"Finding the remains of
microbes or any other trace of life on another
world would be the greatest discovery in history
and would have profound implications for the
human race. As physicist Philip Morrison (a
founder of the Search for Extra-Terrestrial
Intelligence radio-telescope project) said, it
would change life from being a miracle to being
a statistic."
—William Burrows, This New
Ocean, The Story of the First Space Age, 1998,
pg. 463 Illustration by Jim L. Wilson
There is more than a quest
for traces of life on Mars or Europa (Jupiter's
moon with water and ice), there is a search for
humanity by those who reject the Creator.
Finding the smallest bacteria on a far flung
moon will, in the mind of a secular scientist,
reduces the astronomical odds of life appearing
by chance and drives another nail in God's
coffin.
Genesis
1:1 "In the beginning God created the
heavens and the earth,"
According to a new Gallup
poll, more Americans believe in creationism than
evolution. Only 28% believe in evolution while
48% believe in creationism.
—ON MISSION, May-June 2003,
p. 9 Illustration by Jim L. Wilson
Genesis
1:1 NASB “In the beginning God created the
heavens and the earth.”
CREATION
In his book, The Jewish
Theory of Everything, Max Anteby writes, “On
April 12, 1961, a young Russian cosmonaut
stepped in front of the cameras, as he was about
to board his spacecraft, Vostok l, for what was
going to be man’s first voyage into outer space.
Yuri Gagarin announced, ‘Now I go to meet nature
face to face in an unprecedented
encounter.’
For the next several hours,
Gagarin encountered nature in a way that no man
had done before, far beyond the reaches of the
clouds, to a place bordering on the infinite. He
had an awesome responsibility to chronicle for
mankind what existed outside the Earth’s realm
and man’s control.
Upon his return to earth he
remarked, ‘Now I know that God does not exist,
because I was there and I didn’t see him.’
Less than one year later,
John H. Glenn entered his spacecraft, Freedom 7,
in America’s attempt to beat the Russians in the
race to space. He brought a Bible along with
him. As he peered through the small window of
his capsule, he looked out on the enormity of
the universe and on the delicate fragility of
our own Earth. He felt the presence of the ‘Hand
of Almighty God’ as he recited from the first
chapter of Genesis.” (http://www.artscroll.com/Chapters/jthh_001.html)
Illustration by Jim L. Wilson
Why was Glenn’s reaction
different than Gagarin’s? When you know the
Creator, you notice his signature throughout His
creation. When you don’t know Him, all you see
is nature.
Men first stepped onto the
surface of the moon over thirty-five years ago,
but one piece of equipment they left behind is
providing useful information. July 21, 1969,
Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin placed the lunar
laser ranging retroreflector array on the
surface of the moon, and it is the only Apollo
science experiment still running. Physicists
routinely target the reflectors on the lunar
surface with laser beams to measure the orbit of
the moon, and to test theories about
gravity.
The round trip travel time
of the beam, pinpoints the moon's distance with
precision. The distance only varies a few
centimeters over the 470,000 miles to the moon
and back. Studying the moon's orbit has revealed
some interesting things over the last 35 years.
Researchers have learned that the moon is slowly
spiraling away from the Earth at a rate of about
4 centimeters a year. They have also found that
Newton's gravitational constant G has changed
less than 1 part in 100-billion since the
experiments began. Laser results have also been
used to check Einstein's theory of gravity, and
have found that to the limits of the laser
techniques, Einstein's equations predict the
shape of the moon's orbit. If there is a flaw,
in the theory, researchers say lunar laser
ranging might still find it.
Early planners feared the
mirrors might be smashed by meteorites or
quickly covered with dust, but so far neither
has happened. Since the mirrors require no
energy to operate they will likely be used for
decades to come. New techniques are being
developed to measure the moon's distance with
even more precision. University of Maryland
physics professor Carroll Alley, who still
monitors the experiments he planned years ago
says, “Who knows what they'll discover?"
—www.detroittimes.com, What
Neil Armstrong Left On the Moon, July 21, 2004.
Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Jim
Sandell
Psalm
8:3-4 (NASB) “When I consider Thy heavens,
the work of Thy fingers, The moon and the stars,
which Thou hast ordained; [4] What is man, that
Thou dost take thought of him? And the son of
man, that Thou dost care for him?”
CREATION
The Earth was right on
schedule in 2003, for the fifth straight year.
In 1972 experts began adding an extra "leap
second" on the last day of the year to make the
world's official time agree with where the Earth
actually was in space. For 28 years scientist
repeated the procedure. In 1999, they discovered
the earth was no longer lagging behind.
The need for a "leap
second" was revealed by the invention of the
extremely reliable atomic clock which measures
time using the electromagnetic radiation
released by Cesium atoms. Leap seconds affect
communication, navigation, and air traffic
control systems, as well as the computers
linking global financial markets.
Scientists assumed the rate
at which the planet traveled through space had
slowed ever so slightly for millennia, and would
continue to slow. They have no explanation for
why the earth has not lost any time in the past
five years. Fred McGehan, spokesman at the
National Institute for Science and Technology in
Boulder Colorado, says possible explanations
include the tides, weather, or changes in the
earth's core. He admits most experts are baffled
by the change.
—www.cnn.com, Earth Orbit
slows no more, baffling scientists, January 2,
2004.
Illustration by Jim L.
Wilson and Jim Sandell.
Scientists can spend a
lifetime trying to understand and explain God’s
creation, but in the end, they are left standing
beside the theologians with a sense of awe and
wonder. The majesty and mystery of the creator
are revealed in His creation, even when—no make
that especially when—we can’t explain it.
Job
26:7 NIV "He spreads out the northern
skies over empty space: he suspends the earth
over nothing."
CREATION
A Japanese research team
has succeeded in accomplishing something no one
has ever done before, taking pictures of a sea
monster in its natural environment. The crew
captured photos of a 26-foot giant squid
attacking a baited line at a depth of 3,000
feet. After capture, the squid struggled for
more than four hours to get free. The creature
pulled so hard that it severed one of its
tentacles, which floated to the surface.
Giant squids have long been
the stuff of legends. Ancient Greek myths speak
of large sea creatures, and Jules Verne
described a large creature attacking a submarine
in "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea." Giant Squids
are the world's largest invertebrates and have
been know to exceed fifty feet. Until now, such
creatures had only been caught in fishing nets
or found washed up on shore dead or dying. This
is the first time anyone has seen a giant squid
in its natural environment.
Randy Kochevar, a deep sea
biologist with the Monterey Bay Aquarium in
California said, "Nobody has been able to
observe a large squid where it lives There are
people who said it would never be done. It's
really an incredible accomplishment." He added,
"That's getting footage of a real sea
monster."
—http://www.usatoday.com/news,
Scientists get first photos of rare giant squid
in wild, September 28, 2005. Illustration by Jim
L. Wilson and Jim Sandell.
Genesis
1:21 (NASB77) "And God created the great
sea monsters, and every living creature that
moves, with which the waters swarmed after their
kind, and every winged bird after its kind; and
God saw that it was good."
CREATION
An experiment conducted in
the Sahara desert suggests that though they may
not count out loud, ants may have a God given
ability to find their nests by counting steps.
Researchers have discovered that in forest
settings, ants use scent glands to guide others
and themselves back to their nests, but
researchers have been puzzled by desert
environments because winds often scatter loose
grains and any scents left behind.
Researchers Harald Wolf of
the University of Ulm and his assistant Matthias
Whittinger proposed ants possessed “pedometer
–like” cells in their brains that count their
steps. To test the theory, Wolf and Whittinger
trained a bunch of ants to walk across a patch
of desert to some food. After eating, the ants
were captured and divided into three groups. The
lengths of the legs of two groups of ants were
altered while the third group was unchanged.
When released to return to their nest, ants
whose legs had been lengthened walked right past
the nest and then stopped and looked around for
their home. The group of ants whose legs had
been shortened did not travel far enough and
also seemed confused when they couldn’t find the
nest. The group of ants which were not changed
walked right to the nest and went inside.
Commenting on the study
professor James Gould from Princeton says the
ants do not have maps in their heads and don’t
recognize markers along the route. He said the
experiment suggests ants do have an internal way
of counting their steps to find their nest.
Gould said, “These animals are fooled exactly
the way you’d expect if they were counting
steps.”
--Ants That Count!,
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=120587095
; November 25, 2009, Illustration by Jim L.
Wilson and Jim Sandell.
Proverbs 6:6-8 (CEV) “You
lazy people can learn by watching an anthill.
(7) Ants don't have leaders, (8) but they store
up food during harvest season.”
CREATION
John Hopkins University physicist William
Edelstein explains why it is impossible for
space travel to occur between the stars. “Even
if it were possible to travel at warp speed, it
would kill everyone on board.” In a new study,
he determined that the crew would receive 10,000
sieverts of radiation per second while a fatal
dose for humans is six. “Getting between stars
is kind of impossible, based on what we know
right now,” he says.
The Week March 26, 2010 p. 24. Illustration by
Jim L. Wilson and Rodger Russell
It may be too far for travel, but not so far
that the Lord couldn’t spread them out with His
hand.
Isaiah 48:13 (NASB77) (13) "Surely My hand
founded the earth, And My right hand spread out
the heavens; When I call to them, they stand
together.”
CREATION
The fact that scientists have never been able
to recreate life has always been an argument in
favor of creationism to me. If we cannot even
create life in a test tube how can we expect it
to have happened accidently in a primordial pool
of some sort. Now science is getting closer and
closer. A team of scientists led by Craig Venter
have announced the “creation” of life in a test
tube.
--The Week, June 4, 2010 p. 18. Illustration by
Jim L. Wilson and Rodger Russell
While their creation falls short of creating
life from non-life, they substituted their
homemade DNA for the DNA of a cell—it is an
incredible accomplishment. There will be many
debates about its morality, dangers, and
possible uses.
Where the Creation/Evolution debate is
concerned, it is without merit. This new life,
if you dare call it that, did not come about by
chance, but by the intelligence of a designer.
That is how creation happened. It is a greater
accomplishment because the designer is one of
greater intelligence.
Genesis 1:1 (NIV) " In the beginning God
created the heavens and the earth."
CREATION
In his latest book, physicist Stephen Hawking
says he is out to disprove Sir Isaac Newton’s
belief that the universe must have been created
and designed by God. Hawking say physical laws
themselves shaped the universe. At one time,
Hawking’s writing suggested he thought belief in
a creator was not inconsistent with
science. In the book titled, The Grand
Design, Hawking says he thinks the Big Bang was
an inevitable consequence of the laws of physics
and says, “Spontaneous creation is the reason
there is something.
The physicist cites the 1992 discovery of a
planet orbiting a nearby star and says that
makes the combination of the mass of the earth
and Sun along with the distance between the
bodies look far less remarkable, and less like
the Earth was carefully designed to accommodate
human beings. Hawking says the law of
gravity could cause the universe to create
itself from nothing. He now believes spontaneous
creation is the reason everything exists. He
concludes, “It is not necessary to invoke God to
light the blue torch paper and set the universe
going.”
--Stephen Hawking: God did not create Universe,
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-11161493 ,
September 2, 2010. Illustration by Jim L. Wilson
and Jim Sandell
I think Dr. Hawking missed something here.
Where did the laws of physics come from? Did
they
come from nothing too?
Psalm 8:3-5 (CEV) “ I often think of the
heavens your hands have made, and of the moon
and stars you put in place. (4) Then I ask, "Why
do you care about us humans? Why are you
concerned for us weaklings?" (5) You made us a
little lower than you yourself, and you have
crowned us with glory and honor.”
CREATION
Thousands of scientists have just completed a
comprehensive census of Marine life. They
discovered some strange creatures, some strange
behaviors, and identified 6,000 species never
before seen. “The most surprising thing was
beauty,” Rockefeller University environmental
scientist Jesse Ausubel tells the New York
Times. “Our eyes pumped out of our heads in
front of this beauty.”
--The Week, October 22, 2010, p. 26
Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Rodger Russell
Creation is declaring the glory of God. We see
His glory and the beauty of His gift to us over
and over. Let us pause and give thanks to the
God of creation!
Psalm 104:24 (NASB77) “O LORD, how many are Thy
works! In wisdom Thou hast made them all; The
earth is full of Thy possessions.”
CREATION
How did the Universe come to exist? The
question of beginning has always been one of
faith. Those with faith in God give credit to
the Creator. Those without faith in God say it
just happened. Now Stephen Hawking in his new
book, The Grand Design, argues that there is no
design. “Spontaneous creation is the reason
there is something rather than nothing.”
--The Week, September 17, 2010 p. 22,
Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Rodger Russell
Well, excuse us Mr. Hawking if we do not just
take your word for it. You do not persuade those
of us with faith in God.
We may differ in how it happened, or maybe even
when it happened, but we will agree on the
source of the beginning.
Genesis 1:1 --NIV In the beginning God created
the heavens and the earth.
CREATION
Watson, the IBM computer, defeated Jeopardy’s
two most successful past champions. Reactions to
the results of the three-day challenge have been
varied and abundant.
--http://www.huffingtonpost.com/danny-groner/watsons-ijeopardyi-win-wh_b_825633.html
Illustration
by Jim L. Wilson and Rodger Russell
What really happened? IBM programmers, using
the computing power of 2,500 parallel
processors, filling an entire room with a
database containing several libraries worth of
information, programmed the computer to
understand the questions, and research it’s
database, and find the answers faster than it’s
two competitors.
--The Week, February 18, 2011 p. 21
The debate rages all the way from proving that
computers will take over the world to computers
have become as human as humans. It does not
really matter how sophisticated computers
become, they will remain as creations of the
creation.
Genesis 2:7 (ESV) then the LORD God formed the
man of dust from the ground and breathed into
his nostrils the breath of life, and the man
became a living creature.
Life, and especially eternal life, is something
that not even IBM can bestow up on
machine.
CREATION
“The moment loggerhead sea turtles hatch, they
embark on a complex ocean voyage that covers
thousands of miles; those in Puerto Rico head
northeast, while those in the Cape Verde Islands
swim northwest. How do they know which way to
go?” Scientists and animal experts have spent
decades researching the ability of these turtles
to know where to go. Nathan Putman from the
University of North Carolina explains their
latest explanation as an ability to detect the
magnetic fields of the Earth “serves them like a
GPS.”
--The Week, March 18, 2011 p. 27 Illustration
by Jim L. Wilson and Rodger Russell
As our scientists and experts study the animals
for insights into understanding life, they are
simply following the directions of Job to study
the birds of the air and the fish of the sea.
You never know, they may teach us something yet
about navigating the globe.
Job 12:7-8 (CEV) (7) If you want to learn, then
go and ask the wild animals and the birds, (8)
the flowers and the fish.
CREATION
Scientists were shocked to find a worm living
deeper inside the earth than they previously
believed possible. The discovery of the small
worm 2.2 miles beneath the surface was a
surprise because researchers believed only
single celled bacteria could survive at that
depth. The worm feeds on bacteria and is .5mm
long. Scientists have found it at various depths
between .6 miles and 2.2 miles underground, this
time they found it in South African Gold mines
in 118-degree water that seeps between cracks
far below the surface.
Lead researcher Dr. Tullis Onstott, of
Princeton University said the lack of oxygen,
high temperatures, and lack of food are big
hurdles for the worms to get over. They are
capable of surviving in an environment that has
less than one percent of the oxygen found in the
world’s oceans. The team believes the worms
originated at the surface but ancient
rainwater washed it into cracks. The worm
is similar to worms that live in rotting fruit
on the surface. Onstott said his team is
preparing to make other trips deep underground
and hope to find more multi-cellular creatures.
He added, ”It’s like finding Moby Dick in Lake
Ontario.”
--Worm discovered in South African gold mine is
deepest-living land animal ever known,
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1393614/Worm-discovered-South-African-gold-deepest-living-land-animal-found.html
;
June 2, 2011, Illustration by Jim L.
Wilson and Jim Sandell.
Colossians 1:16 (CEV) Everything was created by
him, everything in heaven and on earth,
everything seen and unseen, including all forces
and powers, and all rulers and authorities. All
things were created by God's Son, and everything
was made for him.
CREATION
The power unleashed by a thunderstorm inspires
awe and wonder. A storm on the planet
Saturn has astronomers marveling at the power
being unleashed in the heavens. The storm, known
as a Great White Spot, first appeared as a tiny
white dot in the planet’s atmosphere in December
2010. A few weeks later, it had grown to over
6,000 miles across, and eight months later, the
clouds nearly circled the planet. Astronomers
say the storm is still growing and discharges
lightning bolts 10,000 times more powerful than
those found on earth. The storm is so big,
anyone with a good backyard telescope can see
it.
Analysis of data collected suggest the “spot”
is a cluster of super-storms produced by
upwelling heat, moisture, and ammonia from water
clouds deeper in Saturn’s
atmosphere. Because of the way the
planet’s rings scatter sunlight, the lightning
bolts are not visible at night. The orbiting
Cassini spacecraft has been observing the storm,
and radio signals the craft has detected via a
plasma-wave detector, reveal the strength of the
lightning. Scientists say they’ve seen five such
storms on Saturn in the last 130 years, the most
recent in 1990. They believe the storms are
linked to the times when the planet is a little
closer to the sun, and make an exciting
spectacle.
--Tempest-from-hell seen on Saturn,
http://news.yahoo.com/tempest-hell-seen-saturn-190517740.html
; July 6, 2011, Illustration by Jim L. Wilson
and Jim Sandell
Psalm 135:5-7 CEV The LORD is much
greater than any other god. He does as he
chooses in heaven and on earth and deep in the
sea. The LORD makes the clouds rise from
far across the earth, and he makes lightning to
go with the rain. Then from his secret place he
sends out the wind.
CREATION
New evidence suggests planet Earth still has a
lot more for man to discover. The research
estimates the planet has almost 8.8 million
species of living creatures. To date, man has
only discovered about a quarter of them. Science
only knows of 1.9 million types of animals, and
even those contain a vast diversity including a
psychedelic frogfish, a lizard the size of a
dime, and a blind hairy mini-lobster at the
bottom of the ocean. Biologists have long
believed the earth contains between 3 and 100
million species of animal life, leaving a lot
more for them to find.
Some researcher s wonder if continuing the
discovery process is important. They say we
don’t need to know exactly how many species
there are. Others believe the process must
continue because there are many potential
benefits from undiscovered species.. Realizing
these benefits means we need to know what is in
the environment. Co-author of the study, Boris
Worm from Canada’s Dalhousie University said,
“We are really fairly ignorant of the complexity
and colorfulness of this amazing planet. We need
to expose more people to those wonders. It
really makes you feel differently about this
place we inhabit.”
--Wild World: Millions of unseen species fill
Earth,http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/terms/Article_2011-08-23-US-SCI-Millions-of-Species/id-d4f5eb26cecd472ca3187b7610005a19;
August
24, 2011, Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Jim
Sandell.
Psalm 8:3-8 (GW) (3) When I look at your
heavens, the creation of your fingers, the moon
and the stars that you have set in place— (4)
what is a mortal that you remember him or the
Son of Man that you take care of him? (5) You
have made him a little lower than yourself. You
have crowned him with glory and honor. (6) You
have made him rule what your hands created. You
have put everything under his control: (7) all
the sheep and cattle, the wild animals, (8) the
birds, the fish, whatever swims in the currents
of the seas.
CREATION
Astronomers say they have a huge cloud of water
vapor deep in space. The cloud, which holds more
than 140 trillion times the mass of all the
water on Earth, is the largest discovery of
water anywhere in history. Researchers say the
vapor is contained within a distant quasar,
surrounding a massive black hole. The quasar is
10 million light years away, and is constantly
consuming a surrounding disk of gas and dust,
and spewing out huge amounts of energy.
The find is part of a greater study of quasars,
and scientists estimate the black hole at the
center is 20 billion times larger than the sun.
They say the discovery itself was not a big
surprise because scientists thought water vapor
was present even in the early days of the
universe. NASA researcher Matt Bradford said,
“The environment around this quasar is very
unique in that it’s producing this huge mass of
water. It’s another demonstration that water is
pervasive throughout the universe, even at the
very earliest times.”
--Enormous Water Reservoir Identified in Space,
http://www.christianpost.com/news/largest-ever-water-reservoir-in-history-discovered-in-space-52776
;
July 24, 2011, Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and
Jim Sandell.
It is very interesting that science is finally
catching up to the Bible.
Genesis 1:6-7 (CEV) (6) God said, "I command a
dome to separate the water above it from the
water below it." (7) And that's what happened.
God made the dome
CREATION
From the beginning, humankind has sought ways
to control the environment in which they live,
including the weather. One of the miracles of
Jesus reported by the gospel writers is his
control over the wind and the storms.
God, not humans, is in control of the winds,
and our education and technology is no match for
the awesome power of an awesome God. “So far
this year, tornadoes have killed 504 Americans,
the highest number of deaths since 1953.”
--The Week, June 10, 2011, p. 20 Illustration
by Jim L. Wilson and Rodger Russell
As we see the tremendous increase in our
technological understanding, let us never forget
the power of the creation.
Ezekiel 13:13 (ESV) Therefore thus says the
Lord GOD: I will make a stormy wind break out in
my wrath, and there shall be a deluge of rain in
my anger, and great hailstones in wrath to make
a full end.
CREATION
Our God is the creator of all that exists
creating the universe from nothing.
After a team of 42 international scientists
completed a six-year survey of 100 million stars
in the Milky Way galaxy, they have determined
that there are probably more than 160 billion
planets accompanying earth in our galaxy. The
study’s co-author, Daniel Kubas says, “We used
to think that the Earth might be unique in our
galaxy but now it seems that there are literally
billions of planets with masses similar to
Earth.” The study suggests that life is very
likely to exist elsewhere in the universe.
--The Week, January 27, 2012, p. 19
Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Rodger Russell
“Wow!” What a God! What a Savior!
Colossians 1:16 (ESV) For by him all things
were created, in heaven and on earth, visible
and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or
rulers or authorities—all things were created
through him and for him.
CREATION
Astronomers examining the color of the Milky
Way Galaxy have found that it has a very
appropriate name. Researchers have wondered what
our home galaxy looks like from the outside, but
have found the task a challenge because earth is
inside it. Speaking at the 219th American
Astronomical Society meeting, researchers lead
by Jeffrey Newman from the University of
Pittsburgh, announced that our galaxy is not
only white, and a very specific shade of white.
Using a comparison of star types in other
visible galaxies, astronomers say our home is as
white as spring snow around an hour after
sunrise or before sunset.
Newman said the finding is significant because
the color of the galaxy provides clues to the
age of the stars it contains. He said it would
reveal how old the stars in the galaxy are and
how recently stars have been forming. Newman
said the challenge was looking at the galaxy
form the inside, and that y dust in about one or
two thousand lights years in any direction
blocks our view. He estimated the galaxy is in a
very interesting state right now with a color
temperature somewhere between that of an
old-fashioned incandescent light bulb and
noon-time sunlight. Speaking to BBC reporters,
Newman said, “The best description I can give
would be that if you looked at new spring snow,
which has a fine grain size, about an hour after
dawn or an hour before sunset, you’d see the
same spectrum of light that an alien astronomer
in another galaxy would see looking at the Milky
Way.” He added, “It appears our Milky Way is on
the road between two stages – based on the color
we find, the rate of formation of stars has been
declining over time.”
--Astronomers weigh in on the Milky Way’s true
colours,
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-16523528,
January 12, 2012, Illustration by Jim L.
Wilson and Jim Sandell.
Isaiah 40:26 (HCSB) Look up and see: who
created these? He brings out the starry host by
number; He calls all of them by name. Because of
His great power and strength, not one of them is
missing.
CREATION
Climate researchers, looking over ten years of
data from a NASA spacecraft, say they have
evidence the sky is falling. The tops of clouds
decreased by an average of one percent between
March 2000 and February 2010. The global average
decreased by a distance of 100 to 130 feet. The
most surprising factor was a decrease in the
number of clouds forming at very high altitudes.
Researchers say they are not sure what, if
anything the numbers mean, but think it
potentially offset some of the predicted warming
forecast by global warming researchers.
The researchers say the period is short, and
they plan to continue to study clouds to see if
the trend continues or changes. They also admit
they do not fully understand how global climate
variations would affect the clouds. Researchers
Roger Davies form the University in Auckland,
New Zealand said, “We don’t know exactly what
causes the cloud heights to lower. But it must
be due to change in the circulation patterns
that give rise to cloud formation at high
altitude.”
--Sky actually falling, report scientists,
http://www.csmonitor.com/Science/2012/0223/Sky-actually-falling-report-scientists;
February
23, 2012, Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Jim
Sandell.
Job 36:27-29 (HCSB) For He makes waterdrops
evaporate; they distill the rain into its mist,
(28) which the clouds pour out and shower
abundantly on mankind. (29) Can anyone
understand how the clouds spread out or how the
thunder roars from God’s pavilion?
CREATION
Mention robots, and most people envision
humanoid looking machines walking around on two
legs. Actually, researchers say they have found
that the more legs a robot have, the easier it
is for the machine to move around on tough
terrain. They say they have gained many ideas
using the original designs found in insects,
reptiles, and other animals. They have
discovered claws are easier to build and operate
than fingers, and tails help stabilize the
machines. Even the backend of snakes, ants, and
grasshoppers have served as an inspiration to
robot designers.
Biologist Robert Full and his team say they are
studying how the redheaded African Agama lizard
uses its tail while leaping between slippery
surfaces. Video they have studied shows how the
Agama raises its tail to counteract a lack of
footing when jumping from a flat surface to a
vertical one. If the surface gave the lizard
more traction, it left its tail down.
When researchers applied the principles from
the lizard’s tail to a small, robotic vehicle
called Tailbot, they found tail position changed
the robot’s stability when jumping. Various
positions gave the robot extra control and
helped it land in a more controlled manner.
Designers say they can improve robotic design
piece by piece by examining specific problems
and the ways animals are equipped to solve them.
--Robot Uses Lizard Tail to Leap,
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=its-all-in-the-tail
;February 18, 2012, Illustration by Jim L.
Wilson and Jim Sandell.
Psalm 104:24 (HCSB) How countless are Your
works, LORD! In wisdom You have made them all;
the earth is full of Your creatures.
CREATION
Scientists say the fruit of the Pollia
Condesata plant may be the shiniest living thing
on earth. The iridescent blue of the African
fruit becomes a metallic blue brighter than any
other biological material. Oddly, they say the
fruit is neither tasty nor nourishing, and it
does not contain any special color pigments that
are useful elsewhere. Researchers say the unique
color comes from the reflection of light off the
fruit’s skin. The skin contains layers of small
rod-shaped cellulose fibers, and depending on
the distribution, produces a rainbow effect.
They speculate the reason for the special color
may be to attract birds without the requirement
of producing a juicy berry. The unique plant
uses light in a special way by layering
cellulose in a sophisticated manner to blend
beauty and functionality. --Jim L. Wilson and
Jim Sandell.
Pollia Condensata Fruit Produces Rainbow
Colors, Is Shiniest Living Thing On Earth, by
Emily Underwood,
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/10/pollia-condensata-fruit-shiny_n_1872012.html?
icid=maing-grid7%7Cmaing6%7Cdl5%7Csec3_lnk1%26pLid%3D203794,
Accessed September 11, 2012.
Matthew 5:16 (WEY) Just so let your light shine
before all men, in order that they may see your
holy lives and may give glory to your Father who
is in Heaven.
CREATION
A new NASA spacecraft has recorded and sent
back a song sung by our planet. The Radiation
Belt Storm Probes are spacecraft designed to
study the Van Allen Belts around the Earth, and
are currently orbiting in the area where the
song is produced. The song is known as
chorus and is an electromagnetic phenomenon
caused by plasma in the belts orbiting the
planet. Craig Kletzing, from the
University of Iowa, says the song is not made of
acoustic waves that the human ear can hear, but
are what the radiation belts would sound like if
people had radio antennas for ears.
The research on the radiation belts is designed
to study the chorus effect to examine possible
harmful impacts on spacecraft or astronauts.
Kletzing says the data collected is sampled at
the same rate as a Compact Disc, so he may
release a stereo recording of the Earth’s
chorus. He said, “ We have two spacecraft with
two receivers, so a stereo recording is
possible.”
Spacecraft captures earth’s song
— Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell
NASA Spacecraft Records 'Earthsong',
http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2012/28sep_earthsong,
Accessed
October 1, 2012
Isaiah 55:12 (HCSB) You will indeed go out with
joy and be peacefully guided; the mountains and
the hills will break into singing before you,
and all the trees of the field will clap ?their?
hands.
CREATION
The cover story for the October 22, 2012 issue
of Time is “Aliens Among Us.” The gist of the
story is the possibility that life on earth
began when a meteorite carrying primitive life
struck the earth.
Now that’s reasonable explanation, right? It
certainly doesn’t negate the need for creation
to have a creator. What we know for certain is,
“In the beginning, God.”--Jim L. Wilson and
Rodger Russell
Time, October 22, 2012 pp. 44-47
Genesis 1:1 (HCSB) “In the beginning God
created the heavens and the earth.”
CREATION
A Canadian oceanographer says though he has
been studying the sea for a long time, it still
holds many surprises. Canada, which has more
coastland than any other nation on Earth and
millions of square kilometers of territorial
waters, is a leader in marine research. Gerhard
Pohle, acting executive director of the Huntsman
Marine Science Center in St. Andrews, N.B. took
part in a ten year survey of marine life that
ended in 2012. He says there is an amazing
amount of biodiversity in the ocean. Authorities
estimate one million different species make
their home in the planet’s oceans, but almost
two-thirds of them are still relatively unknown.
Pohle said, “It’s staggering to think that as
recently as 2011, we did not know how many
species there are in the word by order of
magnitude.” He added, ”I’m somebody who works on
this and when I saw it, I couldn’t believe
it.”—Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell
Two-thirds of the million species in the Ocean
depths unknown to humankind: study, by Dene
Moore,
http://news.nationalpost.com/2012/11/16/two-thirds-of-the-million-species-in-the-ocean-depths-unknown-to-humankind-study
November
16, 2012.
Psalm 69:34 (HCSB) “Let heaven and earth praise
Him, the seas and everything that moves in
them,”
CREATION
Speaking at a conference in Southern
California, author and apologist Lee Strobel
said there are scientists who think scientific
evidence disproves the existence of a creator,
but that is not true. He says three areas of
science point to the existence of God and new
discoveries continue to point in that direction.
Strobel says the evidence suggests that the
universe must have had a beginning, and whatever
begins must have a cause. The third step is that
something as big as the universe must have been
caused by something without a cause, because the
alternative is an endless regression of
possibilities that lead nowhere. Strobel says
the precision and power present in the universe,
along with a decision to create such a universe,
led him to change his thinking and believe in a
loving heavenly Father. He said, “We have an
uncaused, immaterial or spirit, eternal, smart,
powerful, personal, one-of-a-kind Creator…That’s
a pretty good beginning for a description of
God.” —Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell
Lee Strobel: Science Points Toward Existence of
a Creator,
http://www.christianpost.com/news/lee-strobel-science-points-toward-existence-of-a-creator-85539;
Accessed
on November 24, 2012.
Psalm 102:25 (ESV) Of old you laid the
foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the
work of your hands.
CREATION
A scientific paper published by the National
Academy of Sciences says scientists have
discovered that porcupine needles contain
“microscopic backward-facing deployable barbs.”
This feature help the needle penetrate skin and
help it stay in place. The discovery could help
patients who require long term IVs and could be
used in application that require staples to keep
a wound from splitting. The researchers have
successfully recreated the porcupine quills in
plastic, and have used the information gained to
create a quill with retracting barbs as well, to
create a needle that inserts quickly, and can be
removed easily. Following the design of
porcupine quills has worked well. Study
co-author James Ankrum of MIT said, “If you can
still create the stress concentrations, but
without having a barb that catches tissue on
removal, potentially you could create something
with just easy insertion, without the adhesion.”
—Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell.
Porcupine quills inspire new type of hypodermic
needle, by Mike Krunboltz,
http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/sideshow/porcupine-quills-inspire-type-hypodermic-needle-221815744.html
;
Accessed December 12, 2012
Psalm 104:24 (ESV) O LORD, how manifold are
your works! In wisdom have you made them all;
the earth is full of your creatures.
CREATION
The Mars rover, Curiosity, has found another
striking example of God’s creative power on the
red planet. The rover took a picture of a shiny
object that bears a resemblance to a door handle
or hood ornament. Scientists say the unique find
is not evidence of an ancient civilization on
mars that took the family car out to Olympus
Mons for a picnic. Rather they say the object is
a likely a rock that has been shaped by
centuries of wind erosion. The rover has
found other interesting objects on Mars. Earlier
it took a picture of a bright sliver in the
dirt. While many think that object may be a
piece of plastic left over from the rover’s
landing, the vehicle did photograph bright
flecks in one of the holes it dug which could be
a shiny mineral native to the planet. Scientists
say wind eroded rocks can be found on Earth in
dry, gusty places like Antarctica. They said,
“The shiny surface suggests that this rock has a
fine grain and is relatively hard. Hard, fine
grained rocks can be polished by the wind to
form very smooth surfaces.”—Jim L. Wilson and
Jim Sandell
NASA's Curiosity Rover Finds Weird 'Hood
Ornament' on Mars, by Mike Wall\Space.com,
http://news.yahoo.com/nasas-curiosity-rover-finds-weird-hood-ornament-mars-191351150.html,
Accessed
February 13, 2013.
Psalm 92:4 (ESV) For you, O LORD, have made me
glad by your work; at the works of your hands I
sing for joy.
CREATION
Researchers have discovered another interesting
item about the way God designed human
beings. Studies indicate that color may
have an influence on the taste buds. In a
specific study, scientists found that
orange-colored cups make hot chocolate taste
better. The researchers allowed participants to
sample hot chocolate from cups of the same size,
but different colors. They found subjects
thought the chocolate tasted better when it came
from orange or cream colored mugs. The
findings add to a growing collection of research
that suggests a person’s perception of taste can
be influenced by factors that are not related to
the actual food. Many fast food restaurants have
begun using yellow because that color seems to
stimulate the appetite. Food from a white plate
seems to taste better that food served on a blue
one. A researcher wrote, “These results are
relevant to sensory scientists interested in how
the brain integrates visual input (such as
color), not only from the food itself, but also
from the container, packaging, or plateware from
which it is being consumed.”—Jim L. Wilson and
Jim Sandell.
Hot Chocolate tastes better in an Orange Cup:
Study, by An Phung,
http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/weird/Hot-Chocolate-Tastes-Better-in-an-Orange-Cup-Report-185882722.html,
Accessed
January 7, 2013.
Psalm 139:14 (ESV) I praise you, for I am
fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are
your works; my soul knows it very well.
CREATION
The Japanese earthquake that took place in
March 2011 was so big that it was “heard” by a
research satellite. Scientists thought
major quakes generated very low frequency
acoustic waves, but had no proof because the
sound would be too low for human ears to detect
and no spacecraft in orbit had the capacity to
record such a sound. The Goce satellite was
designed to map subtle differences in the pull
of gravity across the earth’s surface caused by
the distribution of mass within the planet.
Since the differences are often very small, the
spacecraft’s orbit actually drags through the
highest portions of the atmosphere. This
unique position allowed the satellite to detect
and record the disturbance created by the quake
in March 2011.
The acoustic waves produced by the earthquake
were detected by spacecraft as it passed over
the ocean about 30 minutes after the quake first
registered. It encountered the acoustic wave
again 25 minutes later while passing over
Europe. Dr. Rune Floberghagen, from the European
Space Agency, said the change in density was
exactly as computer models predicted. He
added, “Goce’s accelerometers are about a
hundred times more sensitive than any previous
instrumentation and we detected the acoustic
waves not once, but twice passing through it
over the Pacific and over Europe.”—Jim L. Wilson
and Jim Sandell
Japan quake 'heard at edge of space', By
Jonathan Amos,
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-21730887,
Accessed March 10, 2013
Psalm 111:2 (ESV) Great are the works of the
LORD, studied by all who delight in them.
CREATION
New linguistic research indicates that the
ancestors of people across Europe and Asia may
have spoken a common language about 15,000 years
ago. Researchers reconstructed a few words which
may have been spoken by ancient people in hopes
of retracing the history of human migrations and
contacts between prehistoric cultures.
They say the idea clearly lines up with the
Biblical account of the Tower of Babel, in which
humans spoke a common language, which was later
confused. Biologist Mark Pagel from the
University of Reading said they have been able
to trace many Euroasian languages back 8,000 to
9,500 years. Pagel said it is like if modern
humans encountered someone form the Stone Age,
they could say one or two simple statements and
make themselves understood. Pagel noted, “It’s
going to be very difficult to go much beyond
that, even these slowly evolving words are
starting to run out of steam.”—Jim L. Wilson and
Jim Sandell
Before Babel? Ancient mother tongue
reconstructed, By Tia Ghose,
http://www.foxnews.com/science/2013/05/07/before-babel-ancient-mother-tongue-reconstructed/?intcmp=related,
Accessed
May 7, 2013
Genesis 11:6-7 (ESV) (6) And the LORD said,
“Behold, they are one people, and they have all
one language, and this is only the beginning of
what they will do. And nothing that they propose
to do will now be impossible for them. (7) Come,
let us go down and there confuse their language,
so that they may not understand one another’s
speech.”
CREATION
After years of research on the impact of
earthquakes, scientists generally agree that
although quakes may cause a lot of damage on the
earth’s surface, generally the blocks of crust
spring back to their original position after a
few years. Geologists studying the effects
of quakes in the dry climate of northern Chile
have been able to examine the results of quakes
over a longer period of time. In the Atacama
Desert, they found cracks ranging from
millimeters to meters in width indicating that
those quakes caused significant damage to the
crust over many years. The researchers say the
new work questions previous assumptions about
how much the earth recovers after a quake.
Structural Geologist Richard Allmendinger says,
“If some of the deformation is permanent, then
the models will have to be rethought and more
complicated material behaviors used.”—Jim L.
Wilson and Jim Sandell
How Earthquakes in Chile Have Permanently
Deformed Earth, By Charles Q. Choi,
http://news.yahoo.com/earthquakes-chile-permanently-deformed-earth-170116659.html,
Accessed
April 29, 2013.
Psalm 46:2 (ESV) Therefore we will not fear
though the earth gives way, though the mountains
be moved into the heart of the sea,
CREATION
In an interview with National Public Radio
author Stephen King said, “Everything is sort of
built in a way that to me suggests intelligent
design. Evidence for God is in the stars,
sunrises and sunsets, and the fact that bees
pollinate all these crops and keep us alive and
the way that everything seems to work together.”
Evidence for God is everywhere around us. All
we need do is look with an unbiased eye. --Jim
L. Wilson and Rodger Russell
World, June 29, 2013, p. 24
Genesis 1:1 (CEV) (1) In the beginning God
created the heavens and the earth.
CREATION
NASA launched The Voyager 1 spacecraft in 1977
to take photos of Jupiter and Saturn. Traveling
through space at 38,000 mph it has taken until
2013 to reach interstellar space, some 11.66
billion miles from the Sun. Every new discovery
reminds me of the greatness of our God and when
I consider that Voyager 1 must travel for 40,000
more years before it will reach another star, I
can only marvel at the His grandeur. --Jim L.
Wilson and Rodger Russell
The Week, September 27, 2013 p. 16
Isaiah 40:12 (NIV) Who has measured the waters
in the hollow of his hand, or with the breadth
of his hand marked off the heavens? Who has held
the dust of the earth in a basket, or weighed
the mountains on the scales and the hills in a
balance?
CREATION
The extremely cold weather across much of North
America in early January 2014, created an odd
comparison between two planets. On the
first day of 2014, the temperature in Winnipeg,
Manitoba was 31 below zero Celsius. In the
meantime, on Mars, which is over 100 million
miles further away from the sun, the Curiosity
rover recorded a warmer 29 below zero Celsius.
On that day, it was actually slightly warmer on
Mars than in Canada. The Martian rover has an
environmental monitoring station, and had been
reporting daily high temperatures ranging from
-25 to -31 degrees Celsius for about a month.
The coldest daily high the rover had recorded
since it landed on Mars was -31 degrees Celsius.
Like Earth, Mars has differing climates, and the
area where the rover has been working would be
the rough equivalent of Venezula on Earth.
Regardless of how you look at it, Winnipeg
started the year very cold, so cold that they
had something in common with another planet for
at least one day.—Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell
Right now, it's as cold in Canada as where our
rover is on Mars,
http://news.msn.com/offbeat/right-now-its-as-cold-in-canada-as-where-our-rover-is-on-mars,
Accessed
January 2, 2014.
Genesis 8:22 (ESV) While the earth remains,
seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and
winter, day and night, shall not cease.”
CREATION
They may be in the minority but a poll
conducted the Pew Research group has found that
nearly a third of Americans think that humans
and other living things have existed in their
present form since the beginning of time.
Among the two-thirds of adults who said they
believed that humans have evolved over time, 24
percent say they think “a supreme being guided
the evolution of living things.” The survey
found disagreement along political and religious
lines. Among evangelicals, 64 percent said they
did not subscribe to evolution, while 78 percent
of non-evangelicals believed that humans and
other living things have evolved over time.
Politically, Republicans were less likely to say
humans evolved compared to Democrats and
Independents. Those who labeled themselves
“conservative” were also less likely to agree
with the tenants of evolution than were liberal
or independents.—Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell.
One-third of Americans reject human evolution,
By Jessica Durando
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2013/12/30/pew-research-human-evolution-survey/4258083/,
Accessed
December 30, 2013.
Genesis 1:27 (ESV) So God created man in his
own image, in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.
CREATION
Astronomers using a powerful telescope have
discovered “ripples” in the cosmos they believe
began following the so-called “Big Bang.” Some
scientists think that the universe exploded from
a tiny speck and hurled itself out in all
directions in the fraction of a second that
followed the universe's birth. According to this
theory, this explosion caused the formation of
the planets, stars, and humanity over the next
hundreds of millions of years. These ripples are
like those created when someone kicks a ball
into a pond. It seems, however, that scientists
still do not know who kicked the ball.
The brightest scientific minds in the world are
unable to explain what is clear to believers
everywhere— that God is the Creator of all
things. –Jim L. Wilson and Larry Blair
Romans 1:20 (ESV) For his invisible
attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine
nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since
the creation of the world, in the things that
have been made. So they are without
excuse.
CREATION
Scientists studying the sense of smell have
concluded that the nose can discern far more
than the 10,000 different odors long thought to
be the limit. Researchers with the laboratory of
Neurogenetics and Behavior at Rockefeller
University in New York say their work has led
them to conclude that differentiate an almost
infinite number of smells, perhaps more than a
trillion. They said the prevailing idea has been
that the nose was somewhat limited, but in
trying to determine what those limits were, they
made the interesting discovery. Since smells are
made up of a mixture of various odor molecules,
the researchers recorded how often volunteers
could discern certain smells if given all
possible mixes of the 128 known odor molecules.
One of the researchers, Andreas Keller said he
hopes the findings will make people appreciate
their sense of smell more. He added, ”I think
that we evolved to discriminate very similar
odors: Food – and the same food with the
slightest hint of being spoiled – can be the
difference between a nutritious meal and food
poisoning.”—Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell
Sweet smell of success: human nose discerns
giant array of odors, by Will Dunham,
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/03/20/us-science-nose-idUSBREA2J1VO20140320
Accessed
March 20, 2014.
Genesis 27:27 (HCSB) So he came closer
and kissed him. When Isaac smelled his clothes,
he blessed him and said: Ah, the smell of my son
is like the smell of a field that the LORD has
blessed.
CREATION
Astronomers first spotted an odd looking
asteroid in September of 2013. At the time, it
looked appeared to be an unusual fuzzy object in
space. Two weeks later, closer observations
reveal what appeared to be three bodies moving
together in a cloud of dust roughly the diameter
of the Earth. To get a better look they turned
the Hubble Space telescope at the object to view
the object and discovered that was 10 objects
each with tails like a comet. The four largest
fragments were about 400 yards in diameter.
Then, the scientists realized this was an
asteroid that was breaking into smaller pieces
as it traveled. They had seen similar events
when objects approached the sun, but never in an
object located in the asteroid belt. They
speculate uneven heating causes asteroids to
start rotating faster which eventually breaks
them apart. The researchers say evidence
suggests the pieces will eventually crash into
the sun, but a few might produce a meteor shower
in earth’s sky’s one day.—Jim L. Wilson and Jim
Sandell
Asteroid Mysteriously Disintegrates and Nasa’s
Hubble Telescope captures it on
Camera,http://www.cbsnews.com/news/asteroid-mysteriously-disintegrates-and-nasas-hubble-telescope-captures-it-on-camera,
Accessed
March 7, 2014.
Psalm 33:6 (HCSB) The heavens were made by the
word of the LORD, and all the stars, by the
breath of His mouth.
CREATION
Rolling Stone magazine interviewed Microsoft
founder and billionaire Bill Gates. When asked
if he believed in God Gates replied, “The
mystery and the beauty of the world is
overwhelmingly amazing, and there’s no
scientific explanation of how it came about. I
think it makes sense to believe in God.”
Indeed the heavens declare the glory of God,
and it is refreshing when a public figure
recognizes it. --Jim L. Wilson and Rodger
Russell.
World, April 19, 2014 p. 16
Genesis 1:1-2 (HCSB) (1) In the beginning God
created the heavens and the earth. (2) Now the
earth was formless and empty, darkness covered
the surface of the watery depths, and the Spirit
of God was hovering over the surface of the
waters.
CREATION
Scientists in England have developed a system
which can automatically classify the songs of
birds to identify them. Researcher Dan Stowell
from Queen Mary University of London said
classifying the sounds are useful when trying to
understand how many, and what type of birds
there are in a certain location. He said the
songs of birds share some similarities with
human language and like people, young songbirds
engage in vocal learning. Stowell says
researchers are working to develop ways to
transcribe all bird sounds from a recording. He
adds they want to know, ”Not just who is
talking, but when, in response to whom, and what
relationships are reflected in the sound, for
example who is dominating the
conversation.”—Submitted by Jim Sandell
Scientists develop new bird chirp decoding
system, By Tanya Lewis,
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/scientists-develop-new-bird-chirp-decoding-system,
Accessed
July 18, 2014.
Matthew 10:29–31 (HCSB) Aren’t two sparrows
sold for a penny? Yet not one of them falls to
the ground without your Father’s consent. 30 But
even the hairs of your head have all been
counted. 31 So don’t be afraid therefore; you
are worth more than many sparrows.
CREATION
Stephen Meyer, director of the Center for
Science and Culture at the Seattle-based
discovery Institute is one of the founders of
the intelligent design movement. He is author of
two books, Darwin’s Doubt: The Explosive Origin
of Animal Life and the Case for Intelligent
Design and Signature in the Cell. Meyer explains
why DNA and Cambrian Fossils make macro
evolutionary theory increasingly
untenable.
Meyer comments on what we know to be true
because of our faith. There is an intelligent
designer behind our magnificent universe. -- Jim
L. Wilson and Rodger Russell
World, October 4, 2014 p. 30
Genesis 1:1 (HCSB) In the beginning God created
the heavens and the earth.
CREATION
In the ongoing debate between creation and
evolution, it seems that personal desires are
influential in determining one’s stance. Aldous
Huxley admitted in his book, Ends and
Means: “I wanted to believe the Darwinian
idea. I chose to believe it not because I think
there was enormous evidence for it, nor because
I believe it had the full authority to give
interpretation to my origins, but I chose to
believe it because it delivered me from trying
to find meaning and freed me to my own erotic
passions.” -- Jim L. Wilson and Rodger Russell
World, August 9, 2014 p. 30
2 Peter 1:4 (HCSB) By these He has given us
very great and precious promises, so that
through them you may share in the divine nature,
escaping the corruption that is in the world
because of evil desires.
CREATION
Marvin Olasky, in his editorial in World
Magazine reminds us that if we are required to
believe that science demands faith in evolution
there is a problem for our children. “But
science does not. Science is not the only source
of knowledge about the world: God created
science, and the Bible teaches us about
God.” --Jim L. Wilson and Rodger Russell
World, July 12, 2014 p. 72
Genesis 1:1-2 (HCSB) In the beginning God
created the heavens and the earth. (2) Now the
earth was formless and empty, darkness covered
the surface of the watery depths, and the Spirit
of God was hovering over the surface of the
waters.
CREATION
Meteorologists were stumped by a strange cloud
that appeared on the Doppler radar screens. The
cloud was directly over the city of St. Louis
and was moving slowly to the south, changing
shape as it traveled. After a couple of hours of
research and consternation, they figured out
that though the cloud appeared abnormal, it was
something very real and normal. On a social
media site, the national Weather Service said
the shape-shifting cloud was actually a group of
Monarch butterflies migrating to Mexico for the
winter. They said, “A Monarch in flight would
look oblate to the radar, and flapping wings
would account for the changing shape.” With the
mystery solved, the weather service wished the
butterflies, “good luck and a safe journey.”—Jim
L. Wilson and Jim Sandell.
What Mysterious Cloud Over St. Louis Turned Out
to Be, By Alyssa Newcomb,
http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/technology/2014/09/what-mysterious-cloud-over-st-louis-turned-out-to-be,
Accessed
September 23, 2014.
Genesis 1:21-22 (HCSB) So God created the large
sea-creatures and every living creature that
moves and swarms in the water, according to
their kinds. ?He also created? every winged bird
according to its kind. And God saw that it was
good. (22) So God blessed them, “Be fruitful,
multiply, and fill the waters of the seas, and
let the birds multiply on the earth.”
CREATION
When most people think of the Super Bowl, they
think of football. In 2015, NASA added a bit of
football-themed rivalry that focused attention
on God’s handiwork. On February 1st, the day of
the big game, NASA tweeted photos of supernovas
all day, asking lovers of space and football to
retweet the nebula that has the colors of the
team they supported in the game—red and blue for
the Patriots, or blue and green for the
Seahawks. Though they didn’t win the game, the
Seattle Seahawk fans sent out more pictures of
the blue and green supernova. NASA said they
were happy to use the occasion to spread
knowledge about supernovas, the explosion of an
aging star. They say the bonus was that it’s
great science and really pretty too.—Jim L.
Wilson & Jim Sandell
#SupernovaSunday out of this world, literally,
http://www.9news.com/story/news/local/science/2015/02/02/nasa-supernova-sunday/22732995,
Accessed
February 2, 2015.
Psalm 19:1 (NKJV) To the Chief Musician. A
Psalm of David. The heavens declare the glory of
God; And the firmament shows His
handiwork.
CREATION
Jerry Coyne, author of Why Evolution Is True,
made a startling admission in a 2006 review of
several evolution-promoting books. He
acknowledged that belief in evolution “hasn’t
yielded many practical or commercial
benefits.”
Janie B. Cheaney cites that admission and then
states, “Nobody ever explains precisely how a
belief in evolution benefits humanity.” Yet for
100 years “science-based solutions are touted as
the way to solve the problems of education,
healthcare, crime, and war.”
There is something more to humanity and society
than scientific method can discover. Human
consciousness and spirituality evade scientific
explanation. Only understanding human as made in
the image of God makes any sense of those
mysteries. —Jim L. Wilson and Rodger Russell.
World, August 8, 2015 p. 22.
Genesis 1:27 (NASB) “And God created man in His
own image, in the image of God He created him;
male and female He created them.”
CREATION
The NASA owned Kepler space observatory has
focused on one small patch of star-studded sky
for the past six years. NASA claims it has
identified 4,696 rocky planets of roughly
similar size of the earth that orbit sun-like
stars, and have surfaces suitable for sustaining
water and life. NASA believes the Milky Way
galaxy, may contain over a billion of these
earth-like planets. They have no idea if any of
them contain life.
All one billion of these planets are covered in
the first sentence in the Bible. “In the
beginning God created the heavens and the
earth.” If there is intelligent life on one of
these rocky orbs, be sure of one thing. It is
not a surprise to God. —Jim L. Wilson and Rodger
Russell
The Week, August 14, 2015 p. 19
Genesis 1:1 (NASB) “In the beginning God
created the heavens and the earth.”
CREATION
As technology has grown, scientists have found
that many objects in space create unique noises
or songs. In August 2014, the European Space
Agency’s Rosetta probe heard a ticking sound
coming from a comet labeled
67P/Churyumov-Gerasimneko. As the comet
approached the sun, it emitted what sounded like
a long string of slowed-down, low-pitched
dolphin clicks. The sound was unique compared
with sounds from other comets, so they wanted to
know what was creating the sound. Finally, they
solved the mystery concluding the vibrations are
set off by a stream of charged particles coming
off of the surface of the rock. As they passed
through the comet’s magnetic field, they create
the ticking sound that can be picked up by
nearby receivers.—Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell
Why Does Comet 67P Sing? Scientists Think They
Know, By Calla Cofield,
http://www.space.com/30323-mystery-of-comet67p-singing-solved.html,
Accessed August 21, 2015.
Psalm 19:1-2 (HCSB) The heavens declare the
glory of God, and the sky proclaims the work of
His hands. (2) Day after day they pour out
speech; night after night they communicate
knowledge.
CREATION
Intelligent design (ID) is the teaching that
the world is created and obviously designed by a
superior intelligence. Casey Luskin, a program
officer with the Discovery Institute’s Center
for Science and Culture talks about the progress
ID is making in our culture. “At least five
states now require, or at least permit, schools
to teach the weaknesses of Darwinian
evolutionary theory, not just its strengths . .
. . And in the realm of science,
reputable, peer-reviewed journals now publish ID
studies.”—Jim L. Wilson and Rodger
Russell.
World, October 17, 2015 p. 56
Psalm 19:1 (HCSB) The heavens declare the glory
of God, and the sky proclaims the work of His
hands.
CREATION
Through the years there have been many ideas to
explain why starts twinkle. Aristotle said
twinkling was caused by wavering vision of
people stretching the limits of their eyesight.
Later, scientists thought stars rotated and
displayed facets like diamonds as they turned.
Today, the accepted explanation for what is
called “stellar scintillation” is that tiny
pockets of air acts like lenses to refract rays
of starlight as they pass through them. More
modern theories propose that since light acts as
a wave, the atmosphere puts wrinkles in the
wavefront that creates patterns of interference
which creates the twinkle. Physicist Lorne
Whitehead from the University of British
Columbia is a proponent of the theory supporting
tiny lenses refracting light rays. He says the
answer is not certain, but the modern theories
really aren’t that different. He adds, “The ray
model for light is a perfectly reasonable model
for stellar scintillation. It gives the same
answer.”—Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell
Why Do Stars Really Twinkle?, By Daniel Engber,
http://www.msn.com/en-us/weather/atoz/why-do-stars-really-twinkle/ar-CC8NHd,
Accessed
November 15, 2015.
Psalm 147:4 (HCSB) He counts the number of the
stars; He gives names to all of them.
Creation
Astronomers have seen what
they believe could be the most powerful
supernova explosion ever. They say the star,
which is 3.8 billion light years away, was first
seen in June 2015.Though it may have begun to fade, at its
peak the event was 200 times more powerful than
a typical exploding star. That means it is
shining about 570 billion times brighter than
our sun. Scientists say they have been studied
supernovas to get a better idea of the different
types of star explosions and where they are
occurring. They say supernovas are important
because they create some of the larger chemical
elements in nature and their shockwaves stir up
gas and dust that may form the basis for new
stars. The international team studying the
newest supernova says the object that created
the explosion is probably no bigger that a major
city on earth and may be spinning very
rapidly.—Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell.
Psalm 19:1–2 (HCSB)The
heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky
proclaims the work of His hands. 2
Day after day they pour out speech; night after
night they communicate knowledge.
Creation
Scientists have added four
new elements to the periodic table, and now the
researchers that discovered them will come up
with names. Research on the elements had been
going on since 2004, but research had been
challenging because these elements decay
quickly, with some remaining intact for only
nanoseconds.Researchers say these very heavy elements
are not naturally occurring on earth, and have
to be created synthetically in a laboratory. The
heaviest element found in nature is Uranium, but
scientists can artificially create heavier
elements by adding protons into an atomic
nucleus. They say the goal in creating heavier
elements is to discover just how large atoms can
become.—Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell
Psalm 95:5 (HCSB) The sea is
His; He made it. His hands formed the dry land.
Creation
An international team of
scientists is arguing in a new study that the
world has entered the Anthropocene, or human
epoch, marking the end of the Holocene which
began some 12,000 years ago as the planet thawed
from the ice age. The argument is that humans
have made an impact on the world significant
enough to move it into the new epoch.
Some of the impacts they list
include rapid technological advancements and
massive population growth, human infrastructure
covering half of Earth’s surface, agricultural
fertilizers doubling the amount of nitrogen and
phosphorus in the soil. Radioactive fallout from
nuclear weapon tests has settled into ice and
sediments and will remain detectable for 100,000
years. The burning of fossil fuels has doubled
the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere
and warmed the globe. Meanwhile, dams
constructed around the world are interrupting
the flow of sediments to the ocean and the
formation of rock layers.
The significance of all of
that could be debated, but none of those changes
is as significant as the simple truth, “In the
beginning, God created the heavens and the
earth.” — Jim L. Wilson and Rodger Russell.
The Week, January 29, 2016 p.
20
Genesis 1:1 (HCSB) In the
beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
Creation
In study published in nature
magazine suggests that individual preferences
for waking up early in the morning or staying up
late could be due to their genetic makeup.The
study was commissioned by a company that
analyzes individual’s DNA to examine their
ancestry or inherited medical conditions. Along
with the analysis, they questioned participants
about their habits to qualify them as morning or
evening people. The information gathered
identified several locations on the genome that
might be useful for studying biological
differences in sleep and waking habits.
Researchers say the current findings do not mean
there is a direct link between genes and sleep
habits, but suggest more study is needed.—Jim L.
Wilson and Jim Sandell.
Not a Morning Person? Blame
it on your genes,By Alexandra Ossola,
http://www.popsci.com/not-an-early-bird-blame-it-on-your-genes,
Accessed February 3, 2016.
Psalm 139:14 (HCSB) I will
praise You because I have been remarkably and
wonderfully made. Your works are wonderful, and
I know this very well.
Creation
Over 100 years ago, Albert
Einstein predicted the existence of gravity
waves as part of his general theory of
relativity. Now scientists working with the
laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave
Observatory, or LIGO say they have actually
detected such waves for the first time.
Scientists say the waves are so small that it
takes a special detector like LIGO. They believe
the sound they heard as a small chirp was the
sound of black holes colliding deep in space, a
long time ago. Szaboics Marka, a Columbia
University physicist said gravity waves are not
sound waves, but the increase in frequency as
the collision occurred created something that
could be heard with the detector.Marka
has worked on the project for over ten years. He
said, so far, Einstein’s predictions have been
correct. Ironically, Marka said Einstein did not
think gravitational waves could be discovered.
He added, “He thought gravitational waves are a
beautiful construct, but they are so small
nobody would ever be able to actually measure
it.”—Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell.
Gravitational waves detected
-- and that's creating waves in science, By Todd
Leopold,
http://www.cnn.com/2016/02/11/us/gravitational-waves-feat/index.html,
Accessed
February 11, 2016.
Psalm 19:1–3 (HCSB) The
heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky
proclaims the work of His hands. 2
Day after day they pour out speech; night after
night they communicate knowledge. 3
There is no speech; there are no words; their
voice is not heard.
CREATION
Alaska Airlines changed the
flight path and flight time of one of the flight
from Anchorage to Honolulu to allow passengers
to view a total solar eclipse that was visible
over the Pacific Ocean. Joe Rao, an associate
astronomer at the American Museum of natural
History’s Hayden Planetarium in New York called
Alaska Airlines and told them that the plane’s
flight path would be in the right position if
they adjusted it slightly. The airline
rescheduled the flight to depart 25 minutes
earlier so that the 181 passengers would get a
near-perfect view of the eclipse. Rao was one of
the passengers on board that flight. He said,
“It is an experience. Every fiber of you gets
involved in those few minutes when the sun is
totally eclipsed.”—Jim L. Wilson & Jim
Sandell.
Psalm 19:1 (HCSB “The heavens
declare the glory of God, and the sky proclaims
the work of His hands.”
CREATION
A Texas family is trying to
sell an 8-year-old bison because the animal has
outgrown its Texas home. Karen Schoeve said the
bison, named Bullet, is tame and housebroken,
and occasionally comes inside the house. The
family is selling the animal because they say it
needs more space and grassland. They listed
Bullet on Craigslist for $6,000. Schoeve said
they want the new owner to allow Bullet to
continue interacting with people. She added that
such a big animal should not be left alone
inside a house or with children.—Jim L. Wilson
and Jim Sandell
Tame, housebroken half-ton
bison for sale by Texas owner,
https://www.yahoo.com/news/tame-housebroken-half-ton-bison-sale-texas-owner-154629373.html?nhp=1,
Accessed
May 13, 2016.
Psalm 104:14 (HCSB) “He
causes grass to grow for the livestock and
provides crops for man to cultivate, producing
food from the earth,”
CREATION
Twenty-thousand bees pursued
and swarmed a car belonging to a
sixty-five-year-old grandmother. The owner of
the car said she had never seen anything like it
before, when thousands of insects flew at the
back of her silver Mitsubishi. When bee experts
came to the rescue, they captured the queen and
were ready to remove the bees in a box when a
gust of wind blew the top off the container
holding the queen and she return to the trunk of
the car. Roger Burns from the Pembrookshire
Beekeepers Association said he believes the
queen was attracted to something in the car. He
said he had never seen a swarm behave like that
in thirty years he had kept bees. Burns added,
“It is natural for them to follow the queen but
it is a strange thing to see and quite
surprising to have a car followed for two days.
It was quite amusing.” –Jim L. Wilson and Jim
Sandell.
20,000 bees chase car for two
days because they didn't want to leave their
queen,
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/car-chased-by-20000-bees-over-two-days-when-queen-bee-becomes-stuck-in-boot-a7047036.html,
Accessed
May 24, 2016.
Psalm 118:12 (HCSB) “They
surrounded me like bees; they were extinguished
like a fire among thorns; in the name of Yahweh
I destroyed them.”
CREATION
One of the most complex
machines in the world was completed disabled by
a small animal. A spokesperson for the large
Hadron Collider outside of Geneva, said they had
to suspend operations because a weasel got
inside a transformer that powers the machine and
caused an electrical outage that disabled it
until they could replace the part. Authorities
said the incident was one of several small
glitches that delayed plans to restart the four
billion dollar device for several days. They
said though the animal was killed, there were no
other injuries.—Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell.
Pop went the weasel and down
went the Large Hadron Collider, By Jamey Keaten,
https://www.yahoo.com/news/pop-went-weasel-down-went-large-hadron-collider-162842566.html?nhp=1il,
Accessed
April 29, 2016
Proverbs 30:28 (HCSB)“a
lizard can be caught in your hands, yet it lives
in kings’ palaces.”
CREATION
The United Arab Emirates has
accomplished some amazing feats of engineering,
including having the world’s tallest building.
Now, the country is considering something even
more ambitious. The country is now considering
building a mountain, which they hope, will
increase rainfall in the country. The average
rainfall in the UAE is less than five inches and
the government is seeking ways to add water.
They have been seeding clouds, and have
considered building a pipeline to bring water
from Pakistan, or floating icebergs from the
Arctic. UAE officials say they estimate they
could build a mountain 1.2 miles high if it were
hollow. They estimate the project would cost
over $200 billion dollars to complete. The
officials say the cost may be prohibitive, and
added, “Building a mountain is not a simple
thing.” —Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell
The UAE may build a mountain
to make it rain, By Adam Taylor,
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2016/05/02/the-uae-may-build-a-mountain-to-make-it-rain/?wpisrc=nl_az_most,
Accessed
May 2, 2016.
Psalm 147:8 (HCSB)“who
covers the sky with clouds, prepares rain for
the earth, and causes grass to grow on the
hills.”
CREATION
New York’s John F. Kennedy
airport experienced delays during July 2016, but
officials said weather was not the problem. The
delays were caused by nearly 400 diamondback
terrapin turtles, which laid eggs and built
nests in the area around the airport.
Authorities say the turtle’s normal habitat is
the nearby salt marshes, but they feel at home
in the sand along the airport perimeter.
Travelers often had to wait while the visiting
turtles were rounded up and returned to a safer
areas.—Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell
http://www.klove.com/news/2016/07/15/turtles-disrupting-travel-at-jfk-international-airport.aspx,
Accessed
July 15, 2016.
Psalm 104:24 (HCSB) “How
countless are Your works, Lord!
In wisdom You have made them all; the earth is
full of Your creatures.”
CREATION
Scientists in California have
produced a computer image showing sections of
the state rising and sinking because of activity
along the San Andreas Fault. In a study
published in the journal Nature, scientists
found that that much of the Los Angeles basin,
San Diego County, and the Bakersfield area are
sinking 2 to 3 millimeters a year, while Santa
Barbara, San Bernardino County, and San Luis
Obispo County are rising at the same rate. Lead
author of the report, Sam Howell said the
research has given them a better idea of how the
state is being warped because of building
seismic pressures. He said the study probably
would not help predict the precise timing and
location of the next big quake. He added, “It’s
pretty much impossible to say when the next one
will happen.”—Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell
'Seismic strain': Land around
the San Andreas fault is rising and sinking, new
earthquake research shows, By Rong-Gong Lin II,
http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-san-andreas-fault-20160622-snap-story.html,
Accessed
June 22, 2016.
Psalm 46:1–3 (HCSB)“God
is our refuge and strength, a helper who is
always found in times of trouble. 2
Therefore we will not be afraid, though the
earth trembles and the mountains topple into the
depths of the seas, 3 though its
waters roar and foam and the mountains quake
with its turmoil. Selah”
CREATION
The moons orbiting the planet
Jupiter intrigue scientists. They have
discovered another interesting characteristic of
the moon Io. Researchers have observed volcanic
eruptions on Io for a long time, and presumed
they were the result of the gravity Jupiter
exerts in the small world. These eruptions
create a low-pressure atmosphere around the moon
that collapses every day. The atmosphere
contains sulfur dioxide and when Io enters
Jupiter’s shadow, the temperature of the moon
drops so low that the atmosphere cools and
actually drops onto the surface. As Io reenters
the sunlight, the solid sulfur dioxide turns
back into a gas and the atmosphere reappears.
Researcher John Spencer of the Southwest
Research Institute said, “Though Io’s
hyperactive volcanoes are the ultimate source of
the (sulfur dioxide), sunlight controls the
atmospheric pressure on a daily basis by
controlling the temperature of the ice on the
surface. We’ve long suspected this, but can
finally watch it happen.”—Jim L. Wilson and Jim
Sandell
Something crazy happens to
Jupiter’s moon Io for 2 hours every day, By
Rachel Feltman,
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/speaking-of-science/wp/2016/08/03/something-crazy-happens-to-jupiters-moon-io-for-2-hours-every-day/?wpisrc=nl_az_most,
Accessed
August 3, 2016.
Psalm 92:5 (HCSB)“How
magnificent are Your works, Lord,
how profound Your thoughts!”
CREATION
The European Space Agency’s
Rosetta orbiter, which has been circling comet
67P?Churyumov-Gerasimenko for nearly two years,
has identified glycine, an amino acid used by
living organisms to make proteins. The orbiter
also found the molecules hydrogen cyanide and
hydrogen sulfide, as well as phosphorus—a
mineral required for the construction of cells
and DNA.
Here’s how the theory works.
In space, there is no energy to create life, but
when the comet drops into a warm ocean, then the
molecules get free, they get mobile, they can
react, and maybe that’s how life starts.
If you are going to take a
creator out of the equation, those are the only
types of theories you can come up with. How
about, “In the beginning God created the heavens
and the earth.?” .–--Jim L. Wilson and Rodger Russell.
The Week, June 17, 2016 p. 19
Genesis 1:1 (HCSB)“In
the beginning God created the heavens and the
earth.”
CREATION
Scientists
have recently increased the estimation of the
size of our universe. From the previously
estimated 200 billion galaxies researchers at
The University of Nottingham, believe the
figure is likely 10 times that. In their
research, published in the October issue of
The Astrophysical Journal, the astronomers
used images of deep space obtained from
telescopes around the world and calculated the
volume and density of galaxies in one tiny bit
of space after another. The figure they got
with their mathematical models is a staggering
2 trillion galaxies in our universe.
The
larger and more fantastic our understanding of
the universe becomes, the louder the
declaration of God’s marvelous glory. What a
mighty God we have whose glory the heavens
declare. —Jim L. Wilson and Rodger Russell.
World
Magazine, November 12, 2016 p. 57
Psalm 19:1 (HCSB) “The
heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky
proclaims the work of His hands.”
CREATION
The
latest theory of the beginning of the universe
comes from a Columbia University
astrophysicist who suggests the universe may
have been created and maintained by non-human
life forms that morphed into the physical
world and remain the driving force behind
quantum physics. Professor Caleb Scharf is
behind the radical theory that the
universe is what remains of intelligent alien
life that controls all aspects of the physical
world – from gravity to the speed of light.
Some
people will grasp at any theory to avoid
admitting the existence of a Creator God. The
simple statement of scripture, “In the
beginning God” remains the best answer to our
existence. —Jim L. Wilson and Rodger Russell.
Genesis 1:1 (HCSB)“In
the beginning God created the heavens and the
earth.”
CREATION
Agnostic Chuck
Klosterman, in his new book, But What
if We are Wrong, explains what we
understand and don’t about earth’s beginnings.
He says there are 20 numbers that make the
universe possible and they make the universe
appear inconceivably fine-tuned. These are
numbers like the mass of an electron or the
strength of gravity. He says that if these
numbers didn’t have the exact value that they
do, nothing in the universe would exist. “They
are so perfect that it almost appears as if
someone set these numbers. But who could have
done that?”
Klosterman’s
answer is that we may be living in a
simulation created by a kid in his garage
centuries from now. Christians have a more
likely answer: God. —Jim L. Wilson and Rodger
Russell.
Klosterman,
Chuck, But
What If We’re Wrong? Reviewed in The
World Magazine, November 26, 2016, p. 20.
Jeremiah 32:17 (HCSB)“Oh,
Lord God!
You Yourself made the heavens and earth by Your
great power and with Your outstretched arm.
Nothing is too difficult for You!”
CREATION
Language may
prove to be the undoing of Darwinian
Evolution. Tom Wolfe in his book, The
Kingdom of Speech talks about the
findings in a magazine essay published back in
2014. The essay was signed by eight prominent
scientists that basically admitted the failure
of evolution to explain the origin of human
language. The book explains how human language
is fundamentally different from every other
form of animal communication, how important
language was in human development, and the
total lack of scientific explanation for how
humans acquired it.
For Christians
there is no difficulty here. The same God, who
gave us life, gave us language. He taught
humans to not only hear one another, but to
hear his voice as well. —Jim L. Wilson and
Rodger Russell.
Tom Wolfe, The
Kingdom of Speech, as reviewed in The
World Magazine, November 26, 2016, p. 14.
Psalm 90:2 (HCSB)“Before
the mountains were born, before You gave birth
to the earth and the world, from eternity to
eternity, You are God.”
CREATION
As 2016
wound down, scientists announced that the year
was going to a little longer than most, one
second longer to be exact. To make up for
slowing in the Earth’s rotation countries
using Coordinated Universal Time added the
leap second during the countdown to 2017. The
timing for the rest of the world was
determined by the time zone they live in. The
adjustment was necessary because Earth’s
rotation is not regular. Sometimes it speeds
up and sometimes it slows down depending on
factors like the Moon’s gravity. Overall, the
Earth’s rotational speed is gradually slowing
and the leap second adjustments keep the
length of a day synced with time, as measured
by extremely accurate atomic clocks. A
statement from the Paris Observatory which is
responsible to keeping time synchronized said,
“This extra second, or leap second, makes it
possible to align astronomical time, which is
irregular and determined by Earth’s rotation,
with UTC which is extremely stable and has
been determined by atomic clocks since
1967.”—Jim L. Wilson & Jim Sandell
Romans 8:22 (HCSB) “For we
know that the whole creation has been groaning
together with labor pains until now.”
CREATION
According to a Gallup poll,
the majority of Americans believe that God had a
hand in the development of human kind. 42
percent believe in a direction creation of
humans about 10,000 years ago. 31 percent
believe that humans evolved but with God’s
guidance. Only 19% believe that God played no
role in evolution.
Americans still believe that
humans are a special creation of a caring God.
It is just one step to the belief of a loving
God who provides an eternal salvation. The
gospel loses much, if not all its power if we
give up on a creator Lord. —Jim L. Wilson and
Rodger Russell.
The Week, June 13, 2014 p. 15
Genesis 1:26–27 (HCSB)“Then
God said, ‘Let Us make man in Our image,
according to Our likeness. They will rule the
fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the
livestock, all the earth, and the creatures that
crawl on the earth.’ 27 So God
created man in His own image; He created him in
the image of God; He created them male and
female.”
CREATION
According to Nury Vittachi,
real atheists might not exist. He says that
Cognitive scientists are concluding from their
research that “a metaphysical outlook may be so
deeply ingrained in human thought processes that
it cannot be expunged.” They believe that even
people who reject the God of organized religion
appear to be hardwired to believe in some
larger, spiritual reality. “When questioned
about their beliefs, self-identified atheists
often admit to believing in a higher force or a
purposeful universe.” Anthropologist Pascal
Boyer recently noted that “a slew of cognitive
traits predispose us to faith. Whether we
believe it or not, we are born believers.”
This is very similar to
Blaise Pascal’s quote from the 17th
century that “there is a God-shaped vacuum in
the heart of every man which cannot be filled by
any created thing, but only by God the Creator,
made known through Jesus Christ.”
As evangelical believers,
this knowledge should embolden us to continue to
present the living God of creation and salvation
to those we meet. —Jim L. Wilson and Rodger
Russell.
Common paraphrase of Pascal’s
actual quote
http://christianity.stackexchange.com/questions/2746/where-does-the-concept-of-a-god-shaped-hole-originate
Science20.com quoted in The
Week, July 18, 2014 p. 10
Acts 17:22–27 (HCSB)“Then
Paul stood in the middle of the Areopagus and
said: ‘Men of Athens! I see that you are
extremely religious in every respect. 23
For as I was passing through and observing the
objects of your worship, I even found an altar
on which was inscribed: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. Therefore,
what you worship in ignorance, this I proclaim
to you. 24 The God who made the
world and everything in it —He is Lord of heaven
and earth and does not live in shrines made by
hands. 25 Neither is He served by
human hands, as though He needed anything, since
He Himself gives everyone life and breath and
all things. 26 From one man He has
made every nationality to live over the whole
earth and has determined their appointed times
and the boundaries of where they live. 27
He did this so they might seek God, and perhaps
they might reach out and find Him, though He is
not far from each one of us.’”
CREATION
In the 2017
Super Bowl the New England Patriots trailed by
25 points with 17 minutes and 7 seconds left
in the game. In those few minutes they tied
the game, then in overtime they won. Headlines
across the sports world proclaimed a “miracle
comeback.” What kind of miracle would it have
been had they trailed by 8,216 points and
needed to score one touchdown in every one of
the 1,027 seconds left in the game. That
impossibility resembles the unlikeliness that
our existence is purely through material
causes.
There are
nearly 1,500 features of the universe and the
Earth that must fall within very narrow ranges
to allow for the possibility of life. A few of
those are the particular composition of the
Earth’s core and atmosphere, a particular
Earth axis tilt and rotation speed, particular
capillary action and surface tension, and a
thousand more. If any of those features were
outside the narrow range, simple bacteria
would not be able to survive, much less
advanced life. The chance of advanced life is
calculated at one chance in 10 followed by
1,054 zeros.
We are here
because of the power of a miraculous creating
God. –Jim L. Wilson and Rodger Russell.
Marvin Olasky,
A
Miraculous Existence, World Magazine,
April 29, 2017 p. 64
Genesis 1:1–2 (CSB)“In
the beginning God created the heavens and the
earth. Now the earth was formless and empty,
darkness covered the surface of the watery
depths, and the Spirit of God was hovering over
the surface of the waters.”
CREATION
Scientists are
taking time to study a new phenomenon in the
sky that they call “Steve.” Eric Donovan, a
professor of physics and astronomy at the
University of Calgary, is one of the lead
researchers. He said the name Stave came from
a reference in a move called “Over the Hedge.”
A group of animals in the movie are afraid of
something unknown, but decide to name it so
that is feels less scary to them. Donovan said
some scientists think Steve is some sort of
aurora similar to the northern lights. He said
he is sure Steve is a narrow channel of
ionized gas created by dynamics in the Earth’s
magnetosphere. Steve appears about three times
a month travels westward at over 11,000 miles
per hour. Donovan plans to publish a study
explaining more about Steve in the near
future.–Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell
Psalm 89:11 (CSB)“The
heavens are yours; the earth also is yours. The
world and everything in it—you founded them.”
CREATION
An unusual signal from space
received 40 years ago fueled speculation that it
might be evidence of extraterrestrial life. Now,
an astronomer believes he has figured out where
the unique signal originated. In 1977,
astronomer Jerry Ehman observed what he called,
“the wow signal,” and hoped it would point to
life on other worlds. In 2016, another
astronomer Antonio Paris, along with a fellow
astronomer suggested the signal was produced by
a comet in the inner solar system. Paris said
comets have large hydrogen clouds surrounding
them that produce the kind of signal detected in
1977. Paris spent four months in late 2017 and
early 2017 studying another comet and detected
very strong signal just like the one in 1977.
Paris’ work showed that comets can create
otherworldly signals which will mean future
signals will need to be examined very
carefully.—Jim L. Wilson & Jim Sandell
The mystery behind a 40-year-old
signal from outer space may finally be solved,
http://www.wyff4.com/article/wow-signal-mystery-solved/9988497, Accessed
June 7, 2017.
Psalm 8:3
(CSB) “When I observe your heavens, the
work of your fingers, the moon and the stars,
which you set in place,”
CREATION
A
group of engineering researchers have examined
the reasons why shoelaces become untied in an
effort to understand the dynamic forces that
cause microstructures to fail. Researchers used
a slow motion camera to film a person running on
a treadmill to figure out how the knots in
shoelaces loosen over time. The study found that
a running foot exerts a force seven times
greater when landing on the ground than when
standing. Each time the force was applied and
released stretched the laces slightly and
eventually loosened them. At the same time, as
the knot loosened the swinging of the laces as
the leg moved forward and backward applied an
additional force which pulled on the
already-loosened knot. The researchers say the
forces they recorded act like invisible fingers
loosening and tugging on the knot until it
fails. Lead researcher Christopher
Daily-Diamond, from the University of California
at Berkley said, “This is the first step toward
understanding why certain knots are better than
others, which no one has really done.” —Jim L.
Wilson & Jim Sandell
Riddle
of why shoelaces come undone solved by
scientists,
Colossians
1:17 (CSB) “He is before all things,
and by him all things hold together.”
CREATION
When researchers visited a
tiny, uninhabited island in the middle of the
Pacific Ocean, they were amazed at the amount of
trash that had washed up on the beach. The
researchers said they found an estimated 38
million pieces of trash on Henderson Island.
Almost all of the trash was plastic, consisting
of items like toy soldiers, dominos,
toothbrushes, and hardhats. The researchers said
the density of the trash was the highest
recorded anywhere in the world, and they believe
the reason is that the island is at the edge of
a vortex of currents which tends to capture sand
hold floating trash. Lead author of the report,
Jennifer Lavers from Australia’s University of
Tasmania, said she was mesmerizing to see the
variety and colors of plastic littering the
island. She added, “The quantity of plastic
there is truly alarming. It’s both beautiful and
terrifying.” —Jim L. Wilson & Jim Sandell.
Romans 8:21
(CSB) “that the creation itself will
also be set free from the bondage to decay into
the glorious freedom of God’s children.”
CREATION
Sea creatures
that look like large pink thimbles have been
working their way north along the pacific
coast of the United States have now reached
the waters off the coast of Alaska. Scientists
say the creatures, called pyrosomes, are
filter-feeding creatures typically found along
the equator. They had been concerned that the
spread of the creatures was related to warming
of the ocean, but they have been found in the
area even in winter months and have not
decreased as the water cooled over the last
two years. The pyrosomes are not harmful to
humans but can be confusing to those who find
them. One local fisherman said, “They were all
over out there, they were everywhere…I would
say millions, not hundreds of thousands. This
is a weird organism, man.”—Jim L. Wilson &
Jim Sandell
Genesis 1:21
(CSB) “So God created the large
sea-creatures and every living creature that
moves and swarms in the water, according to
their kinds. He also created every winged
creature according to its kind. And God saw that
it was good.”
CREATION
A beach that
disappeared more than 30 years ago reappeared
along the rocky coastline of an island of
coast of Ireland. The 300-meter beach near the
town of Dooagh on Achill Island vanished in
1984 when a storm removed all of the sand,
leaving a series of rocky pools. After a
series of high tides in the Spring of 2017,
residents discovered that the Atlantic Ocean
had returned the sand. The local tourism
office said the return of the beach was good
news because the beach once supported four
hotels and other guesthouses along the west
coast of the island. Sean Molloy of Achill’s
tourism office said, “It’s enormously
significant. Achill already has five blue-flag
beaches, so we are hoping that in time it will
awarded a sixth.”—Jim L. Wilson & Jim
Sandell.
Proverbs
8:29 (CSB) “when he set a limit for the
sea so that the waters would not violate his
command, when he laid out the foundations of the
earth.”
CREATION
The Boeing aircraft corporation
and NASA have found an inexpensive way to cut
airline fuel bills by using the example of the
world’s greatest long-distance aviators:
migratory birds. They say air carriers could
line aircraft up in the familiar V-shaped
formation used by geese. The idea could save
airlines 10 to 15 percent on fuel costs
without redesigning planes and using existing
technology. Boeing says, like geese, a V
formation uses wake surfing, taking advantage
of the cone-shaped columns of air swirling
behind a plane’s wings to give trailing
aircraft extra lift and a smoother ride. The
company said the idea is still being
developed, but has the potential to make air
transport more efficient and less
expensive.—Jim L. Wilson & Jim Sandell
Boeing
copies flying geese to save fuel, by Julie
Johnsson,
Job 12:7 (CSB) “But ask the
animals, and they will instruct you; ask the
birds of the sky, and they will tell you.”
CREATION
Research
indicates
that the human brain is hard-wired to
recognize facial expressions, and even see
faces in the strangest places. As Hurricane
Irma made landfall in northern Cuba,
meteorologists say they thought they saw a
face in the satellite imagery. Senior
meteorologist Stu Ostro, from the Weather
Channel, said this is the second year it has
happened. He said he saw a sinister face as
Hurricane Matthew moved away from Haiti last
year. This time Ostro tweeted that he saw a
face embedded in the imagery of Irma
resembling a pig or an elephant. The odd thing
is that at the time the face appeared, Irma
was inflicting widespread damage in northern
Cuba. The face in Matthew appeared after the
storm had killed hundreds and triggered a
humanitarian disaster in Hispanola. —Jim L.
Wilson & Jim Sandell.
Strong winds
from Hurricane Irma did a lot of damage across
the state of Florida, but one of the biggest
losses might be a small tree that sprouted
from seeds that went on a mission to the moon.
In 1971, hundreds of tree seeds were part of
an experiment for Apollo 14. After the
spacecraft returned, the seeds got mixed up
and could not be used for the intended
experiments. Instead, NASA sent the seeds
around the country to be planted at
bicentennial celebrations. One of them ended
up at the visitor complex at NASA
headquarters. The staff say the spirit of the
tree will live on as the complex continues to
tell the story of space exploration. —Jim L.
Wilson & Jim Sandell.
Hurricane
topples
'Moon Tree' that was on Apollo mission
Scientists
hope to use an array of giant telescopes in
the New Mexico desert to create the most
detailed map ever of a large portion of space.
Instead of taking pictures, the antenna will
capture an image of the radio waves from
throughout the Milky Way and beyond.
Researchers say the Very Large Array on the
plains of San Augustin can scan 80 percent of
the visible sky and they plan to make three
complete scans. They say the images they
gather will allow them to detect fine details
of gamma ray bursts, supernovas, and other
cosmic events better than optical images.
Project Director Clair Chandler said the
results will provide valuable information for
researchers. She added, “In addition to what
we think (the survey) will discover, we
undoubtedly will be surprised by discoveries
we aren’t anticipating now.” —Jim
L. Wilson & Jim Sandell.
Giant
Antennas In New Mexico Search For Cosmic
Discoveries,
Astronomers are intrigued by a
distant massive star that exploded in 2014 and
apparently exploded before in 1954. In 2014,
researchers believed that star was a basic
supernova that was getting fainter.Since
then, they have observed the star grow
brighter, then fade, and grow brighter again.
In their researcher they also found evidence
suggested the same star also exploded in 1954.
Astrophysicist Iair Arcavi of
the University of California, Santa Barbara
said most novas fade after 100 days or so, but
this one is still going strong. He said the
star is believed to have been up to 100 times
larger than our sun. Arcavi said this star is
unlike anything they have seen before. He
added, “Eventually, this star will go out at
some point. I mean, energy has to run out
eventually.”
Astronomers
around the world are trying to identify a
small, fast-moving object that passed through
our solar system. NASA does not know exactly
what the object was or where it came from, but
they said based on the trajectory and speed,
it may not be from our solar system. If so, it
would be the first interstellar object to be
observed and confirmed by astronomers. The
object was about 400 meters in diameter and
passed about 15 million miles from Earth at
15.8 miles per second.Scientists
project the object is headed toward the
constellation Pegasus and hope they can
confirm it originated outside of our local
area of space. Davide Farnocchia, a scientist
at the Center for Near-Earth Object Studies
said, “This is the most extreme orbit I have
ever seen. It is going extremely fast and on
such a trajectory that we can say with
confidence that the object is on its way out
of the solar system and not coming back.”—Jim
L. Wilson and Jim Sandell
Researchers
at Penn State University are working to sonify
the dynamics of major tropical storms in an
effort to understand the threats these storms
represent. Mark Ballora, a professor of
meteorology, said he is working with a music
professor to convert environmental data into
music. Instead of looking at a rising and
falling line on a graph, the new method
creates music containing a rising and falling
melody. Ballora said our eyes are good at
detecting static properties like color, size
or texture, but our ears are better a sensing
properties that change and fluctuate. An
example would the speed of swirling wind
represented with increasing volume and
brightness to the music. Ballora and his
colleagues have sonified 11 storms so far and
they believe experiencing science with more
senses may lead to greater understanding of
our environment. –Jim Wilson and Jim Sandell
A video released by a wildlife park in North
Carolina showed how alligators survive extremely
cold weather. The video showed alligators frozen
in ice with only their snout and a few teeth
protruding from the ice. Wildlife experts said
the animals get their snouts about water and
allow themselves to be frozen into place,
entering a state of brumation, which is similar
to hibernation. In the state, alligators
regulate their body temperature by remaining
immobile until the ice melts. Experts at the
park said when they are frozen; the alligators
will not react if stepped on, and added, “They
are trying to conserve energy to maintain body
temperature.”—Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell.
Psalm 104:24 (CSB)
How countless are your works, LORD!
In wisdom you have made them all;
the earth is full of your creatures.
CREATION
The spruce tree that served at the U.S. Capitol
tree during Christmas 2017 was carefully selected
from a Montana forest and hauled across the
country to keep it fresh. After the holiday
season, some Montana companies want to keep the
tree from becoming mulch for the grass in
Washington. They want to use wood from the 79 foot
tree to help rebuild a historic chalet that was
destroyed by wildfires the summer before. Bruce
Ward with a Denver-based nonprofit company
organized the effort to get the tree to the
Capitol and arranged for a Montana lumber company
to process the lumber. Officials at Glacier
National Park hope the remaining rock walls of the
chalet will survive the winter and allow the
chalet to be rebuilt and representatives from
Montana want to use lumber from the state to start
the project. Ward said, “For me, it’s a great way
to return a historic souvenir to the state to be
used for worthwhile purposes.”—Jim L. Wilson and
Jim Sandell.
Psalm 96:12 (CSB)
Let the fields and everything in them celebrate.
Then all the trees of the forest will shout for
joy
CREATION
A Romanian
university wanted to know if it is safe to eat
snow, so they conducted an experiment to
answer the question.Scientists
collected snow from a park and another
location in central Romania in January and
February, and then tried to grow bacteria and
mold in the samples. Istvan Mathe, professor
at the Sapientia Hungarian University said he
got the idea from watching his children eat
snow and the results surprised him. After one
day there were five bacteria per millimeter,
and the number quadrupled in February. Mathe
said fresh snow has little bacteria but
microorganisms increase over time because of
impurities in the air. He added, "I am not recommending
anyone eats snow. Just saying you won't get
ill if you eat a bit."—Jim L. Wilson and Jim
Sandell
For decades, astronomers have
theorized that the center of galaxies,
including our own, are filled with black
holes. The gravity from these collapsed stars
is so strong that even light cannot escape.Using
x-ray observations, astronomers have found
signs of a least a dozen black holes in the
inner parts of the Milky Way. They say most
black holes can’t be detected that way, so it
is possible that there are as many as 10,000
back holes. Columbia University astrophysicist
Chuck Hailey said the mass of these dark stars
tends to pull them to the center of the galaxy
and since there is a lot of dust and gas in
that region of space, the center of the galaxy
is a perfect place for black hole formation.
It’s like a farm where the right conditions
exist to produce and maintain a large number
of the unusual objects. Hailey noted, “There’s
lots of action going on there. The galactic
center is a strange place. That’s why people
like to study it.”—Jim L. Wilson and Jim
Sandell
Renowned
Cambridge
University physicist Stephen Hawking died
recently. Scientists credit him with several
theories about the universe including black
holes. Hawking flatly rejected the reality of
a Creator God. He said, “I regard the brain as
a computer which will stop working when its
components fail. There is no heaven or
afterlife for broken down computers.”
I
just have two questions. 1. How in the world
did that computer just come into being without
a creator? No other computer does. And 2. What
kind of good news is that? I much prefer the
good news of a creator God who loves me and
has provided a place for me for all eternity.
That is good news. —Jim L. Wilson and Rodger
Russell.
World
Magazine,
March 31, 2018 p. 8
Genesis
1:1
(CSB)
In
the
beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
CREATION
Researchers have confirmed that
the seventh planet from the sun literally
stinks. They said they had wondered about the
clouds that make up the planet Uranus for a
long time. After observing the way sunlight
bounced off the planet’s atmosphere,
researchers confirmed that the gas in the
cloud tops is hydrogen sulfide, one of the
smelliest gases known to man. Scientists used
a high power telescope located in Hawaii to
make the unique discovery. Hydrogen sulfide
gas gives rotten eggs their distinct smell and
humans can detect it with as little as 3 out
of billion molecules in the air. Lead
researcher Patrick Irwin observed, “If an
unfortunate
human were ever to descend through Uranus’s
clouds, they would be met with very unpleasant
and odoriferous conditions.”—Jim L. Wilson and
Jim Sandell