaches! It is clearly a modern rock that formed in the last few decades because partially embedded in the stone is a spark plug!

Clearly, no one would claim that man has been making spark plugs for millions of years. The porcelain part of the spark plug became part of the rock. Originally, the metal parts of the spark plug were also embedded in the rock. They rusted away after the rock was formed, leaving an imprint clear enough to determine the thread size of the now-missing metal parts.

This suggests that this rock formed within a relatively short time since such metal quickly corrodes in sea water. Based on the thread size and the porcelain portion of the plug, it is thought that the spark plug doesn't date to before the 1950s!

It is theorized that the plug originally was in a boat engine and was discarded into the sea. (Beautiful video coming up!)

That there are so many examples of obviously modern fossils shows that it is not uncommon for rocks to form rapidly. Some rocks you see today may not have existed as rocks when your grandfather was your age. There is no reason for the long-age dating of rocks to undermine faith in our spiritual Rock, Who is Christ.


2010 Christian Nature

For they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ. I Corinthians 10:4b

God understands its way, and He knows its place. For He looks to the ends of the earth, and sees under the whole heavens, to establish a weight for the wind, and mete out the waters by measure. When He made a law for the rain, and a path for the thunderbolt, then He saw wisdom and declared it; He prepared it, indeed, He searched it out. And to man He said, 'Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to depart from evil is understanding."'
—Job 28:23-28


References: Creation

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Mice Are Smarter Than You Think!

Mice of the Sahara Desert pile up round stones in front of their burrows, making small pyramids through which the air can flow. As the morning air heats up, the rocks heat up much more slowly. As the dew point of the rapidly warming air rises, water in the air begins to condense on the cooler stones. It turns out that having round stones leaves exactly the right shaped spaces for this to take place. This is how the mice get their water.

Mice in the dry climates of Australia also build pyramids to catch the morning dew. They construct their pyramids of small, uniformly sized round stones over their burrows. Their pyramids may be up to a yard across.

Again, as the morning air passes through the loose pile of stones, the dew collects on the cooler stones, providing a source of water for the mice.

While a second species of Australian mice don't build such pyramids, they will use those built by the first species as a source of water. All of this leaves those who believe in evolution with some difficult questions.

How did mice learn to build these pyramids to catch the dew? And how did two different species, half a world apart, arrive at the same solution to survival?

These questions are easily answered if we assume that the intelligent Creator of mice built such knowledge into them when He first made them. This is the same Creator Who sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to be the cornerstone of the eternal structure made up of all believers.

2010 Christian Nature

The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone.
Psalm 118:22

References: Science Frontiers

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Zebra Finch's Genetic Code Sheds Light on Speech Disorders

"Song learning is an excellent paradigm for all types of learning."

An interesting report by REUTERS Science/Health stated that scientists, for the first time, have been able to identify over 800 genes linked to song learning in the baby zebra finch. (Photo: REUTERS)

The bird learns to sing in the same way humans learn to speak, by imitating their parents or elders, which means the songbird's genome could prove valuable in working with human speech disorders.

Chris Ponting, a professor who was involved in the research by the Medical Research Council Functional Genomics Unit at University of Oxford, explained, "There are experiments that can be done that immediately provide information as to what changes occur in neurons (brain cells) upon the learning of a song. The zebra finch genome provides a tool that allows this exploration."

According to the research, the baby finches start their language process by first "babbling," but then young males learn to sing their father's song and pass it on to their siblings.

It is hoped that future genome studies on the finches could provide useful information in determining what causes human speech problems associated with autism, stuttering, strokes and Parkinson's. Wouldn't that be a gift from God!

2010 Christian Nature

O God, You have taught me from my youth; and to this day I declare Your wondrous works. Psalm 71:17

read more "Zebra Finch's Genetic Code Sheds Light on Speech Disorders"

Mozart Effect on Rats

Perhaps you remember the line from the film Amadeus in which someone observes of Mozart's music, "Too many notes." That statement reflects some peoples' opinion of Mozart's highly complex music. But researchers are finding that this mathematical complexity may be the reason for what some call "the Mozart effect."

Researchers at several universities around the United States have confirmed that Mozart's complex music has positive effects for both adults and children. In one study, rats were subjected to Mozart for 12 hours a day, beginning 4 weeks before birth.

A second group heard only silence, a third heard only a constant hissing sound, while a fourth group heard only minimalist composer Philip Glass. When the rats were old enough to run a maze, they were tested. The Mozart rats not only ran the maze considerably faster than any of the others, but they made fewer mistakes.

Other research has shown that adults do better on intelligence tests after hearing Mozart. While this effect is temporary in adults, children exposed to Mozart show a permanent improvement. As a music teacher, I have tested children on the "Mozart effect" and proven it to be true.

It is thought that the complex nature of Mozart's music encourages the brain to make more connections within itself. The more connections you have, the smarter you are. Surely music is a gift of God that benefits us and could never exist in a universe created by the forces of chance.

Needless to say, I am enormously grateful to God for the gift of music.

2010 Christian Nature

Then David and all Israel played music before God with all their might, with singing, on harps, on stringed instruments, on tambourines, on cymbals, and with trumpets. 1 Chronicles 13:8

reference: Creation Moments Radio

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Robert Boyle Walked the Walk

We often hear today that no true scientists are creationists because science disproves creation. The truth is, most of the founders of the various disciplines of modern science were creationists, as are a great many scientists today.

One of the most famous scientists of all time was Robert Boyle. Boyle, who lived at the close of the 17th century, did pioneering work in both chemistry and physics.

Perhaps you are familiar with "Boyle's Law," which relates the pressure, temperature and volume of gas. "Boyle's Law" is studied by every high school student today.

Boyle was also a completely dedicated Christian. He didn't just talk the talk. No, he walked the walk! He contributed a great deal of his money to the work of translating the Bible into languages that did not yet have the Scriptures.

Boyle was also very concerned about those who, in his own day, thought science could prove the Bible wrong. These people were the forerunners of modern evolutionists. In order to combat this idea in science, Boyle, with others, founded the Royal Society of London as one of the earliest modern creationist organizations.

He also funded the famous "Boyle Lectures" in his will, stipulating that these lectures were to offer scientific viewpoints that upheld the truth of the Bible.

Boyle called science a religious task that has the job of learning more about the workmanship of the Creator.

I am so grateful for the scientific contributions and the example of faith provided by many of the great scientists like Robert Boyle. I pray God would stir the faith and talents of His people today so that we may see many more servants like Robert Boyle in Science.

2010 Christian Nature

“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” Ephesians 2:10

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A Symbiotic Relationship Undersea

When we discover the unexpected in the creation, we are reminded that reality is much bigger than our small thoughts. That's a hint! God Himself says in the Bible, "My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways." Isa. 55:8.

This means that when we study our world, we must keep in mind that nothing forced God to make things a certain way. He was completely free. While God made an orderly creation, His logic and His creativity are far above ours.

Those who believe in a Creator learn to expect delightful surprises in God's world. For those who want to say that the world is a result of mindless natural forces, many of these surprises leave them with little idea of how to explain them according to their system.

One of these surprises is found in the strange relationship between the pagurid crab and the sea anemone.

The pagurid crab lives in a shell that is really too small to hold it. So the anemone molds itself to cover the crab and attaches himself to the crab. This gives the crab plenty of freedom or movement because part of his living "shell" is pliable. However, the anemone takes advantage of his position by stealing much of the crab's food. But if the crab is removed from this species of anemone, the anemone will die.

This symbiotic relationship is totally vital to both these creatures - so far apart on the evolutionary scale. This relationship makes no sense at all unless there is a Creator!

2010 Christian Nature

Father, let me be comforted by Your love to me when I do not understand why You are allowing certain things to happen in my life. I know that Your ways and Your wisdom are far above mine. I have learned to trust You.

From Creation Moments Radio

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Ancient Meteorologists Predicted El Niño

El Niños have been periodically changing the weather patterns of North and South America for thousands of years. El Niños in the Andes result in a four to six week delay in the rain needed for the potato crops on which ancient farmers depended. They even knew ahead of time when to wait to plant their potatoes for best results.

Between June 13 and 24 of each year, these farmers would search the early dawn sky for the invisible signs of an El Niño. The warm El Niño waters cause more moisture to accumulate in the atmosphere. Some of this moisture forms invisible cirrus clouds high in the atmosphere. While invisible, these clouds would cause some of the more dim stars to disappear.

So the Andean farmers looked to the northeastern horizon to find the Pleiades. If all seven stars, including the dimmest of them, shone clearly morning after morning, the Andean farmers knew that no El Niño was forming. However, if they consistently saw a dimming of the stars, they knew that they should delay planting for four to six weeks because the rains would be late.

Where would the Andean farmers learn the signs and consequences of an El Niño for their crops? The Bible teaches that the sun, moon and stars also serve to give us signs about the seasons. It would appear that God originally gave Adam the ability to read these signs, knowledge which Adam would have passed down to future generations.

2010 Christian Nature

Then God said, 'Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs and seasons, and for days and years….' Genesis 1:14

References: Science Frontiers, 3-4/00

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Care For a Microwaved Ant?

Why do ants like electricity and why can they sense microwaves? If evolution were true, how would ants evolve a love for electricity in only the short time that man has been producing it? For what purpose would they have evolved the ability to sense microwave radiation long before man was using it?

It has been well established that ants like to build their nests around electrical equipment. They are often found around electrical meters. They are famous for building their nests around airport runway lights. They seem to be particularly fond of electrical relays. No one knows why.

Now we learn that unlike any other multi-celled creatures, they can survive inside a running microwave oven - really! - perhaps enjoying your food as it cooks! How can they do this? It seems that ants can detect the invisible wave pattern of microwaves inside the oven. These patterns leave some areas of the oven low in microwave radiation while other areas are high in radiation. Ants simply avoid those areas where the radiation is strong enough to kill them.

Incidentally, you can see these patterns by lining the tray on the floor of your microwave oven with marshmallows. You will notice that some will become very cooked while others are barely touched by the microwaves.

If evolution were true, how would ants develop the ability to deal successfully with conditions that did not exist? It makes more sense to conclude that our Creator, Who knows the future, made the ants as He did for reasons we still must discover.

2010 Christian Nature

Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good. So the evening and the morning were the sixth day. Genesis 1:31

References: Science Frontiers

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Sir Isaac Newton, Creationist Scientist

If Isaac Newton or someone else had never made the discoveries Newton made, our world would be very different today. He is one of the most important scientists in all of history.

What many people don't know is that this great scientist was a creationist. He actually wrote more Bible commentaries than he did scientific papers.

Newton is best known for his discoveries of the law of universal gravitation and the three laws of motion.

Newton also built the first reflecting telescope, and he developed calculus into the branch of mathematics it is today.

He also researched the nature of light and explained how white light is made up of many different colors. (whew!)

Newton was an avid student of the Bible and wrote papers defending Bishop Ussher's dating of the earth at about 6,000 years. He also defended the literal six-day creation.

Although Newton did not personally accept the doctrine of the Trinity, he did take on the atheists of his day, offering strong defenses for the biblical view of history.

He was one of the first creation scientists to suggest that most of the sedimentary rocks of the earth are the result of the Genesis Flood.

Next time you hear someone say that science and the Bible don't mix, think of Sir Isaac Newton.

2010 Christian Nature

For the LORD gives wisdom; from His mouth come knowledge and understanding. Proverbs 2:6

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The Tangled Tree of Life

Researchers studying genetics have concluded that the evolutionary tree of life does not reflect the facts of biochemistry.

By the 1960s, biochemists had concluded that living things could be grouped into two distinct types based on their basic structures and genetic information. Eukaryotes have one or more cells and a true nucleus.

Prokaryotes have smaller cells with no true nucleus. They are so different from eukaryotes that researchers concluded that they must have developed separately from non living matter.

By the late 1970s, a third type of life was recognized – the archaea. Archaea favor extreme environments such as undersea vents. Their biochemistry is unlike prokaryotes or eukaryotes.

According to evolutionists, life may have had to develop from non-living material three times! Further, to explain the biochemistry of these three types of creatures, biochemists have to assume that at points these separate types had to exchange genetic material with each other, and with a fourth, unknown and extinct type of living thing! Puleez!

One logical conclusion of this new evolutionary approach is that life had to arise from non-life many times. Yet, modern biochemistry still has not explained how life could arise from non-life even once. However, this is exactly the pattern we might expect if all living things are the product of a wise Creator Who used similar designs to solve similar problems.

2010 Christian Nature

All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. John 1:3

References: Scientific American, 2/00

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Archeology Sheds New Light on Israel's High Places

The Old Testament frequently and disapprovingly mentions the fact that the Israelites often built "high places." The Bible indicates that high places were worship centers where a pagan religion or a mix of Israelite and Canaanite religion was practiced.

Until recently, high places found by archaeologists revealed little about these sites of false worship. However, the discovery of a high place at Rehov tells a much more complete story – one consistent with what the Bible tells us. Its dating could make this high place one of those for which Rehoboam, son of Solomon, appointed priests.

The sanctuary was a raised ten-foot square of mud brick. In the middle was a stone platform that was three feet square. One side of the platform had four large stones, two of them taller than the others. These may have been the "standing stones" mentioned in the Bible. In front of the platform was an offering table. Many of the bones of offered animals, often wild goats, were found at the site. Such offerings would have been against God's law. In addition, various figurines were found at the site. These included a bull, two female figures and another animal. Israel was forbidden to make such images.

This discovery challenges the skeptics and upholds the integrity of biblical history. Once again, the Bible's history has proven to be factual, even when reporting Israel's sins.

2010 Christian Nature

Then he appointed for himself priests for the high places, for the demons, and the calf idols which he had made. II Chronicles 11:15

References: Biblical Archaeology Review, 3-4/00

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The Deadliest Animal in the World

You have probably never heard of the last animal you would ever want to meet undefended. This animal, found in the wild only in Madagascar, is called the fossa (pronounced FOO-sa). A typical specimen weighs only about 14 pounds. Its body is about 28 inches long, but its tail is another 28 inches long.

The fossa looks something like a small mountain lion and was originally classified as a member of the cat family. But it also has features and behaviors, including its tenacity in fighting, more similar to the mongoose.

This led scientists to reclassify the fossa as a member of the mongoose family. These ferocious creatures live in the forests of Madagascar. Despite its small size, it is said to eat anything with a heartbeat.

This powerful creature is known by science to bring down even wild pigs much larger than itself. The local people of Madagascar say it can even bring down oxen. Pound for pound, it is recognized as the deadliest animal in the world.

Scientists have also learned that an even larger version of the fossa possibly existed 1,500 years ago when Madagascar was first settled. This fossa weighed as much as 200 pounds and had a body 6 feet long, not counting the tail. It could have brought down any creature it wanted.

While the fossa may be considered the personification of evil, the Bible tells us that the devil is behind all evil and is much more dangerous than any fossa. So we can thank God that His Son, Jesus Christ, has won for us the victory over sin, death and the devil.

2010 Christian Nature

Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. I Peter 5:8

References: Discover, 4/00

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World's Oldest Plant Lives in California?

This post has been removed by April Lorier

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New Antibiotic Discovered Under the African Jungle

Then Jesus put out His hand and touched him, saying, 'I am willing; be cleansed.' And immediately his leprosy was cleansed. Matthew 8:3

Researchers searching for new medicines have been scouring the jungles of the world. Many of our new and most powerful drugs have come from Old and New World jungles. Sometimes researchers learn something about these medicines from local healers, who already seem to know how to use them.

One of the most recent discoveries took place in the jungles of the African continent. Researchers from the University of Lausanne in Switzerland found out that traditional medicine practitioners used a yellow substance to treat syphilis and leprosy and to kill termites. They learned that the substance comes from the root of a tree that is common across Africa's jungles.

The researchers collected some samples to see if the yellow substance might actually have compounds medicine could use. They found a compound that kills microbes and fungi. The scientists concluded that the compound is manufactured by the tree to protect its roots from dangerous fungi in the soil. However, they are going to have to learn to make the compound in the laboratory. Researchers say that six trees would have to be killed to harvest just 50 grams of the new antibiotic.
Our merciful God knew that we would fall into sin and become subject to illness. So when He made the creation, He gave us many plants that can provide medical help if we explore that creation as He commanded. However, these medicines don't treat the underlying cause of our problems – sin. So He sent His Son to save us from the guilt of our sin.

2010 Christian Nature


(Please note: This is a nature blog, not a science blog. The name of this blog is Christian Nature. Notice "Christian" is the first word and "Nature" is the second.)

I am not a pantheist. In pantheism the Universe (Nature) and God are equivalent. I am a Bible-believing Christian who believes God is the Creator of nature. When He created humans He placed them into nature. It was called "The Garden of Eden."

References: Science News, 3/4/00

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Solar System Structure Confounds Scientists

He counts the number of the stars; He calls them all by name. Psalm 147:4

Our solar system has a nice, neat structure. The planets all have nice, stable, relatively round orbits. This structure protects the Earth from being struck by another large planet. Evolutionary theories about the origin of the solar system have always said that it formed into its current neat structure from a swirling disk of hot gases that once orbited the sun.

Now, with the discovery of planets orbiting other stars, astronomers are rethinking their theories about how the solar system formed. The problem is that none of the other planetary systems have an orderly structure, and all the planets so far discovered are closer to their stars than we are to the sun. The coolest among them has a surface temperature of 180° F.

Most of these planets have orbits so erratic that collisions with other planets are always a threat. So, astronomers wonder, how did our solar system become so well ordered for life?

They argue that the large icy planets, Uranus and Neptune, are too large to have formed at the edge of the solar system. So it is concluded that they must have formed closer to the sun, meaning that the solar system was once as chaotic as the recently discovered planetary systems.

However, this new evolutionary approach simply introduces another problem: How could our present orderly solar system have developed out of the chaos of a system in which planets are crashing around like billiard balls? The Bible still offers the best answer. The solar system was designed and created for us by a wise and loving God.

2010 Christian Nature

References: Discover, 3/00

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A Full Stomach But Starving

The creosote shrub is common in the desert of the American Southwest and northern Mexico. This remarkable plant is not only well designed for life in the desert, but also it protects itself from those who would munch on its leaves.

Creosote bushes grow in stands because they reproduce by sending shoots out from a collective root system. One stand measured over 60 feet across at its widest point! Stands can be hundreds of years old.

The bushes produce several hundred chemicals that evaporate into the air. Stands are said to smell like chemistry laboratories. Other desert plants avoid growing near them, probably because of the smell. As a result, stands do not have to share scarce water supplies with other plants.

Compounds called phenols and phenoloxidasa are among the chemicals produced by the leaves. These chemicals must be stored in different compartments within the leaves so that they do not react with each other. However, when the leaves are chewed, these compartments break down. They react in the stomach, producing chemicals called quinones. The quinones then react with the plant proteins, changing them into a form that cannot be digested. The result is that whatever tries to eat creosote leaves can have a full stomach and be starving at the same time!

The creosote's advanced chemical warfare could not possibly be a product of mindless evolution. Its methods of protection reveal a well-thought-out design that can only be credited to a wise Creator.

2010 Christian Nature

Because of the sound of my groaning My bones cling to my skin. I am like a pelican of the wilderness; I am like an owl of the desert. Psalm 102:5-6

References: Bombardier Beetles and Fever Trees

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Monkeying With Genetics

What is man, that thou should magnify him? and that thou should set thine heart upon him? Psalm 7:17

We have all heard the claims – and school textbooks love to include it – that humans and chimpanzees are about 99 percent genetically identical. However, that claim evaporates when the details of what is being compared are examined.

First of all, the DNA sequences that were compared were cherry-picked. Similar sequences in both humans and chimps were compared, while non-similar sequences were ignored. In addition, comparisons were made using only the DNA that codes for making protein. This ignores most of the human and chimp genome.

When the DNA that regulates cell operation are included in the comparison, the degree of similarity drops considerably. Important parts of certain chromosomes, like the Y chromosome, are very different. Research has also found that there are major differences between how certain genes express themselves within cells. In addition, the chimpanzee genome is 10 to 12 percent larger than man’s, which is quite a difference in itself.

The truth is the entire human and chimp genome has never been properly compared, while if it has, it has never been reported. However, when the spiritual differences are considered, there is an unbridgeable gulf between humans and chimps. Man was made in the image of God, to be responsible before Him and to have a relationship with Him. Jesus Christ died for the salvation of mankind, not for chimps.

2010 Christian Nature

"Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said: 'Who is this who darkens counsel by words without knowledge? Now prepare yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer Me."' —Job 38:1-3

References: Acts & Facts, 6/09

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