Today's New Reason To Believe Archives

February 2007

Today’s New Reason To Believe-Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Perfect Imperfection: Uric Acid

  • Better understanding of another of nature’s "poor" designs-uric acid production in primates-provides a potent response to one of the best arguments for biological evolution. Many scientists point to seemingly bad designs in nature as evidence for evolution, since it makes no sense for an all-powerful, benevolent Creator to produce living organisms with faulty designs. One classic example is uric acid production in primates (including humans). This compound is the breakdown product of adenine and guanine (components of DNA). Uric acid is insoluble in the plasma and, if over-produced, will precipitate out in the kidneys and joints, causing kidney stones and gout. In all other mammals, uric acid is transformed into a more soluble form. Evolutionists presume that in primates the enzyme responsible for this conversion was lost through mutations. However, new research suggests that artificially administering this compound after a spinal cord injury or stroke in primates will prevent secondary damage caused by the release of toxic material from the damaged tissue. (Previous studies have shown that uric acid works as an antioxidant that staves off cancer and promotes long life spans.) As the data mounts, uric acid production increasing appears to be a good design.
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Today’s New Reason To Believe-Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Smallness of Extra Dimensions Confirmed

  • Recent gravitational tests further buttress the claim that a supernatural Creator designed the universe to support life. Theoretical work to unify the gravitational force with the other three fundamental forces appears to require the existence of extra dimensions. However, atoms, solar systems, and galaxies are unstable if the size of the extra dimensions is too large. Physicists applied experimental tests using a sensitive type of balance to determine the size of the dimensions. The tests confirmed that the extra dimensions must be smaller than 44 millionths of a centimeter. These results verify the fine-tuning inherent in the universe by demonstrating that the extra dimensions (if they exist) are small enough to not disrupt the stability of atoms, solar systems, galaxies, or other structures on which life depends.
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Today’s New Reason To Believe-Monday, February 26, 2007
Biblical Account of Humanity’s Origin Confirmed by Genetic Study

  • New evidence shows that the global genetic diversity of three genes implicated in autoimmune disorders (CD28, CTLA4, and ICOS) yields a pattern that harmonizes with the biblical account of humanity’s origin and spread. By tracing the history of the genes, researchers have detected human migration patterns that began at or near the Middle East and fanned outward from there into Asia and Europe. This research meshes with several previous studies that collectively indicate that humanity originated: (1) approximately 100,000 years ago (or less); (2) in a single locale (East Africa), which is at or near where theologians and Bible scholars believe the Garden of Eden to have been; (3) from a small population size; and (4) from a single man (Y-chromosomal Adam) and a single woman (mitochondrial Eve). These results fit extremely well into the biblical explanation for humanity’s origin.
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Today’s New Reason To Believe-Sunday, February 25, 2007
Temperature Control Mechanism Found

  • Researchers in Spain have discovered a strong relationship between the atmosphere and ocean microorganisms that also provides additional evidence supporting RTB’s creation model. Recent research demonstrates that sunlight on the oceans stimulates growth of ocean organisms that produce a compound called dimethylsulfide (DMS). When DMS is transported to the atmosphere as an aerosol, it enhances cloud formation. Interestingly, where sunlight increases Earth’s surface temperature, cloud formation reflects sunlight to outer space, thereby cooling Earth’s surface. The recently discovered link between sunlight and cloud formation appears to provide a feedback mechanism that maintains a stable surface temperature over the oceans. Such fine-tuning comports well with RTB’s model, which posits that a supernatural Creator designed Earth to maintain a habitable environment for billions of years.
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Today’s New Reason To Believe-Saturday, February 24, 2007
Biochemical Design: Fine-Tuning of an Enzyme Active Site

  • Researchers have discovered another example of molecular fine-tuning of biochemical systems that suggests a Creator’s activity. One defining feature of the cell’s chemistry is the molecular-level precision that characterizes the structure of nearly all of the cell’s biomolecules. Recent work indicates that biochemical fine-tuning is critical for the catalytic activity of an enzyme called tryptophan 2,3-dioxygenase. This recognition evokes the fine-tuning that is a hallmark of well-designed man-made devices. Thus, the optimized fine-tuning characteristic of biochemical systems signifies that life originated from a Creator’s hand.
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Today’s New Reason To Believe-Friday, February 23, 2007
Fine-Structure Constant is Still Constant

  • Scientists continue to provide evidence supporting a central assertion of RTB’s cosmic creation model-namely that the laws of physics remain constant. Using a unique property of the element dysprosium, a team of physicists from Berkeley, California, and Los Alamos, New Mexico, searched for variations over time of the fine-structure constant (which determines the strength of the electromagnetic force). Tests based on two different configurations of the element showed that any variation must be less than one part in a million billion during a year. This negative result matches previous tests demonstrating the constancy of the laws of physics, in accord with RTB’s creation model.
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Today’s New Reason To Believe-Thursday, February 22, 2007
New Fossil Find Reveals Stasis, Not Evolution

  • Discovery of the first fossilized leaf insect from early Eocene formations in Germany provides support for RTB’s creation model. Named Eophyllium messelensis, the specimen dates to 47 million years in age but displays remarkably modern features. This find indicates that leaf insects have not undergone any appreciable evolutionary change for the last 47 million years. The first appearance of leaf insects with modern features followed by a period of developmental stasis is a pattern that comports well with the notion that a Creator is responsible for life’s history.
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Today’s New Reason To Believe-Wednesday, February 21, 2007
Local Dwarf Galaxies Found

  • Astronomers’ recent discovery of "missing" dwarf galaxies provides additional evidence for the validity of RTB’s cosmic creation model. Big bang cosmology, which RTB’s model incorporates, predicts a large number of dwarf galaxies located around more-massive galaxies like the Milky Way Galaxy. However, observations had failed to detect any significant number-until recently. Using the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, scientists found seven of the dwarf galaxies in a small section of the sky, implying the existence of dozens more in other regions of the sky. These results help resolve the discrepancy between theory and observations and place RTB’s cosmic creation model on firmer scientific ground.
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Today’s New Reason To Believe-Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Biochemical Design: Membrane Potassium Channels

  • Another instance of molecular fine-tuning of biochemical systems provides more evidence for intelligent design. Researchers noted the movement of ions through the pores of alkali-activated potassium channels. Potassium channels are highly selective, allowing the transport of potassium ions through their pores while excluding the passage of other materials. Scientists have discovered that this selectivity stems from the specific identity and orientation of a single amino acid situated near the pore. This residue changes (in response to the alkalinity of the environment) to open and close the channel. Fine-tuning is a hallmark of well-designed man-made devices. As such, the exquisite fine-tuning characteristic of alkali-activated potassium channels suggests that life originated from a Creator’s hand.
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Today’s New Reason To Believe-Monday, February 19, 2007
Alternative Gravity Ruled Out

  • Caltech physicists’ theoretical calculations continue to highlight the extreme fine-tuning represented by the space-energy density (a.k.a. dark energy). Shortly after the discovery of an accelerating cosmic expansion (consistent with the Bible’s description of God stretching out the universe), some researchers sought to explain the acceleration by modifying general relativity. However, scientists had not observed the expected consequences of the modification within the solar system, leading some to question the validity of the tests. The Caltech team demonstrated that solar system observations do indeed invalidate the proposed modifications. Consequently, the evidence for dark energy, and the immense fine-tuning it represents, continues to grow and provides renewed support for RTB’s cosmic creation model.
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Today’s New Reason To Believe-Sunday, February 18, 2007
Mounting Evidence that "Junk" DNA Has Function

  • New research into the human genome provides another example of the functional importance of "junk" DNA sequences known as conserved noncoding elements (CNEs). CNEs with conserved DNA sequences have been found in the dog, mouse, rat, and, recently, shark genomes. Although evolutionary biologists have maintained for years that junk DNA is an imperfection resulting from evolution, for biochemists, conserved DNA sequences reflect function. This most recent study suggests that CNEs in the human genome play a role as enhancers, regulating gene expression. The growing recognition of the functional importance of junk DNA undermines one of evolution’s best arguments and suggests that careful planning by an intelligent Designer, rather than undirected, random biochemical events, shaped the genomes of organisms.
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Today’s New Reason To Believe-Saturday, February 17, 2007
New Technique to Probe Gravity

  • A team of international scientists has provided more evidence validating RTB’s cosmic creation model. Physicists used a movable lead ring to affect the gravitational field around an interferometer (a device using two beams of radiation to create an interference pattern). The gravitational constant (governing one of the universe’s four fundamental forces) can be calculated from deviations in the interference pattern as the lead ring moves. Measurements of the gravitational force constant using this novel technique match previous results. Additionally, the technique has the potential to dramatically improve the precision of these measurements. One sign of a good model is that future measurements confirm past results. These improvements provide an ideal test bed to further validate (or falsify) RTB’s model.
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Today’s New Reason To Believe-Friday, February 16, 2007
Biochemical Design: Quality Control of Protein Production

  • Recent research strengthens the case for biochemical intelligent design by providing insight into one aspect of the quality-control operation that is integral to protein synthesis. During protein synthesis, the cell employs molecules called tRNAs to ferry amino acids to the ribosome. The ribosome’s machinery links amino acids together to form proteins. The cell uses twenty different amino acids to form proteins, and each amino acid has its own specific tRNA molecule that binds it and takes it to the ribosome. If the amino acid binds to the wrong tRNA, an error in protein synthesis will occur. The cell employs a quality-control procedure to ensure that the proper amino acid binds to each tRNA. New work explores the chemical details of this editing mechanism and notes similarities between it and human-designed systems. Well-designed systems include quality-control checkpoints at critical junctures to ensure efficient production of high-quality products. Many biochemical operations inside the cell employ quality-control procedures, and hence appear to be designed.
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Today’s New Reason To Believe-Thursday, February 15, 2007
Probe of Early Stars

  • Astronomers’ more-detailed measurements of early starlight provide additional tools to test-and evidence for-RTB’s cosmic creation model. Roughly a year ago, astronomers reported evidence that they were seeing the light from the first generation of stars produced in the universe. Longer observations over a wider area, coupled with more thorough foreground subtraction, confirm the previous results. These observations represent starlight emitted when the universe was less than one billion years old and confirm essential details of big bang cosmology. RTB scholars expect that, as scientists refine the technique, more demanding tests will continue to affirm the validity of big bang cosmology and RTB’s cosmic creation model.
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Today’s New Reason To Believe-Wednesday, February 14, 2007
Biochemical Design: Organization of Simplest Life

  • Scientists continue to uncover an astounding internal organization and complexity in the simplest life-forms. Microbiologists once viewed bacteria as little more than "containers" of haphazardly arranged molecules. Advances over the last decade, however, have suggested that this view is incorrect. A recent study on the nonribosomal peptide synthetase/polyketide synthase hybrid complex from the bacterium Bacillis subtilis showcases this remarkable organization. This massive protein assembly produces complex materials that have therapeutic potential in the treatment of human diseases. It operates like an assembly line, with the product shuttled from protein to protein in the complex. The complex displays further organization as it associates with the cell membrane to form an organelle-like structure that localizes to a specific region in the cell. Such molecular-level organization and complexity of the simplest life-forms serves as a marker for biochemical design and makes sense if a Creator is responsible for life.
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Today’s New Reason To Believe-Tuesday, February 13, 2007
More Water-Related Design

  • Scientists continue to find evidence consistent with the notion of a supercaring Creator who has fashioned Earth as a suitable planet for abundant life to exist. Plate tectonics ranks as one of the most vital characteristics a planet must have to sustain long-standing, abundant life. Plate tectonics relies on the rigid crustal plates being able to float and move on a more malleable upper mantle. Recent research into the interaction of water with rocks at high temperature and pressure reveals a high degree of fine-tuning in the water’s activity in order to make the upper mantle malleable enough. If confirmed, these results demonstrate design in both the composition and size of Earth. Such evidence comports well with RTB’s cosmic creation model, which posits a supernatural Creator who fine-tunes Earth to support life.
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Today’s New Reason To Believe-Monday, February 12, 2007
Biochemical Design: Myosin Molecular Motors

  • Greater understanding of cellular processes provides additional evidence for biochemical intelligent design and helps revitalize one of the most well-known arguments for God’s existence. A new study highlights the machine-like character of myosin VI, a protein that transports cellular cargo along actin fibers throughout the cell, functioning as a literal linear motor. This work explores the relationship between the swivel direction of the myosin lever arm and the direction of myosin movement along actin filaments. Researchers have detected precision and optimal design in this relationship. The British natural theologian William Paley argued that just as a watch requires a watchmaker, so life logically requires a Creator, since biological systems appear to be machine-like. On this basis, the elegant design and stark resemblance to man-made motors indicate that biomolecular machines like the myosin VI motor must be the work of a divine "Motor Maker."
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Today’s New Reason To Believe-Sunday, February 11, 2007
Constants Still Constant

  • Detailed astronomical observations continue to provide evidence that the fundamental laws of physics have not changed over time, as predicted by RTB’s cosmic creation model. Some alternatives to big bang cosmology and some young-universe models posit that various fundamental "constants" actually change value as the universe ages. Fortunately for scientists, any changes in the constants’ values have observable consequences that astronomers can detect. Recently, a team of international astronomers analyzed radio observations from distant quasars and found no evidence for any change in numerous fundamental constants. These results comport well with a model positing that a supernatural Creator has maintained constant laws of physics while preparing the universe to support life.
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Today’s New Reason To Believe-Saturday, February 10, 2007
New Study Confirms Explosive Nature of Biology’s "Big Bang"

  • Researchers have provided new evidence that the Cambrian explosion-"Biology’s Big Bang" and an indicator of supernatural creation-was a real event as described by the fossil record. Around 540 million years ago, between 50% and 80% of all animal phyla to ever exist appeared rapidly over a short period of time (less than 5 million years). Because the Cambrian explosion stands as one of the biggest enigmas facing the evolutionary paradigm, some evolutionary biologists seek to avoid the troubling consequences of the Cambrian explosion by arguing that it never occurred. They maintain that it is an artifact of an incomplete fossil record. As evidence for this assertion, they point to features in rock formations that date to about 580 million years ago, which some have interpreted as fossilized animal embryos. These fossilized "embryos" supposedly indicate that an evolutionary history preceded the Cambrian event. New research, however, indicates that the "embryos" are actually fossils of giant bacteria. Thus, biology’s big bang appears to be a real event, and it serves as a powerful fingerprint for the Creator’s intervention in life’s history.
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Today’s New Reason To Believe-Friday, February 9, 2007
Importance of Galaxy Cluster Environment

  • Astronomers have found more evidence of fine-tuning in the location of the Milky Way Galaxy (MWG), where Earth resides. By determining the star-formation rates of different galaxies, a pair of astronomers discovered that galaxies in dense clusters are nearly half a billion years older than galaxies outside of dense clusters (like the MWG). This means that star formation stopped earlier for the galaxies in dense clusters. As a result, stars in these galaxies would not be adequately enriched with elements heavier than helium, which planets and life require. In contrast, more-abundant star formation continues to later times in galaxies-like the MWG-that are located just outside dense clusters, meaning heavier-element-rich stars like the sun are more abundant in such galaxies. Such fine-tuning comports well with RTB’s cosmic creation model, in which a supernatural Creator regularly works to ensure the formation of a life-supporting planet like Earth.
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Today’s New Reason To Believe-Thursday, February 8, 2007
Biochemical Design: RNA Polymerase

Today’s New Reason To Believe-Wednesday, February 7, 2007
More Type-Ia-Supernovae Tools

  • More affirmation for RTB’s cosmic creation model comes from new polarization measurements of type-Ia supernovae that have confirmed their current and future usefulness as indicators of cosmological distance. To use a particular class of objects to measure astronomical distances, scientists must know how bright the objects are. While not all type-Ia supernovae are of the same brightness, astronomers use other techniques to compensate for these differences, making supernovae good "standard candles." Recent analysis of polarization from these supernovae helped clarify the mechanism by which the explosions proceed. This provides another tool astronomers can use to correct for brightness differences, consequently allowing them to measure distances more accurately using type-Ia supernovae detected in the future. Better distance measures help establish the accuracy of a class of big bang models, including RTB’s creation model.
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Today’s New Reason To Believe-Tuesday, February 6, 2007
Biochemical Design: Optimal Metabolic Response to Starvation

  • New research suggests that the metabolic response of organisms to starvation is optimized, providing further evidence for biochemical intelligent design. Scientists learned that when confronted with starvation, the bacterium Escherichia coli and the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae respond in nearly identical ways at the biochemical level. These two microbes are widely divergent and fundamentally different in cell organization. The fact that the metabolic responses of the two organisms are virtually the same indicates that their reactions to nutrient deprivation must be near optimal. Optimization, like that found in the metabolic responses to starvation, defines many of the cell’s biochemical systems and pathways. Such optimization is also a hallmark of well-designed man-made devices. As such, the optimal fine-tuning of biochemical systems signifies that life originated from a Creator’s hand.
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Today’s New Reason To Believe-Monday, February 5, 2007
Oxygen Rises Just Before Life Arrives

  • Deep-sea sediments support the assertion of RTB’s creation model that a supernatural Designer transformed Earth from an uninhabitable state to one supportive of human life. Abundant oxygen ranks as one of the most essential requirements for animal life. However, until 600 million years ago, Earth’s deep oceans contained very little oxygen compared to their current levels. Studies of iron ratios from deposits in Newfoundland reveal that the oxygen content of the deep ocean dramatically increased 580 million years ago, a mere 5 million years before large, structurally complex Ediacaran organisms (which lived on the sea floor) appeared. Such results comport well with a model positing that the God of the Bible transformed Earth to support more-complex organisms and then quickly introduced those organisms into the biosphere.
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Today’s New Reason To Believe-Sunday, February 4, 2007
Convergence of Sex Chromosomes in Reptiles, Birds, and Mammals

  • A new study provides evidence for creation by showing genetic sex determination emerged independently in mammals, birds, and snakes. Even more striking: the genetic sex-determination systems in birds and snakes are virtually identical. According to Stephen Jay Gould, if one were to rewind the tape of life and replay it, the outcome would be different each time. The concept of historical contingency maintains that evolution will not produce the same outcome repeatedly, since its mechanism relies on a sequence of chance events. This newly recognized example of convergence challenges the veracity of the theory of evolution, but resonates with a creation model positing that a Creator repeatedly used the same good designs as He brought new life-forms into existence.
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Today’s New Reason To Believe-Saturday, February 3, 2007
Witnessing Star Formation

  • Recent radio observations have improved scientists’ understanding of star formation, affirming part of RTB’s creation model. Stars form when parts of gas clouds gravitationally contract to the point where nuclear fusion starts. This collapse phase occurs very quickly on astronomical timescales (less than one million years), so astronomers have found it difficult to find systems in various stages of collapse. Further, the gas cloud obscures optical observations of most of the collapse phase. However, radio observations have identified clumps characteristic of the early collapse phase in a nearby large molecular cloud. These results comport well with RTB’s creation model and argue against the claim that all star formation occurred six-to-ten thousand years ago (a position incorporated by many young-universe models).
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Today’s New Reason To Believe-Friday, February 2, 2007
Convergence of Extreme Tongue Length in Mammals

  • New insight into the anatomy of the tongue of a nectar bat provides evidence for biblical creation. Scientists have learned that extreme tongue length appears to have emerged independently several times in different mammals (nectar bats and anteaters). According to Stephen Jay Gould, if one were to rewind the tape of life and replay it, the outcome would be different each time. The concept of historical contingency maintains that evolution will not produce the same outcome repeatedly, since its mechanism relies on a sequence of chance events. This newly recognized example of convergence challenges the veracity of the theory of evolution, but finds ready explanation in a model holding that a Creator repeatedly used the same good designs as He brought life into existence.
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Today’s New Reason To Believe-Thursday, February 1, 2007
Planet-Formation Constraints in Binary Systems

  • Greater understanding of a young star cluster highlights the fine-tuning required to form a habitable planet. Most stars similar in size to the sun reside in binary (two-star) systems, which significantly impacts the formation of planetary systems around the star. Planets form from a disk of material orbiting a star. However, observations of a young star cluster have revealed that disks around binary stars dissipate in about half the time of those around single stars. Since the disk-dissipation time around single stars is about the same as the time required to form Earth-like terrestrial planets, this result means that planet formation around stars in binary systems is much more difficult. Additionally, since the disk dissipates faster in binary systems, any terrestrial planets are likely to be smaller than those found in the solar system (and thus not life-supporting candidates). Such fine-tuning comports well with idea of a supernatural Creator working to fashion a life-supporting planet, as posited by RTB’s cosmic creation model.
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