Animals Archives

December 23, 2022December 19, 2022

Unstable Wing Design Is Essential

“How do birds fly?” is a very old question that remains basically unanswered. We aren’t talking about simple fixed-wing flight, which uses the old physics model that a rapidly moving fluid exerts minimum pressure at a right angle to the direction of motion. We use that model for airplanes, but birds have another feature called unstable wing design. The unanswered question about bird flight is how they can be so agile. Drones have a problem with this issue because, with their fixed-wing structure, they can’t make quick direction changes.

Christina Harvey of the University of California, Davis, and Daniel Inman of the University of Michigan have examined the flight dynamics of 22 bird species. They concluded that unstable wing design is the key to what birds can do. For example, seagulls can change the shape of their wings by adjusting their wrist and elbow joints. Changing their wing shape allows them to handle wind gusts easily. Aerospace engineers have not been able to duplicate that part of flight dynamics, but most bird species manage it quite well.

Drones working in an urban environment must handle sudden wind gusts and rapid direction changes, but with a fixed-wing design, that is almost impossible. The study’s authors point out that future business-level drones or personal aircraft must be able to implement unstable wing design. However, engineers have yet to find a way to do that. Researchers funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the National Academy of Science (NAS) are working to understand how the complex design of bird wings allows unstable flight.

It is fascinating that the earliest birds of flight seen in the fossil record had a wing design that allowed unstable flight. We even find fossil birds that resemble our modern hummingbirds, which have very unstable wing design. We continue to see examples of intelligence in the design of living things. Much of what you and I enjoy, from velcro to rockets and modern aircraft, had their start when thinking people saw the design God built into life and copied it to benefit all of us.

References: The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) and the National Academy of Sciences (NAS), in their December 2022 reports,

December 21, 2022December 19, 2022

Alien Minerals and Alien Life

Andrew Locock at the University of Alberta discovered two new minerals in a fragment of the El Ali meteorite that landed in Somalia. These minerals had never been found naturally on Earth, although scientists had synthesized them in a lab. Chris Herd, an Earth and Atmospheric Sciences professor and curator of the University of Alberta’s meteorite collection, named the two alien minerals “Elaliite” and “Elkinstantonite.”

The tabloids try to use this find to suggest that alien worlds exist that are radically different from Earth. The fact is that these minerals contain the common elements iron, potassium, and oxygen. Like many other “alien minerals” such as Brianite, Xifengite, and Heamanite, scientists have synthesized them. Inorganic materials can form new chemical configurations when they are subjected to temperatures and pressures not seen on Earth’s surface. All of these minerals with unfamiliar names are the product of conditions not present on the surface of our planet.

There are chemical restraints on what elements can sustain life. Biologists tell us that life is “that form that can move, breathe. respond to outside stimuli, and reproduce.” The elements that make those functions possible are carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen. For example, living things made of iron are not chemically possible, yet iron is the dominant element in meteorites. Oxygen is the one oxidizing element that allows respiration without adverse chemical reactions that would prevent life from surviving. For that reason, life forms breathing chlorine or bromine are not possible.

At the same time, alien minerals in meteorites do not mean that alien life is impossible. On the contrary, if there is life in space, it will be made of the same elements that we are. It may not look like us or live as we do, but we will not have any trouble identifying it as life.

Every time this issue comes up, it reminds me of my experience on a radio show. I was in Washington, D.C., doing a call-in talk show with Larry King (before he became famous) and a local atheist. We had a lively discussion about science and faith with some references to alien life. A caller said to the atheist, “What would you do if a spaceship landed on the White House Lawn and a little green man jumped out with a Bible in his hand and said, ‘Has Jesus been here yet?’” Before I could point out some problems with that proposal, my atheist opponent looked at me, smiled, and said, “Punt.” Larry King responded by going to a commercial.

December 20, 2022December 20, 2022

Slime in the Natural World

If you are around kids, you may be familiar with a toy called slime. The slime toy is a messy, oozy material that is sticky but doesn’t leave residue on your fingers. It’s slippery but has a texture that allows kids to mold it into various shapes. However, slime is more than a toy. We see different forms of slime in the natural world.

The slugs in your garden and most mollusks use slime, and the nasal mucus of a variety of animals is slime. The idea for the toy that kids love to play with originated from observing slime in the natural world. Slugs use mucus slime to lubricate their path and to stick to walls. Mollusks use slime in several ways, including making pearls. Natural slime is a highly designed material that allows animals and humans to function.

The saliva that keeps your mouth wet is one form of slime, but other forms of slime or mucus produced by your body are essential for survival. Slime in the form of mucus lubricates your esophagus so that food can go down your throat. The slime that lines your stomach protects it from acids. Slime in the natural world contains proteins called mucins. Chemists have found that animals produce mucins by adding a designed chain of amino acids to an existing protein, making it much longer.

A study into the chemistry of slime in the natural world has found some potential new uses for this material. For example, Omer Gokcumen, director of the study at the University of Buffalo, says that it may lead to new ways to treat cancer and other illnesses in the mouth and throat.

God is an incredible chemist. We see unique forms of chemistry in our bodies and the biological world around us. Gokcumen’s work focused on saliva, our first defense against pathogens, allowing us to eat various foods. Food chemistry is highly complex, and understanding how the body can handle new forms of food is becoming increasingly important. Around the world, people eat very different things than what we find in the typical American diet. Thanks to God’s design, the chemistry of slime makes it possible to feed every human on the planet.

Reference: National Science Foundation Research Reports for December 2022.

December 19, 2022December 17, 2022

Sweaters for Squirrels

I got a call from a lady who was making sweaters for squirrels. She was concerned that the cold weather would make the squirrels shiver and get sick if they didn’t have protection. I tried to tell her that her heart was in the right place, but God had already made wonderful coats for the squirrels. Because of that, they do not require winter clothing to add to what God had already given them. That led to a discussion of birds who didn’t have fur coats. I asked her if she knew about goose down, and she admitted she had a goose down winter coat. “But those poor little birds on my feeder don’t have down,” she replied, “and I have seen them shiver.” Sweaters for birds seem to be more problematic than sweaters for squirrels.

That exchange started me thinking about the many ways God has equipped living things for cold climates like the one here in Michigan. When I taught physics in the public high schools of South Bend, Indiana, we covered conduction, convection, and radiation. I began the discussion on conduction by asking why we wear clothes, outside of the obvious one. The thermal conductivity of various kinds of clothing helps us stay warm in winter and cool in summer. For example, goose down is a good insulator because it holds pockets of air, and air does not conduct heat well. Likewise, the design of skin and hair involves thermal conductivity, which is why being immersed in cold water takes heat out of our bodies rapidly, causing hypothermia.

Fat is another insulating material, and having very little fat in one’s body can cause rapid heat loss. Even the color of one’s skin or hair can make a difference. One of the experiments that I had my students do was to take two identical cans and paint one black and the other white. We would then put boiling water in each can and measure the temperature of the can every minute, graphing the cooling curve of the two cans. The black can would cool much faster than the white can; in this case, the cooling is by radiation, another heat transfer method. We all know that black objects absorb heat from sunlight better than white objects. Therefore, black things also release heat more rapidly.

The physics of heat transfer is another design feature built into living things. All animals are designed with the right equipment to survive in their natural environment. That is why we don’t need to make sweaters for squirrels. However, when humans move animals to a radically different climate, the result can be dangerous.

Climate change is causing some animals to migrate to latitudes where their survival is not threatened. That is also a design feature of life. In Job 39, God challenges Job with questions about design features in living things. We are only now beginning to understand the answers to some of those questions.

December 6, 2022December 5, 2022

Turtle Talk – in Slow Motion

Technology makes it possible to hear animal communication that has gone unnoticed before. We are finding that animals we thought were silent actually use sounds to communicate with one another. Researchers at the University of Zurich in Switzerland captured sounds from 50 species of turtles, and they varied widely, including grunts, chirps, snorts, and whistles. Male turtles use sounds to woo females and as warnings while fighting with other males. Turtle talk can easily go unnoticed because it is infrequent.

We often think of turtles as being slow. Apparently, that applies to their communication also. Timing is the key. The researchers report that some turtles make a sound every two days or so. That’s probably why it hasn’t been noticed by humans before.

The Creator’s design gives all forms of life a way to communicate with others of their species. That ability is essential for reproductive purposes and allows the full exploitation of food reserves and warnings about enemies. It is obvious that high forms of life, such as monkeys and apes, communicate with sounds, but as science learns more about animal communication, we find surprising things such as turtle talk. God has given all life forms the unique equipment they need to live in varied environments.

References: SmithsonianMag.com and The Week for December 9, 2022, page 21.

December 2, 2022December 2, 2022

Recursive Sequences and Language

One of the most interesting differences between animals and humans is language. All animals communicate, and most animals that humans relate to use sounds to facilitate their communication. In recent studies, researchers have suggested that the use of recursive sequences by monkeys and crows is a type of language. However, communication and language are not the same.

The dictionary definition of recursive is “doing or saying the same thing several times in order to produce a particular result.” The newest research shows that crows and monkeys use recursive sequences at a level comparable to what a three or four-year-old child would do. There are a variety of explanations as to why these animals use recursive sequences, but this does not mean that crows and monkeys are using language or that they possess culture or express identity.

A woodpecker likes to pound on the flashing of my chimney with such enthusiasm that people can hear it throughout the neighborhood. This is communication warning all other woodpeckers to stay out of his territory. Likewise, the cardinal that sits in a bush near my office window “sings,” but the song is a warning, not an expression of language or music.

The dictionary defines language as “a system of conventional spoken, manual (signed), or written symbols by means of which human beings, as members of a social group and participants in its culture, express themselves. The functions of language include communication, the expression of identity, play, imaginative expression, and emotional release.”

The Bible defines humans as beings uniquely created in the image of God. This is a spiritual definition and does not involve intelligence or skills. We see the spiritual nature of humans in a variety of characteristics. Those include our creative ability in art and music, self-concept and recognition, and the ability to feel guilt, sympathy, and empathy. Those are all manifestations of the spiritual nature of humans. Recursive sequences may or may not be among these characteristics, but they are not a singular indicator of being human. Because of our spiritual nature, humans also have the capacity to worship and envision life beyond death.

Reference: https://dictionary.cambridge.org.

November 30, 2022November 29, 2022

Bird Brains and Efficient Neurons

In the 1950s, if you wanted to denigrate someone, you could call them a “bird brain” because people believed birds weren’t very smart. This assumption probably came from association with domesticated chickens. However, a 2016 study showed that bird brains are denser than those of many other animals. For example, a macaw has a 20-gram brain, and a squirrel monkey has a 30-gram brain, but they have the same number of neurons.

A new study of bird brains by researchers in Germany shows that bird neurons are more energy efficient than those of mammals. For example, pigeon neurons use three times less energy than mammal neurons. Birds are designed to do many things requiring brain power, including flying and singing complex vocalizations.

The lead researcher of this study suggests that the brains of birds are organized so that neurons can more easily exchange signals. Organization does not come out of random chance mutations. It requires an organizer. Watching birds around our feeders, we see them doing some incredible things. We know that they are guided by brains that have specific functions allowing them to find and use seeds and other food sources in the winter.

The brains of all animals are designed to allow them to live in a particular environment. What is unique about humans is that we can alter the environment rather than being altered by it. Also, our brains allow activities such as art, music, complex mathematics, worship, and the ability to be taught to think. Our spiritual nature sets us apart and allows our creative activity and our understanding that there is life beyond the grave.

Reference: “Food for Thought” in Scientific American December 2022.

November 26, 2022November 17, 2022

Tale of The Lonesome Pine

Don Betts is at it again as he gives us the Tale of the Lonesome Pine.
As usual, it reflects God’s design in living things.

TALE OF THE LONESOME PINE
The tall pine lived for ages, reaching for the sky,
But as time turned the pages, it was destined to die.
Green needles are long gone, no whistling in the wind.
Bark missing here and there, declaring a final end.
The role of the tree, though its beauty is diminished,
Has time yet to see its usefulness unfinished.
Standing upright still, in a mode of decay
It serves as host to others, nature’s facets on display.
Just one observation that I’ve made recently.
Was a reservation made for a home up in that tree?
A pileated woodpecker with a mind for finding grubs
Loosened rotting bark, revealing all kinds of bugs.
The staccato of its pecking and call so clamorous
Reached a pair of feathered cousins; (amorous).
The Red Bellies pecked, and a hole was soon begun.
A western orientation had them toiling in the sun.
Working with elation, they gave it their best,
And a few days later, they prepared a nest.
Falling moss, bark, and twigs evidence the continuum.
How long will they enjoy their pine tree condominium?
A final effort to be useful will find it lying inert
Still a home for worms, God’s way of turning it to dirt.

© Don Betts ~ August 4, 2022

November 23, 2022November 17, 2022

Observing Fibonacci Day

Humans look for ways to celebrate certain days. We laugh at Groundhog Day and use Valentine’s Day for special human relationships. Some days have extensive significance, such as Thanksgiving, Christmas, or Veteran’s Day. We are now observing Fibonacci Day on November 23. Fibonacci Day is an unusual celebration of a remarkable mathematical sequence.

Fibonacci was an Italian mathematician who noticed in the year 1202 some interesting oddities about a particular sequence of numbers: 1,2,3,5,8,13,21,34,55, 89,144, 233. Notice that when you add any two sequential numbers, you get the next number. For example 5 + 8 = 13; 8 + 13 = 21; etc. If you divide two sequential numbers, you get .618034, which some mathematicians have called the “golden mean.”

Applying this Fibonacci sequence to architecture, you get a practical application. A rectangle using any two sequential numbers is aesthetically pleasing to human eyes. If you cut a square off any of these rectangles, you get another rectangle with the Fibonacci sequence. If you connect the corners of the squares in a series of Fibonacci rectangles, you get a spiral (see sketch).

An amazing thing about this is that there are an unlimited number of examples of Fibonacci spirals in the natural world. A small sampling includes:
*The spiral arms of galaxies curl in a Fibonacci spiral.
*The curl of a wave in the ocean fits the Fibonacci spiral.
*The snail shells curl in a Fibonacci curve.
*Elephant tusks curve in a Fibonacci spiral.
*The roots of human teeth curve in a Fibonacci spiral.
*Spider webs fit the Fibonacci spiral
*Keys on the piano are 5 black and 8 white, 13 in all, fitting the ratio.

*Musical chords producing pleasing sounds have the Fibonacci ratio.
*Bacteria growth curves fit the Fibonacci ratio.

There is no natural or evolutionary reason for the Fibonacci sequence. Notice it isn’t just in one discipline but in widely separated areas of study.

The Fibonacci Association publishes a magazine called the Fibonacci Quarterly, and people have written several books about the Fibonacci ratio. If you are observing Fibonacci Day, realize that this demonstrates God’s design in the creation. Chance does not produce a pattern across multiple disciplines like this.

For more on this, go to DoesGodExist.tv and watch program number 5.

November 18, 2022November 15, 2022

COVID in Animals On the Rise

The COVID pandemic has taught us a lot. People need to be aware that COVID has been found in 32 different kinds of animals. A few domestic cases have had a strong effect on humans both economically and medically. Realize that this data is just the recorded cases, and the actual case numbers of COVID in animals may be far higher.

The most significant instances of COVID in animals have been in the American mink. The problem is that mink farms have large numbers of animals confined in small spaces, allowing the virus to spread quickly. The November 2022 issue of Scientific American reported 787 cases in minks. As a result, some mink farmers have had to destroy their entire stock to stop the disease from spreading. White-tailed deer are the second-highest wild animal group, with 467 reported cases of COVID.

Dogs and cats had the next highest numbers–353 cats and 225 dogs with reported COVID infections. There is great concern about these domestic animals since they are in constant contact with humans. Rounding out the domesticated animals that can carry and spread the virus are cows, hamsters, and ferrets.

The remaining cases in both the wild and in zoos include lions, tigers, gorillas, otters, beavers, lynxes, and hippopotamuses. These cases show that the virus is very active among mammals and will continue to spread unless animal vaccines are produced and used. Our domestication and use of wild animals means that new strains of COVID in animals will continue to arise. Humans can get the virus from animals as well as other humans, and we can also pass it back to animals.

Studying the origins of the disease and compiling a database of infected species will make it easier for scientists to learn how to protect against COVID and other virus infections. We humans are often our own worst enemies, but God has given us the wisdom and the tools we need to be good stewards of life on Earth.

Reference: “Covid Relay” in Scientific American magazine for November 2022, page 22 and ONLINE.