Insulated Blackbirds

Creation Moments

Insulated Blackbirds

December 16, 2024 • Ian Taylor

European blackbirds love southern Germany so much that many of them stay for the winter. Some of the blackbirds migrate to North Africa, Spain or southern France to escape the cold. Like the robin in North America, however, some European blackbirds don’t migrate.

European blackbirds are able to live through the cold German winter because they are designed with several features that use sophisticated principles from biochemistry and physics. To cope with the winter cold, the birds fluff up their feathers. This creates more insulating dead air spaces between their warm bodies and the cold. Then they tuck their head inside the feathers, making their body into a ball. A round ball is the most heat-conserving shape possible for any object. The ball also protects poorly insulated parts of their bodies – like feet, legs and beak.

Food is also more scarce in the winter. On top of that, the birds’ need for energy is five times higher at 20 degrees below zero (F) than it is during the summer. The blackbirds reduce their energy needs by lowering their body temperature at night when they are curled into a ball. Scientists have found that, as a result, European blackbirds are in no danger of freezing, even at 20 degrees below zero, as long as they can get enough food!

The intelligent special designs found in the European blackbird reflect a sophisticated knowledge of biochemistry and physics. By its very existence, the European blackbird glorifies our Creator God.

Job 12:7, 9-10

“But ask now the beasts, and they shall teach thee; and the fowls of the air, and they shall tell thee: Who knoweth not in all these that the hand of the LORD hath wrought this? In whose hand [is] the soul of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind.”

Prayer: I thank You, Lord, that You have designed Your creation not only for the benefit of Your creatures, but also so that it is nearly impossible to attribute Your handiwork to someone or something else. Amen.

Notes: “Stay-at-home blackbirds cope with cold.” Science News. Photo: Blackbird in snow, Envato.

The Miracle of Hearing

December 20, 2024 • Ian Taylor

Your high school biology textbook may have given you the idea that modern science understands how hearing works. While science understands the general principles, researchers are still trying to understand the details. Hearing starts with the skin and cartilage on the outside of our heads that we call the ear. This tissue is carefully designed to collect sound waves and focus them into the hole in the lower center part of the external ear. That hole is a tube that runs for about an inch to the eardrum. As the eardrum vibrates with the incoming sound, tiny specialized bones pick up the vibrations. One of these bones changes the vibrations into hydraulic pressure. The sound, now converted to hydraulic pressure, is sent to the cochlea. This coiled, bony canal is lined with tissue that has four long rows of hair cells. A vibration as small as the width of an atom will move these hairs. Each movement of the hair causes a change in the electrical potential of the hair cell’s membrane. This change triggers a current that is fed to the auditory nerve and interpreted as sound by the brain. Each of the hairs in the ear responds best to a specific frequency. The ability to hear could have been engineered using a much less complex design. Such a design, however, would leave us unable to hear the subtleties of an orchestra or a bird’s song. Our Creator is not only capable of excellent workmanship, but also generous in His creation. 2 Samuel 22:50 “Therefore I will give thanks unto thee, O LORD, among the heathen, and I will sing praises unto thy name.” Prayer: I thank You, dear Father, for the richness of the sounds in Your creation. Let my voice praise You and tell others of Your wondrous works, especially the salvation You have prepared through the forgiveness of sins through Your Son, Jesus Christ. Amen. Photo: Doctor with human Ear anatomy model, Envato.

A Star Takes a Swan Dive

December 19, 2024 • Ian Taylor

The life cycle of a star is supposed to be millions of years; thus, human observers should not be able to see the birth and death of an individual star. Now a star that first became visible in the year 1600 is causing some astronomers to rethink their theories about the time it takes for stars to evolve. According to the evolutionary way of dating things, some stars – like our sun – have been burning for billions of years. Astronomers say that stars go through different stages in their lifetimes. As a result, they can tell by color and brightness just how old a star is. The Bible says, of course, that the stars were created by God in the much more recent past. In the year 1600, a star in the constellation of Cygnus, the swan, suddenly became bright enough to see from earth. Astronomers report that the star, called P Cygni, has gotten gradually brighter and is half again as bright today as it was in 1700. This brightening is expected in the normal lifetime of a star. The problem is, at this rate the star is aging too fast, even for a large star. One scientist noted that the time scale for star aging can be measured in centuries rather than hundreds of centuries. In other words, so-called “old stars” can be much younger than expected. That being the case, God’s universe itself is seen to be much younger than expected – perhaps only thousands and not billions of years old. Romans 8:20-21 “For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected [the same] in hope, Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.” Prayer: Dear Father, as I am reminded that the entire creation is growing old and wearing out because of sin, cheer me again with the sure knowledge of the forgiveness of sin won for me by Your Son, Jesus Christ, on the cross. In His Name. Amen. Photo: Constellations, Johannes Hevelius, Scanned by Torsten Bronger, PD, Wikicommons, changes made.

Crunchy Medicine

December 18, 2024 • Ian Taylor

Celery is an old Asian folk remedy for mild cases of high blood pressure. In one unscientific test, the father of a University of Chicago medical student lowered his mild hypertension simply by adding a quarter pound of celery to his diet every day for a week. Now his son, a doctor named Quang T. Le, believes he has discovered how celery lowers blood pressure. His discovery could change the way high blood pressure is treated. Hypertension is caused when the smooth muscle lining of the blood vessels tightens. This makes vessels narrower, making it more difficult for blood to get through. Stress hormones in the blood cause the muscles to tighten. Dr. Le discovered that celery contains a chemical that relaxes the smooth muscle tissue of the vessels. It does this by getting to the root of the problem. Stress hormones are made by the body using a specific enzyme. The natural chemical in celery prevents the enzyme from forming into stress hormones, thus preventing the chemistry that creates high blood pressure. The researchers hope that the chemical will lead to a more effective treatment for high blood pressure. They also recommend against eating celery to lower blood pressure since it contains sodium and other chemicals that can be harmful to some people when taken in high dosages. How did the ancient Asians learn about this natural solution to hypertension? Clearly, so-called ancient man had a great deal of knowledge about the creation that we are only just learning. 1 Corinthians 15:49 “And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly.” Prayer: Lord, when people today talk about previous generations as simple and primitive, they are demeaning Your workmanship, for man was made in Your image. Through the forgiveness of my sins, help me live in Your image today. Amen. Photo: Man holding celery produce from farm, Envato.