ANT IMPOSTER GLORIFIES GOD’S CREATIVITY
Psalm 104:24
O LORD, how manifold are Your works! In wisdom You have made them all. The earth is full of Your possessions...
Deep inside an ant colony, perhaps in a decaying log in northern Idaho or even the north woods of Minnesota, there are ants who only think they are taking care of their pupae. In addition to attending to their young, however, they are providing a dangerous ant predator with food and protection as it matures. The predator, called Microdon, matures into a fly like creature that lives only long enough to mate and lay eggs.
How does Microdon get welcomed into the ant's nest? It folds itself in half and ends up looking just like an ant larva. When researchers exposed some of the fly larvae in an ant nest, the ants quickly rescued the folded-over Microdon as if they were ant larvae. During its first of three larval stages, Microdon enters an ant cocoon and eats the contents. During its two later stages, Microdon moves unchallenged about the nest, eating more ant larvae. This fact at first puzzled researchers, since ants communicate and identify each other through specialized chemical signals. Further research revealed that Microdon are actually able to perfectly mimic this chemical communication! But perhaps the most fascinating feature of Microdon are the odd structures found on the outside of its third stage. These vary from individual to individual and may look like toadstools or flowers. Scientists are unsure of their purpose. But they do marvel over the rich variety of the shapes, which seem unnecessary. While such variety may be unnecessary, they and the other features of Microdon testify to the rich creativity of our Creator God.
Thank You, dear Father, for the rich variety found in Your Creation. Amen.
Gregory Paulson and Roger D. Akre, A Fly in Ant's Clothing, Natural History, 1/94, p.56. Photo: Microdon mutabilis. Courtesy of PaulT. (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Psalm 104:24
O LORD, how manifold are Your works! In wisdom You have made them all. The earth is full of Your possessions...
Deep inside an ant colony, perhaps in a decaying log in northern Idaho or even the north woods of Minnesota, there are ants who only think they are taking care of their pupae. In addition to attending to their young, however, they are providing a dangerous ant predator with food and protection as it matures. The predator, called Microdon, matures into a fly like creature that lives only long enough to mate and lay eggs.
How does Microdon get welcomed into the ant's nest? It folds itself in half and ends up looking just like an ant larva. When researchers exposed some of the fly larvae in an ant nest, the ants quickly rescued the folded-over Microdon as if they were ant larvae. During its first of three larval stages, Microdon enters an ant cocoon and eats the contents. During its two later stages, Microdon moves unchallenged about the nest, eating more ant larvae. This fact at first puzzled researchers, since ants communicate and identify each other through specialized chemical signals. Further research revealed that Microdon are actually able to perfectly mimic this chemical communication! But perhaps the most fascinating feature of Microdon are the odd structures found on the outside of its third stage. These vary from individual to individual and may look like toadstools or flowers. Scientists are unsure of their purpose. But they do marvel over the rich variety of the shapes, which seem unnecessary. While such variety may be unnecessary, they and the other features of Microdon testify to the rich creativity of our Creator God.
Thank You, dear Father, for the rich variety found in Your Creation. Amen.
Gregory Paulson and Roger D. Akre, A Fly in Ant's Clothing, Natural History, 1/94, p.56. Photo: Microdon mutabilis. Courtesy of PaulT. (CC BY-SA 3.0)
UNBORN BABIES PROTECT THEMSELVES
Psalm 139:13
For You have formed my inward parts; You have covered me in my mother's womb.
When someone receives a donated organ they must take powerful drugs to prevent rejection. That's because the body's immune system identifies the implanted organ as "not me." It then assumes that the invader is dangerous and must be destroyed. That brings us to a puzzling mystery that scientists have been trying to solve: Why doesn't a mother's body recognize her unborn baby as being foreign to her body? After all, carrying genetic information from the mother and father, the unborn baby is genetically unique.
Some scientists theorize that the placenta is a physical barrier between the baby and the mother's immune system. Others believe that the unborn baby somehow hides from the mother's immune system. A third theory is that the mother's immune system is somehow forced to tolerate the unborn child. New research from scientists at the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta, Georgia, supports this third alternative. Researchers have shown that the placenta produces an enzyme (IDO) that works to suppress immune cells. In effect, the unborn child puts together just the right enzyme to keep mom's immune system from attacking it. Scientists say that this discovery may lead to new drugs to treat autoimmune diseases and organ rejection.
This system or a similar system had to be fully operational in the first creature for successful pregnancies and births. It could not gradually evolve. This fact and the wisdom of this system provides more evidence of an all-wise, all powerful Creator of every form of life and all that exists.
I thank You, Father, that You protected me in my mother's womb. Amen.
J.T., Don't reject me, fetus tells Mom, Science News, v.154, p.152, September 5, 1998. Photo: Human placenta with umbilical cord a few moments after birth. (PD)
Psalm 139:13
For You have formed my inward parts; You have covered me in my mother's womb.
When someone receives a donated organ they must take powerful drugs to prevent rejection. That's because the body's immune system identifies the implanted organ as "not me." It then assumes that the invader is dangerous and must be destroyed. That brings us to a puzzling mystery that scientists have been trying to solve: Why doesn't a mother's body recognize her unborn baby as being foreign to her body? After all, carrying genetic information from the mother and father, the unborn baby is genetically unique.
Some scientists theorize that the placenta is a physical barrier between the baby and the mother's immune system. Others believe that the unborn baby somehow hides from the mother's immune system. A third theory is that the mother's immune system is somehow forced to tolerate the unborn child. New research from scientists at the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta, Georgia, supports this third alternative. Researchers have shown that the placenta produces an enzyme (IDO) that works to suppress immune cells. In effect, the unborn child puts together just the right enzyme to keep mom's immune system from attacking it. Scientists say that this discovery may lead to new drugs to treat autoimmune diseases and organ rejection.
This system or a similar system had to be fully operational in the first creature for successful pregnancies and births. It could not gradually evolve. This fact and the wisdom of this system provides more evidence of an all-wise, all powerful Creator of every form of life and all that exists.
I thank You, Father, that You protected me in my mother's womb. Amen.
J.T., Don't reject me, fetus tells Mom, Science News, v.154, p.152, September 5, 1998. Photo: Human placenta with umbilical cord a few moments after birth. (PD)
GOD�S LOVING OWNERSHIP
Psalm 50:11
I know all the birds of the mountains, and the wild beasts of the field are Mine.
Have you ever tried to get a bottle in a baby's mouth in a dark room? It would be handy if the baby had a glowing target on its mouth. God has given the Gouldian finch, a native of Australia, a unique solution to this problem.
The Gouldian finch sports bright, parrot-like colors. A single bird may carry feathers in up to six brilliant colors, including sky blue, dark blue, yellow, green, purple and black. The finch's face may be red, orange or black. Found mostly in the grasslands of northern Australia, the finches usually build their nests of loosely woven dried grass. These nests are usually built in a tree hollow, a termite mound or in the grass itself. Consequently, finches often find themselves having to feed their young in low-light conditions. But God, knowing the behavior He built into these birds, has provided a solution for this problem. You might put a night light in the baby's room so you can find her mouth at night. God has done about the same for the Gouldian finch. Their young have two pairs of iridescent nodules marking the margin of their beaks. These nodules don't generate light. Instead, they are highly efficient reflectors that glow purplish-blue in all but total darkness. Lest anyone question whether these nodules were specially designed to help the parents feed their young, we note that the nodules disappear as the young birds mature into adulthood.
God can claim ownership over all living things because He made them. Because He made you and me He has not only claimed ownership over us, but even though we ruined His perfect creation with our sin, He sent His Son to save us.
Father, I praise You for Your love and salvation in Your Son. Amen.
Carl Wieland, Purple Pearls of Creative Wisdom, Creation, 21(3) June-August. Photo: Male adult Gouldian finch. Courtesy of Martin Pot. (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Psalm 50:11
I know all the birds of the mountains, and the wild beasts of the field are Mine.
Have you ever tried to get a bottle in a baby's mouth in a dark room? It would be handy if the baby had a glowing target on its mouth. God has given the Gouldian finch, a native of Australia, a unique solution to this problem.
The Gouldian finch sports bright, parrot-like colors. A single bird may carry feathers in up to six brilliant colors, including sky blue, dark blue, yellow, green, purple and black. The finch's face may be red, orange or black. Found mostly in the grasslands of northern Australia, the finches usually build their nests of loosely woven dried grass. These nests are usually built in a tree hollow, a termite mound or in the grass itself. Consequently, finches often find themselves having to feed their young in low-light conditions. But God, knowing the behavior He built into these birds, has provided a solution for this problem. You might put a night light in the baby's room so you can find her mouth at night. God has done about the same for the Gouldian finch. Their young have two pairs of iridescent nodules marking the margin of their beaks. These nodules don't generate light. Instead, they are highly efficient reflectors that glow purplish-blue in all but total darkness. Lest anyone question whether these nodules were specially designed to help the parents feed their young, we note that the nodules disappear as the young birds mature into adulthood.
God can claim ownership over all living things because He made them. Because He made you and me He has not only claimed ownership over us, but even though we ruined His perfect creation with our sin, He sent His Son to save us.
Father, I praise You for Your love and salvation in Your Son. Amen.
Carl Wieland, Purple Pearls of Creative Wisdom, Creation, 21(3) June-August. Photo: Male adult Gouldian finch. Courtesy of Martin Pot. (CC BY-SA 3.0)
SENSE AND SMELL
Leviticus 3:5
Then Aaron's sons shall burn it on the altar on top of the burnt offering, which is on the wood on the fire; it is a food offering with a pleasing aroma to the LORD.
What determines the sort of smells that we like and dislike? Is it nature or nurture? Do we like the smells of the environment, in which we were brought up, or are our likes and dislikes inherited from previous generations?
Scientists at the University of Campinas in Brazil have done some interesting work on the subject. The olfactory sense is by far the most complex of our senses. Our eyes basically work with three kinds of sensors, arranged around the three primary colors. Taste involves 49 different receptors, but can be approximated by five primary tastes. However, the number of different olfactory sensors numbers into the thousands, with at least ten primary scents�though there could be more.
Brazilian scientists showed, as expected, that the construction of the olfactory sensors in the noses of laboratory mice was mostly determined by genetics. However, they placed genetically different mice in similar olfactory environments, and genetically similar mice in differently smelling environments, to see if environmental characteristics had any influence on these receptors. They did. The genetic factor was the most important, but there was a significant difference between receptors in genetically similar mice placed in different environments.
It is interesting that, in the Bible prayer is likened to an aroma ascending to the Lord. This is the reason for much of the symbolism of aromatic sacrifices, both from the smell of cooking, and from the scent produced by skilled perfumers. God desires an environment of sweet-smelling prayer for us, and this is clearly the best environment for us to be in.
Father, may our lives be as a living sacrifice to You. May our prayers be a sweet savor in Your nostrils, as we praise You Holy Name. Amen.
Ref: Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute. (2017, April 25). Genetics, environment combine to give everyone a unique sense of smell: Genetically identical mice develop different smell receptors in response to their environments. ScienceDaily. Retrieved April 25, 2017 from www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/04/170425092312.htm. Image: Laboratory Mouse, author: Rama, license: Creative Commons Share-alike 2.0 French.
Leviticus 3:5
Then Aaron's sons shall burn it on the altar on top of the burnt offering, which is on the wood on the fire; it is a food offering with a pleasing aroma to the LORD.
What determines the sort of smells that we like and dislike? Is it nature or nurture? Do we like the smells of the environment, in which we were brought up, or are our likes and dislikes inherited from previous generations?
Scientists at the University of Campinas in Brazil have done some interesting work on the subject. The olfactory sense is by far the most complex of our senses. Our eyes basically work with three kinds of sensors, arranged around the three primary colors. Taste involves 49 different receptors, but can be approximated by five primary tastes. However, the number of different olfactory sensors numbers into the thousands, with at least ten primary scents�though there could be more.
Brazilian scientists showed, as expected, that the construction of the olfactory sensors in the noses of laboratory mice was mostly determined by genetics. However, they placed genetically different mice in similar olfactory environments, and genetically similar mice in differently smelling environments, to see if environmental characteristics had any influence on these receptors. They did. The genetic factor was the most important, but there was a significant difference between receptors in genetically similar mice placed in different environments.
It is interesting that, in the Bible prayer is likened to an aroma ascending to the Lord. This is the reason for much of the symbolism of aromatic sacrifices, both from the smell of cooking, and from the scent produced by skilled perfumers. God desires an environment of sweet-smelling prayer for us, and this is clearly the best environment for us to be in.
Father, may our lives be as a living sacrifice to You. May our prayers be a sweet savor in Your nostrils, as we praise You Holy Name. Amen.
Ref: Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute. (2017, April 25). Genetics, environment combine to give everyone a unique sense of smell: Genetically identical mice develop different smell receptors in response to their environments. ScienceDaily. Retrieved April 25, 2017 from www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/04/170425092312.htm. Image: Laboratory Mouse, author: Rama, license: Creative Commons Share-alike 2.0 French.
IS PIZZA GOOD FOR YOU?
1 Corinthians 3:16
Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?
Could pizza be good for you? Research into tomatoes has shown that tomatoes, especially cooked, have powerful health benefits. That's because tomatoes have a powerful antioxidant called lycopene, in addition to beta carotene, other B vitamins, vitamin C and other important minerals. A four-ounce tomato can provide you with one-third the recommended daily amount of vitamin C.
A European study of 1,300 men suggested that those who consumed the most lycopene in their food cut their heart attack rate in half, compared to those who had less lycopene in their diet. Another study that lasted five years followed the eating habits of 48,000 men. Those who ate 10 servings a week of cooked tomatoes, in whatever form, had one-third the rate of prostate cancer of those who ate less than two servings a week. Cooking tomatoes, as you would for pizza and pasta sauce, makes five times more lycopene available to you than eating the same amount of raw tomatoes. That's because cooking breaks down the cell walls of the tomato, making the lycopene more available for digestion. Watermelons and pink grapefruit also have lycopene, but only as much or less as cooked tomatoes.
Our bodies are called temples of the Holy Spirit by Scripture. God has richly provided us with healthy foods to keep our temples healthy. Even pasta sauce and pizza offer us health benefits in addition to tasty dining.
I thank You, heavenly Father, that You have given me the means to take care of my temple. Help me to use them. Amen.
Mayo Clinic Health Letter, September 1998. Photo: Courtesy of Pixabay. (PD)
1 Corinthians 3:16
Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?
Could pizza be good for you? Research into tomatoes has shown that tomatoes, especially cooked, have powerful health benefits. That's because tomatoes have a powerful antioxidant called lycopene, in addition to beta carotene, other B vitamins, vitamin C and other important minerals. A four-ounce tomato can provide you with one-third the recommended daily amount of vitamin C.
A European study of 1,300 men suggested that those who consumed the most lycopene in their food cut their heart attack rate in half, compared to those who had less lycopene in their diet. Another study that lasted five years followed the eating habits of 48,000 men. Those who ate 10 servings a week of cooked tomatoes, in whatever form, had one-third the rate of prostate cancer of those who ate less than two servings a week. Cooking tomatoes, as you would for pizza and pasta sauce, makes five times more lycopene available to you than eating the same amount of raw tomatoes. That's because cooking breaks down the cell walls of the tomato, making the lycopene more available for digestion. Watermelons and pink grapefruit also have lycopene, but only as much or less as cooked tomatoes.
Our bodies are called temples of the Holy Spirit by Scripture. God has richly provided us with healthy foods to keep our temples healthy. Even pasta sauce and pizza offer us health benefits in addition to tasty dining.
I thank You, heavenly Father, that You have given me the means to take care of my temple. Help me to use them. Amen.
Mayo Clinic Health Letter, September 1998. Photo: Courtesy of Pixabay. (PD)
PLEASE VISIT MY WIFES WEBSITE. SHE RUNS "YOUNG LIVING" WHICH PROVIDES ALL NATURAL OILS THAT CAN BE USED INTERNALLY AND EXTERNALLY INCLUDING A DEFUSER WHICH PUTS AN AMAZING ODOR IN THE AIR. THIS PRODUCT IS SO AMAZING AND KNOW THAT YOU WILL GET YEARS OF ENJOYMENT FROM IT. GOTO HTTP://WWW.YOUNGLIVING.ORG/CDROSES
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.