Rare Earth

 So far as we know Planet Earth is the only place where life exists in our vast universe. Finding life apart from our own solar system would be a monumental discovery. We speak of not only human life, but any sort of life. This includes some of the more than 8+ million separate species of life. Our planet teems with life—all sorts of life—human life created In His Image, and many other forms of life.

We do not assert that life beyond the confines of our Planet Earth is impossible. Our personal belief is that the existence of life on another planet within our Solar System or beyond is highly unlikely because physical conditions on other planets or planetary systems are vastly different than conditions on Planet Earth. Radio signals traveling at the speed of light could not cover even a tiny fraction of the distance across the known universe, estimated to be 92 billion light years by some scientists. Even if we traveled one light year (the distance light travels in one Earth year) we would travel an insignificant distance in our quest to communicate with other life forms in our universe. Likewise, alien life forms are unable to communicate with us via electromagnetic radio signals.

Famous nuclear physicist Enrico Fermi once ventured outside his field of expertise during a scientific conference. He wondered, “Where is everybody?” His scientific colleagues realized he was inquiring about extraterrestrial life. The statement became known as the “Fermi paradox.” Many other scientists have passed judgment on the possibility of alien life: 

https://jasscience.blogspot.com/2018/07/dismissing-et.html

As young people we may have mused on the possibility of life at other locations in our vast universe. We have commented on this question several times in past posts:

https://jasscience.blogspot.com/2018/07/alone-in-universe.html

The question concerning life outside our Solar System has been asked even by creationist theologians. If our God is the Creator of All Things, we would expect alien life had its origin in a divine act of fiat creation by the God described in Genesis 1:1-2. This scenario runs counter to evolutionary theory that living creatures could self-assemble naturalistically without any input from the Divine Creator:

https://jasscience.blogspot.com/2018/07/really-alone.html

Planet Earth has physical conditions unlike any other planet (exoplanet) in our vast universe. Scientists who study this topic are called astrophysicists. Our links discuss just a few topics studied by scientists in this specialized field:

https://jasscience.blogspot.com/2018/07/earth-exceptional-or-one-of-kind_31.html

Our planet has major “spheres” of physical characteristics. Three of the spheres are (1) atmosphere (2) hydrosphere, and (3) lithosphere. Each sphere possesses sub-spheres. For example, the atmospheres consists of the troposphere, stratosphere, and several other sub-spheres.

“Earth’s spheres—atmosphere, hydrosphere, and lithosphere work together to sustain life. Each sphere plays a distinct yet interconnected role in maintaining the planet’s balance. The interconnection between these spheres support diverse ecosystems and ensure environmental stability. Understanding these interactions provides insight into their importance in sustaining life.” (BiologyInsights.com 10/24/2024)

As we investigate the exoplanets discovered in our minuscule corner of the Milky Way galaxy, we are struck with the small number of planets existing in the “habitable zones” around their home stars. Planets must exist within a specific temperature range, having an appropriate amount of liquid water pooling on its surface, and a precise proportion of elements and compounds composing its lithosphere. If the educated guess of astrophysicists that roughly 50% of exoplanets are rocky instead of gaseous, we quickly eliminate half of the universe’s planets from habitability. There are thousands of additional physical parameters which, if absent, reduce the chances of planetary habitability to near ZERO.

Does extra-solar life exist? The question is impossible to answer. It is possible, however, to exult in the uniqueness of Planet Earth. Our God created the universe to be inhabited by humanity and more than eight million other species of life: “For this is what the Lord says—he who created the heavens, he is God; he who fashioned and made the earth, he founded it; he did not create it to be empty, but formed it to be inhabited—he says: I am the Lord, and there is no other.” (Isaiah 45:18 NIV)   

Does Science Strengthen Faith?

 Our blog deals with the relationship of science and faith. In our modern society many observers believe science and faith are separate domains of truth. Dr. Hugh Ross of the “Reasons to Believe” ministry is an eminent scientist/theologian who believes science affirms the truth of the Christian faith and belief in God as the Creator of All Things. Dr. John Ankerberg has interviewed Dr. Hugh Ross several times. Both men have vigorously supported the concept that science and Christian faith affirm one another. Dr. Ross states, “Science and Christianity intersect rather than contradict each other.” Dr. Ankerberg agrees: “It’s often said that faith and science are incompatible, but as an atheist detective, my investigation of the scientific evidence actually led me to faith.” 

What if some so-called “scientific” discoveries could actually be detrimental to faith? Science is not immune to erroneous interpretation. Examples are scientific errors proposed by geneticists to explain transgenderism and sexual preference. This blog has frequently questioned whether natural selection and mutation are able to drive the process of naturalistic evolution. For many years natural selection and mutation have been stalwarts supporting evolutionary theory. 

Personal theology could also be erroneous. In the field of science we cope with pseudoscience. In our faith experience, we may encounter heresy—sometimes described as false teaching. In both science and faith/theology, we may experience various shades of truth. We sometimes describe “gray” areas where interpretations are variable. Our task is to present the topics of science and faith as unambiguously and accurately as possible. 

When we make a scientific claim, we must justify our claim. Do we base our claim on unsound presuppositions or unsound evidence? If so, our claim must be rejected. Historically there have been scientific claims which later proved false. To illustrate, we cite four scientific claims ultimately proved untrue. (1) In 1992 some scientists claimed they had discovered cold fusion. If true, our world had an almost unlimited supply of cheap energy. (2) In the 19th century phrenologists proposed that shape of the human head and regions of the brain determined human characteristics. (3) In the early 20th century some famous scientists pronounced the universe to be unchanging in size. Later the universe was found to be expanding. (4) In the 19th century scientists believed in spontaneous generation: Living matter was generated spontaneously from inanimate matter. This belief has been refuted. Life is generated from previous life or by a supernatural act of divine fiat creation.

Theological (faith) claims may also be erroneous. These mistaken claims may fall under the category of heresy. Several inaccurate theological belief systems are Docetism, Arianism, and Gnosticism—heresies Christian scholars have battled for centuries. There are many more false theological beliefs.

We have made every effort to cite TRUE scientific and theological principles in our articles. Our Science/Faith blog has been misunderstood by some readers who feel science and faith are separate domains of truth. Properly interpreted, science and sound principles of faith and theology affirm the truth of each other if scientific and theological errors are eliminated from the discussion. This goal is sometimes difficult, but not impossible to achieve.

Our blog posts since 2007 have often dealt with public misunderstanding of the science/faith relationship. We link several past posts on this topic:

https://jasscience.blogspot.com/2023/03/the-sciencefaith-link.html

https://jasscience.blogspot.com/2013/01/sciencefaith-conferences.html

https://jasscience.blogspot.com/2014/09/science-and-faith-interdigitation.html

James 1:5 is a passage to guide us in a search for truth in the science/faith relationship: “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.” (ESV)         

Drought Cycles

In the past few months the US has been plagued by droughts and floods. The recent southeastern hurricanes have made us aware of destructive flooding. These flooding events resolve more quickly than droughts, but sometimes result in sudden, tragic death. In contrast, droughts can persist for the short term or long term.

Most of our home state of Iowa was blessed with a growing season of adequate rainfall in the spring and summer of 2024. But after the growing season faded at the close of August, we received less than 0.25 inches of precipitation in the next eight weeks. The U. S. Drought monitor reports that 54.08% of the lower 48 states are experiencing drought at the present time. Drought conditions do not impact every location the same way: Our locality has received 4+ inches of rain since the beginning of November. This region has experienced, therefore, a (1) meteorological drought, now resolved, the least serious of many categories of droughts. More impactful are (2) agricultural droughts resulting in reduced groundwater and reservoir levels, (3) hydrological droughts resulting in serious stream flow deficits, and finally, (4) socioeconomic droughts resulting in negative effects on people’s health, quality of life, and the nation’s economy.

A government agency supplies the “U. S. Drought Monitor” by email each week. This feature supplies information concerning ongoing drought conditions in our country. The site graphically indicates drought levels by color from DO, D1, D2, D3, to D4—none, moderate, severe, extreme, and exceptional.

In researching historic droughts of the 20th and 21st centuries, we discovered three drought episodes, all of which I personally experienced in various ways. In 1940 when I traveled to Oklahoma with my family, my uncles were experiencing the “Dust Bowl” drought. They told of the intense drought and heat of the “Dust Bowl,” a historic time in U. S. History when intense heat baked the plains. The Dust Bowl was exacerbated by the farmers plowing down prairie sod which later was blown away by wind in the intense heat. The events of the Dust Bowl inspired the John Steinbeck novel “The Grapes of Wrath.” Effects of the Dust Bowl extended from 1928 to 1942.

Another drought episode occurred from 1949 to 1957. Still another time metric communicates a drought episode from 1998 to 2014—the early 21st century drought. We recall an intense dry spell in 2012. In order to be considered a drought episode there must be a large geographical area affected along with long time duration. In the physical operating system created by God for Planet Earth, droughts are ubiquitous cyclical events. Understanding the complex interplay of various weather and climate phenomena is a challenging task. Cyclical droughts have been present on Earth for thousands of years. Our Creator has given humanity the ability to manage the effects of drought.

For additional reading, link to the post we submitted in 2012 regarding historic droughts: https://jasscience.blogspot.com/2012/08/responses-in-complex-system.html

 

  

Worldwide Weather Disasters

Recently the Southeastern United States was struck by two powerful hurricanes arriving almost simultaneously. When weather disasters strike, many people are prone to ask, “Is God telling us something?” We posted a blog in 2008 in which we asked if certain weather events were an “Act of God” or rather, an “Act of Man.” We introduce our current discussion by linking our 2008 post:

https://jasscience.blogspot.com/2008/07/act-of-god-or-act-of-man.html

The recent hurricanes Helene in North Carolina, and Milton in Florida have generated substantial loss of life and property. Of all natural disasters, 93% are related to weather. Natural disasters provoke much discussion related to The Maker’s role in creating and sustaining an operating system for our natural world which sometimes includes “natural evil.” The concept of natural evil is a difficult issue to explain in terms of a benevolent God who creates humanity to fellowship with Him and follow His divine instructions for our daily lives. Whenever we discuss such troubling questions we are reminded of Bible passages which propose highly diverse descriptions of creation’s wonders. Scripture relates both desirable and potentially fatal weather events.   

Genesis 1 reminds us five times that God viewed His varied works of creation and pronounced the creation either good or very good. After doing word studies of scripture passages and studying complex weather events in context, we are convinced that the operating system of God’s weather and climate systems can work either for our benefit or detriment. We explain the thoughts expressed in this paragraph as follows: We do not abide in a perfect world. Rather, we live in a good or very good world. 

Our past post of May 18, 2024 was not inspired by the same degree of natural and personal devastation that hurricanes Helene and Milton caused. However, the post dealt with some beneficial effects of unpleasant weather events and how humanity could profit from them:

https://jasscience.blogspot.com/2024/05/in-wake-of-natural-disasters.html

From 1920 to 1960 there were much higher death rates from weather-related events than those from 1960 to 2020. This surprising statistic contradicts some of the alarmism we have experienced from media outlets concerning dangers inherent in climate change. Perhaps modern man has learned to be better prepared with wise building codes and timely publicized meteorological warning systems.

“We are not defenseless against disasters: Deaths from disasters have fallen significantly over the last century as a result of early warning systems, better infrastructure, more productive agriculture, and coordinated responses.” (Quote from

Our World in Data.) This improvement has occurred in spite of the quadrupling of world population from 2 billion to 8 billion in the last century.

Climate Change is an ideologically charged political issue. “Instead of considering the objective damage caused by weather events, (media) networks tend to look for disasters that are ‘rife with drama.’ As one New York Times article put it — hurricanes, tornadoes, forest fires, and earthquakes, all make for splashy headlines and captivating visuals.” (Our World in Data)

Worldwide food shortages from hunger and starvation result in even greater sorrow from a humanitarian point of view. News about worldwide food shortages, famine, and starvation is also a human tragedy. We do not wish to trivialize the horrific tragedy of loss of life and property caused by our recent hurricanes. Rather, we must understand the divine operating system designed by our Creator with its occasional physical disasters. 

The future New Creation described in the Book of Revelation 21-22 will be free of disasters and filled with perfection.          

       

Dual Views of Life's Origin

 When we address the topic of Origin of Life, readers most often assume we are speaking about the deep history of life on this planet. Historically, how did life begin? And when did life begin? Did life on Earth originate by naturalistic evolution? Or did life on this planet appear as an act of fiat creation as described in divine Scripture?

Several of our recent posts have discussed naturalistic evolution in contrast to divine creation. These two concepts are diametrically opposite. Some of the most enlivening discussions have occurred among science educators who locate themselves on opposite sides of this question. Curricular materials for students are selected according to the publishers’ and educators’ orientation—evolutionist? or creationist?

The current sharp political divide concerning another question, the question of abortion—its legality, ethicality, morality, and acceptance—is not presented or argued on the same evolutionary terms. Life’s origin, however, is an interconnected issue. For example, the question is framed to enhance the emotional impact of issues such as a woman’s bodily freedom, reproductive rights, privacy rights, and freedom to choose. These concepts are somewhat nebulous but always framed in the most positive terms by advocates of legal abortion. Advocates of abortion work to end life in the womb. The abortion issue is one of the tragedies of our day.

We reproduce nine past posts re-submitted while the  Supreme Court was reconsidering the 1973 Roe vs Wade decision in 2022. When life appeared during Planet Earth’s deep history, we were not privy to the precise methods God used to create life. In the 21st century, however, we are gifted by detailed knowledge of the discipline of developmental biology. What is the mission of developmental biologists? They discover the cellular, molecular, and genetic mechanisms controlling embryonic development. Following are links to several 2014 posts:  

EMERGENCE OF CONSCIOUSNESS: The development of a mature human consciousness is only one of the miracles of human development in the first year of life from conception to infancy.  

https://jasscience.blogspot.com/2014/01/emergence-of-consciousness.html

CONCEPTION TO CONSCIOUSNESS: Denial that the developing entity within the womb is fully human and deserves protection from the moment of conception to the moment of birth and beyond has become a paramount collective sin staining our nation.

https://jasscience.blogspot.com/2014/01/conception-to-consciousness.html

BODY BUILDING BLUEPRINT: Knowledge of the fundamental component of living things—the cell—has exploded. This includes knowledge of genetics and the fundamental secrets of heredity possessed by the incredible DNA molecule.

https://jasscience.blogspot.com/2014/01/body-building-blueprint.html

PRENATAL SCIENCE AND THEOLOGY: The union of a male sperm and female ovum is classic modern knowledge. This union forms the human zygote, a single diploid cell containing two sets of chromosomes—one set from each parent.

https://jasscience.blogspot.com/2014/01/prenatal-science-and-theology.html

LET THE BUILDING BEGIN: The 8-9 day period following conception precedes implantation of the embryo into the mother’s uterine wall. These are important days of preparation for the actual body building project to follow…..The mother is host to the embryo during the 8-9 days prior to implantation.

https://jasscience.blogspot.com/2014/01/let-building-begin.html

EMBRYO TO FETUS: In humans, the child is termed an embryo up until eight weeks. The event sequence of the first few weeks of pregnancy is fascinating almost beyond imagination. The mysteries of embryology still puzzle scientists.

https://jasscience.blogspot.com/2014/01/embryo-to-fetus.html

 

PLOTTING PRENATAL PROGRESS: The astonishing beginning and subsequent development of the human embryo and its transition to the category of fetus at roughly eight weeks is known to medical scientists in stunning detail.

https://jasscience.blogspot.com/2014/02/plotting-prenatal-progress.html

IMAGERIES OF BUILDING: Quality building materials must be selected. Construction materials must be utilized at the proper time and place and in the appropriate manner…..Applying this imagery to human reproduction, the foundation of an embryo, its transition to a fetus and finally, the arrival of the birth of a child are events which are coordinated precisely by the Creator.

https://jasscience.blogspot.com/2014/02/imageries-of-building.html

MYSTERY OF REPRODUCTION: A Highlight of the Genesis account is the creation of man…..In Chapter One, the initial mention of the vast array of the creation of life forms concludes with, “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him, male and female he created them.”

https://jasscience.blogspot.com/2014/02/mystery-of-reproduction.html 

The Book of Psalms contains a familiar devotional passage we may characterize as the “developmental biology passage.” It is found in Psalm 139.

“For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance…” (Psalm 139:13-16a ESV)    

Origin of Life

The characteristics of life are well known to bioscientists. The topic of the origin of life is often posed in connection with the wonder of life’s characteristics. How did these wonders originate? The question is answered in one of two ways: (1) life evolved, or (2) life was divinely created.

Following are the frequently publicized characteristics of living things.  (1) Organized into cells  (2) Capable of metabolism  (3) Responsive to stimuli  (4) Possess homeostasis  (5) Able to grow and develop  (6) Able to reproduce, and  (7) Able to adapt. This list highlights a set of characteristics impossible to explain except as a result of the creative action of God described in the Book of Genesis, chapters 1-2.

Some science journalists include ability to evolve in their lists of characteristics of life. The authors of these lists should not include the controversial theory of evolution as a characteristic of living things.

The theory of organic evolution of Earth’s millions of different species is relentlessly promoted in the literature of science. A majority of professional scientists endorse the  theory of naturalistic evolution of life. They have developed a complex theory, especially since the publication of Charles Darwin’s epic The Evolution of Species in 1859. Darwin acknowledged that life’s origin presented a knotty problem for bioscientists of his day. He conceded that life probably originated by unknown natural causes. Scientific literature is replete with expressions of uncertainty or ignorance concerning the origin of life. Conservative theologians rely on the first few chapters of Holy Scripture to develop their concept of theo-history, an account proposing that the biblical Creator is the Author of life on this planet—an example of a transcendent miracle.

Genesis 1 gives a brief theo-history of the origin of life. The Earth was a formless void, “and darkness was over the face of the deep.” In just a few words, we are given minimal detail about the initial creation event which may have occurred suddenly. This was followed by a formless mass, later to become a water world swathed in darkness. Then God said “Let there be light,” and there was light (verse 3). Verses 6-8 may refer to the beginnings of a stable water cycle.

Modern scientists know that life soon appeared in the water world in the form of bacteria. One form of bacteria was cyanobacteria. We have discovered fossilized cyanobacteria in Australia. This form of bacteria needed light for its existence and its ability to produce oxygen. Note the reference to the fossil cyanobacteria discovery by paleobiologist J. William Schopf in this link:

https://jasscience.blogspot.com/2008/05/earths-sudden-life-enigma.html

A more recent post speaks of the role of water in our primordial Earth’s “Water World”:

https://jasscience.blogspot.com/2012/02/earth-water-world.html

The initial eight verses of the Bible briefly outlines millions of years of events on Planet Earth. During this interval plentiful cyanobacteria appeared in the water of our oceans. Cyanobacteria use light energy plus water to synthesize their own food. This process is known as oxygenetic photosynthesis. The oxygen first eliminated the poisonous methane atmosphere and ultimately supplied an atmosphere of life-giving oxygen in preparation for life forms which later populated the Earth. This is known as the “Great Oxygenation Event” which prepared Planet Earth for a profusion of advanced life known as the Cambrian Explosion beginning about 530 million years ago. Many phyla appeared on Earth with relative suddenness. Most of these phyla still exist today.

 

Today’s life on Earth would be impossible without the element oxygen—21% of Earth’s atmosphere. Even though most advanced life originated at the onset of the Cambrian explosion, we might say that life originated with ancient bacteria. How did ancient bacterial life begin? We propose bacterial life began in a transcendent, divine miracle.  

The Apostle Peter quoted Genesis 1 in II Peter 3: “For they deliberately overlook this fact, that the heavens existed long ago, and the earth was formed out of water and through water by the word of God, and that by means of these the world that then existed was deluged with water and perished…but do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years and a thousand years is one day” (II Peter 3 ESV). These verses in II Peter refer to the ancient water world from which sprang life-giving atmospheric oxygen which later resulted in the Cambrian Explosion of animal and plant life we still enjoy in our day. These verses also refer to our timeless Creator. His creative activity has extended back many eons in the past.

We believe that Genesis 1:2 provides an occasion for worship: “…the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.” This historic event is affirmed by inspired scripture as well as by scientific discoveries concerning the history of cyanobacteria. Holy Scripture and paleo history both speak about the origin of life!