Plants Archives - Page 2 of 23 - DOES GOD EXIST? TODAY

September 12, 2024September 11, 2024

How a Delicate Root Can Penetrate Hard Rock

We have all seen plants growing through cracks in concrete or bedrock and wondered how a delicate root can penetrate hard rock. Recent research has shown that the root jackhammer process is highly complex.

In a paper published in the journal Current Biology, a group of researchers discovered some of the secrets of how a delicate root can penetrate hard rock. For one thing, the optimum angle for the root tip to attack is 90 degrees. Striking the hard object at a different angle could cause the root to deflect. A protein called OsAUX1 keeps the root tip pointed down.

Another way that roots are similar to a jackhammer is that the root hairs provide an anchor for the root, and OsAUX1 causes more root hairs to grow. If you have ever seen a worker using a jackhammer, you know that someone has to hold it tight, or it will bounce on the material’s surface instead of penetrating.

Another protein that helps explain how a delicate root can penetrate hard rock is PIEZO1. If the root continued to grow quickly when it contacts a rigid material, it would likely bend or break. PIEZO1 signals the root to slow down when it encounters a hard barrier. This “touch-sensitive” protein shows more engineering involved in root growth. In all, 14 proteins, plus genes, promoters, hormones, and tissues enable roots to perform their amazing stunts.

The importance of this design is Earth-shattering, or should we say rock-shattering. It explains how soil is produced in an area where rock dominates Earth’s surface, as in a lava flow or an intrusive rock like granite. The process is like a jackhammer in which root caps use weaknesses in the host rock to penetrate and break the rock into smaller pieces so plants can secure the nutrients they need.

Some plants in unusual environments don’t use roots in the same way. Plants living in ocean environments or along sand bars, such as mangroves, have a different process to sustain themselves. Air ferns and epiphytes don’t have the same kind of root system as a maple tree. The diversity of plant life and how each type of plant handles its environment is a great testimony to design and the wisdom of the Creator.

— John N. Clayton © 2024
Reference: Evolution News & Science Today

September 10, 2024September 9, 2024

Protecting Parasites from Extinction

We tend to view parasites as destructive, even repulsive, unwanted nuisances. However, scientists are finding that parasites often perform beneficial roles in the ecosystem. Some scientists think we should be protecting parasites from extinction.

Scientists are concerned that we have not studied the roles of parasites in maintaining a balanced ecosystem. For example, a parasite known as Toxoplasma gondii infects mice, causing them to lose their fear of cats. Cats have an acid in their gut that Toxoplasma gondii needs to reproduce, so the mouse is an intermediate host for the parasite to get into the cat. This appears to be a highly designed system in which a parasite controls the mouse population through cats.

Kayce Bell of the Los Angeles County Natural History Museum said, “If you remove something from an ecosystem, we cannot foresee what the consequences will be.” That is true of familiar plants and animals but may also be true of parasites. Moreover, it seems that some parasites keep other parasites under control. In 2020, scientists who study parasites published a paper in the journal Biological Conservation calling for protecting parasites from extinction, beginning with a study of what parasites exist.

Scientists estimate that 40% of all known animal species on Earth are parasites. The bottom line is that we don’t understand the role parasites play in the natural world. The fact that we don’t know what beneficial things parasites do is a challenge as we struggle to conserve ecosystems worldwide. Everywhere we look, we see a system design that testifies to a Designer.

— John N. Clayton © 2024
Reference: “The Problem with Parasites” in Discover magazine for September/October 2024, pages 21-28

August 29, 2024August 27, 2024

Trees Are Affected by Smoke

Smoke from wildfires has been a fact of life for virtually everyone. Even here in Michigan, we have seen smoke from the fires on the West Coast. At times, it has been dense enough that some folks with respiratory illnesses have had to stay inside and use air purifiers to breathe. Researchers at Colorado State University have found that even trees are affected by smoke, but they have a system designed into them to avoid damage that smoke can cause.

Plants have pores called stomata on their leaves, which do the opposite of our lungs by taking in carbon dioxide and expelling oxygen. However, taking in smoke could interfere with this process. The researchers found that when smoke wafted across ponderosa pines, the trees responded by closing their stomata, essentially holding their breath.

Smoke in the air is not a new feature in the natural world. Fires are expected whenever there are forests and dry weather, even without human carelessness. Since trees are affected by smoke, they have a designed response to what might damage their ability to take in carbon dioxide. This is just one more example of the incredible thought and planning that went into the creation.

Genesis 1:11-12 tells us that God created the fruit tree, but as we look deeper into the makeup of trees, we see the handiwork of God displayed in this remarkable design. Research is ongoing to see if this is true of all plants, including those we depend on for food. This question becomes very important with the increase in wildfires in the past two years.

— John N. Clayton © 2024
Reference: The Week for August 30, 2024, page 21.

August 26, 2024August 25, 2024

“Plant Neuroscientists” and Plant Consciousness

“Plant Neuroscientists” Claim Plant Consciousness

Several “plant neuroscientists” have written papers claiming that plants have intelligence and cognition and experience pain and other feelings. This is not the work of crackpots but of reputable scientists writing in professional journals.

It started in 2006 with an article in the scientific journal Trends in Plant Science by E.D. Brenner titled “Plant Neurobiology: An Integrated View of Plant Signaling.” In 2009, Frantisek Baluska claimed that root tips were “a brain-like command center.” In 2016, Monica Gagliano claimed to have demonstrated Pavlov-type classical conditioning in pea plants. The following year, she wrote that plants have an “internal value system” and use “feelings” to “motivate their choices.”

Plant neuroscientists accuse scientists who reject their claims of being “animal chauvinists.” The reality is that if you reject eating plants because they have feelings and experience pain, you will also have to reject eating insects or animals of any kind, such as fish, birds, or even farm animals. That leaves you with nothing to eat.

Genesis 1:29 finds God telling Adam and Eve, “I have given you every herb bearing seed … and every tree in which there is fruit for food.” In Genesis 9:3, God told Noah, “Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you even as the green plant I have given you.” God gave humans the capacity to have adequate food and challenged us to manage His environment with intelligence and respect.

Scientific evidence shows that what plant neuroscientists interpret as consciousness is a misunderstanding of the design God built into plants. It is well known that sunflower blooms will turn to follow the Sun from sunrise to sunset. Are the sunflowers thinking and acting on their thoughts? Of course not! This function is programmed into the plants to give them maximum sunlight exposure.

We have all seen plants wilt when they are too dry or hot. Is this the result of feeling pain or thinking out the need to reduce leaf area? An intelligent Creator hard-wired these responses into their DNA. Animals have consciousness because of a complex nervous system and a brain system that oversees the neural pathways. Conscious responses to pain help animals and humans survive.

I have known people who talk to their plants and claim that it makes the plants grow better. I must admit that I have talked to my car when it wasn’t working. Whether plants or cars, our conversations are really for our own benefit, not the thing we are taking to. We tend to anthropomorphize plants and cars, giving them human attributes. God has designed plants to feed us, shade us, and show us beauty, but they are not created like us and are not to be worshipped.

— John N. Clayton © 2024
Reference: Skeptical Inquirer for September/October 2024, pages 21-23.

August 22, 2024August 20, 2024

The Giant Sequoia Design

The design that God has built into every ecosystem continues to radiate the truth of the biblical statement that we can know there is a God through the things He has made (Romans 1:20). As science discovers design in the creation, the truth of that biblical statement becomes obvious. We often see design in very small things such as bacteria, viruses, and algae, but on the other end of the scale, we find very large objects such as the giant sequoia.

Imagine a plant that can be uninjured by fire but needs fire to reproduce. In our day of forest mismanagement resulting in massive fires, this feature becomes important. In the past, smaller fires wiped out ordinary trees like oaks or maples. The super-large trees were unaffected by the fires and used them as part of their reproductive design. One of the most notable examples is the giant sequoia found in California.

The giant sequoia is so tall and large that fire does not affect it. The tree stands more than 370 feet tall. (A football field is 300 feet long.) Giant sequoias weigh 640 tons, as much as 107 elephants. They can be up to 29 feet wide and are not affected by the blights that affect ash, elm, oak, or maple trees. In California, the redwoods cover 1.6 million acres, and the giant sequoias another 48,000 acres. These trees, which do not depend on groundwater and a root system, get their moisture from snow, rain, and fog.

These giant trees occupy a unique ecological niche among Earth’s staggering diversity of plant and animal life. They show God’s design and planning, making our planet extraordinary.

Reference: SaveTheRedwoods.org

August 5, 2024August 3, 2024

Tumbleweed Life

One of the most ingenious methods of spreading seeds in the natural world is the design and function of the tumbleweed. These plants exist in dry places where there is a lot of wind. The tumbleweed life is challenging.

The tumbleweed design deals with two big problems. The first is that the plant must be structured so that the part of the plant with the seeds has a low mass so the wind can move it. The second requirement is that the framework holding the seeds must be designed to attach to something in a place where the seeds can germinate.

If you have been around tumbleweeds, you know not to grab them or allow them to bump into you. The tumbleweed’s framework is covered with sharp edges, so once it strikes something, it stays put until the seeds are dispersed and the rainy season has started.

The typical design of plants involves seeds or roots being planted in soil and drawing nourishment to produce leaves, blooms, and fruit. In arid desert areas, fertile soil is a rarity, yet tumbleweeds, with their unique design, continue to thrive, overcoming this significant challenge.

In human relationships, we can draw a parallel. Some people live a tumbleweed life with sharp edges and no roots. They exist in empty spaces, hurting anyone they touch. This destructive nature of a ‘tumbleweed life’ underscores the importance of being rooted in the positive values of Christ and His teachings. Not putting down roots is a sure way to tumble, and rooting oneself in Christ can provide the stability and the best that life has to offer.

July 24, 2024July 23, 2024

Baobab Trees – Tree of Life

Fossil evidence of ancient trees known as baobabs found in Madagascar shows that they are among Earth’s oldest life forms. This genus, known as Adansonia, has eight species in Madagascar, Africa, and northwest Australia. People call them the “upside down trees” because of their shape. The nickname “tree of life” comes from the fact that they can live for thousands of years and grow to huge sizes.

The fruits of baobab trees are a superfood, and people use their trunks to make fibers for rope or clothing. The baobab’s large white flowers open at dusk, attracting bats as pollinators. The branches of the trees are nesting sites for birds. These trees look very different from modern trees. They have a pyramid shape with a large trunk that stores huge amounts of water and no limbs or leaves except at the top. They might remind you of a giant toadstool, but the shape is ideal for storing water and the safety of bats and birds.

DNA studies show a starting point for baobab trees in Madagascar, tracking their journey on ocean currents to Australia and Africa, where local conditions shaped them into what we see today. Scientific data shows no connection between baobabs and gymnosperms like pine trees and modern trees like oaks and palms.

Attention has been drawn to the fact that baobab trees are so useful that they are being overharvested. Genesis 2:9 tells us that “God made all kinds of trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food.” The diversity we see in creation speaks of an intelligent purpose for plants, and everywhere we look, we see the benefits plants provide. Baobabs remind us that we live in a very special place, and we must not let greed, ignorance, and selfishness destroy what God has given us.

Reference: BBC News for May 15, 2024, and the journal Nature.

July 4, 2024July 2, 2024

Corn Growing in America

God has blessed us with many different plants for food. In Genesis 3:17-19 we read, “Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil, you will eat food from it all the days of your life. It will produce thorns and thistles for you and you will eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your brow, you will eat your food until you return to the ground since from it you were taken; for dust you are, and to dust you will return.” If you have ever had a large garden or a farm, you know how true these words are. Plants provide food and essential materials for people worldwide, and corn growing is dominant in the United States.

One bushel of corn requires 50 to 60 plants, yielding 91 ears. That boils down to 80,000 kernels, which will produce corn syrup for 400 cans of soda or 2.8 gallons of ethanol. In the United States, farmers use 90 million acres to grow corn, and 40% of it is used to make ethanol. Corn is also used to make sweeteners, starches, oils, medicines, cosmetics, bioplastics, crayons, toothpaste, and salad dressings.

Corn growing is a major farming activity in Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, and neighboring states. The history of corn cultivation is fascinating. A wild grass called teosinte produced small ears of a material called maize. Through selective breeding, Mexican farmers produced some 250 kinds of corn. Modern agricultural science has continued to produce larger ears with greater nutritional content. Corn, as we know it, was not available to the ancient Hebrews, but other grains were.

Today, many are rightfully concerned about the increasing conversion of grasslands into cornfields. Corn cultivation, with its substantial water requirements and potential impact on climate and water pollution, raises important environmental issues. As stewards of God’s creation, we are entrusted with the responsibility to ‘take care of the garden’ (Genesis 2:15). We possess the tools and resources to fulfill this duty and must use them wisely, ensuring that we are good stewards of God’s gifts.

Reference: worldwildlife.org

May 14, 2024May 13, 2024

A Balanced System of Ocean Life

Kelp safeguards the ocean’s ecology by providing a home for many sea creatures, preventing coastal erosion, and sequestering vast amounts of carbon dioxide. The last century has seen a massive decrease in kelp growing along the California coast because of an increase in sea urchins that eat kelp. Sea otters feed on sea urchins, and as people killed sea otters for their fur, the urchin population increased, reducing the underwater kelp forests. It is easy to see that God has given us a balanced system of ocean life, but humans sometimes upset the balance.

Sea otters have a fast metabolism, requiring them to eat a fourth of their body weight daily, and sea urchins are their favorite food. Because of the fur trade, sea otters disappeared from Northern and Southern California, with a small population remaining in the central part of the state. In 1913, California made sea otters protected mammals, but 1977’s Endangered Species Act gave them more protection. Since then, central California has seen a 58% increase in kelp while kelp in the northern and southern coasts has declined. Research has shown that sea otters are the reason for the ecological improvement in Central California.

Any time humans disturb the balanced system of ocean life or any ecosystem, negative consequences result. The biological design of our planet does not just consist of separate independent organisms, but all of life on Earth is interconnected. An analogy might be the workings of an airplane. Multiple systems operate within an aircraft, including the landing gear, engines, electrical system, hydraulics, wings, rudder, etc. For it to fly, all of those systems must work together. Engineers must design a plan that integrates those systems. The aircraft doesn’t happen by accident but by the design of intelligent engineers.

All of life on Earth is interrelated and not a product of chance. There is design in all of life and in the planet itself that allows us to exist. In Proverbs 8, “Wisdom” encourages us to see God’s wise design on this planet. In verses 22-31, we see specific wisdom shown in various applications involved in preparing planet Earth for life. Verses 35-36, we see the alternative to understanding God’s use of wisdom in creating the world in which we live. Verse 35 tells us that those who find wisdom find life, and those who do not find wisdom harm themselves and prefer death. We all see all around us the interaction of living things and what happens when humans destroy one of them.

Let us learn from the balanced system of ocean life that includes kelp, sea otters, and urchins. Caring for all life is a challenge God has given us in Genesis 2:15. The need to do this is more clear today than ever before.

Reference: Smithsonian magazine and The Week of April 26, 2024, page 21.

April 29, 2024April 28, 2024

A Plant That Sweats

You and I keep cool in hot weather by evaporating water from our skin. For water to evaporate, it has to absorb roughly 540 calories per gram of water without changing its temperature. That removes a lot of heat from our bodies, allowing us to survive hot weather. Botanists have discovered that the carline thistle plant cools itself by evaporation. You could say it’s a plant that sweats.

Carline thistles grow in an area of southern Spain where almost no other plants can survive. In August, everything shrivels and dies in the arid region around the Sierra de Cazorla mountain range, except the carline thistle. By evaporative cooling, the flowers on this plant average nine degrees cooler than the surrounding air and may be as much as 18 degrees cooler.

To perform photosynthesis, leaves allow carbon dioxide to enter through tiny pores called stomata. During this exchange, some water in the leaf escapes, allowing some evaporation. However, the carline thistle is the only known plant that allows substantial quantities of water to move to the surface, making it a plant that sweats. That provides cooling to allow the carline thistle to survive the heat of Spain’s Mediterranean habitat.

Researchers still don’t know how the carline thistle can retrieve enough water from the ground to continue this process. They plan to study the root structure for novelties that might explain it. The carline thistle’s advantage is access to pollinators. Since all other plants die, the thistle has sole access to bees and other pollinators when it flowers in August.

Scientists are interested in this plant’s ability to survive the heat as the planet enters a period of increased temperatures. Vast areas of Earth face drought conditions, and there have always been regions of high temperatures and a lack of precipitation. God has designed plants to survive every conceivable climatic condition, even a plant that sweats. We must use what God has given us intelligently, and the carline thistle deserves our study and attention.

Reference: “This Flower Refrigerates Itself to Survive Scorching Summers” in Scientific American, May 2024, pages 18-19.