|
|
|
ARTICLES
STRING THEORY AND DIVINE CREATION
"The world I ‘saw’ took my breath away. . . . It vibrated and meshed, almost musical in quality, like a song. It seemed to glow with a life within, and somehow I knew that this substance held together the very planets within their orbits.”
From The Twelfth Dimension by Michelle Oh
Even though it is fictional, the excerpt from The Twelfth Dimension expresses a concept that is becoming more widely accepted among physicists--the concept of string theory. String theory is a model of fundamental physics in which the entire fabric of the universe is composed of tiny “strings” that vibrate in a number of different dimensions. The specific dimensions in which the “strings” vibrate determine the form of all matter and energy in the universe.
The history of string theory begins with the search by physicists for a unified field theory. Also known as a “theory of everything,” a unified field theory seeks to explain the mathematical repetitions in the four fundamental forces (electromagnetic force, strong and weak nuclear forces, and gravity), as a single force. Albert Einstein spent the last 30 years of his life futilely chasing a unified field theory.
Pythagoras the Greek philosopher, who is often described as the first pure mathematician, suggested in 518 BC that the universe was composed of “strings” much like those of a lyre or other stringed instrument, but almost infinitely smaller. Leonhard Euler, a Swiss mathematician, developed the first “string theory” equation in 1770. Euler’s equation lay hidden for almost 200 years until Gabriele Veneziano, an Italian Jew and physicist, discovered Euler’s equation in an old math textbook in 1968. In 1970, Japanese-born American physicist, Yoichiro Nambu, developed “bosonic" string theory in which he proposed “strings” that vibrated in 26 dimensions (25 spatial dimensions and one time dimension).
In 1971, physicists discovered that “string” vibration modes occurred in pairs (supersymmetry). This led to the development of superstring theory in 1977. By incorporating supersymmetry into string theory, superstring theory reduced the number of dimensions to 10 (nine spatial dimensions and one time dimension). Edward Witten, an American physicist took the development of string theory one step further with M-theory in 1995 by combining superstring theory with general relativity. M-theory adjusted the number of dimensions to the current 11 (nine spatial dimensions, one time dimension, and one gravity dimension). In M-theory, everything in the universe can be described with one mathematical equation.
Physicists often compare the vibrating “strings” of string theory to the vibrating strings of a piano, harp, or other stringed instrument. However, instead of producing “musical notes,” the “strings” produce the various elementary particles when they vibrate at high energy. The individual vibrating “strings” are approximately a Planck length (1.6 x 10-35 cm).
Is string theory consistent with the Biblical account of divine creation? A close look at the Bible actually reveals scriptural support for string theory. Some examples are as follows:
Scripture describes the expansion of the fabric of the universe. Psalm 104:2 states that God “. . . stretched out the heavens like a curtain.” A curtain is made of fabric, which is formed of many “strings” woven together.
Scripture uses the Hebrew word “rawkhaf”, which literally means “to flutter or vibrate” to describe God’s creative work. “Rawkhaf," which is translated “moved” in Genesis 1:2 (KJV), is frequently used in ancient Hebrew literature to describe the vibration of the strings of a musical instrument.
Scripture speaks of a spatial dimension beyond the three spatial dimensions that we experience in our daily lives. In Ephesians 3:18 (KJV), God expresses His desire that we “. . . may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height.”
Everything in the universe can be described by one mathematical equation and thus is the product of a single mind. In other words, there can be only one God who created everything--not multiple gods. I Timothy 2:5 (KJV) states that “. . . there is one God, . . ..”
All of history is the composition “played” by the vibrations of the strings that form the fabric of the universe, God Himself being the great composer. In Isaiah 16:9-10 (KJV), the sovereign creator of the universe declares, “. . . I am God and there is none else; I am God and there is none like me, Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure.”
|
|
|
|
|
|
DINOSAURS OF ASIA by Evangeline Cook
In the 1920's, an American paleontologist named Roy Chapman Andrews set off in search of the mythological "missing link" of humanity's evolution within Mongolia, in what was called the Gobi Desert Expedition. Instead, what he found revolutionized the thinking of paleontologists towards the reproduction of dinosaurs. Not only that but he also found dinosaur fossils in abundance within the large expanse of Asia. Along with these skeletons came preserved evidences of dinosaur reproduction, which are extremely rare finds. The evidence of man also living with dinosaurs has been found in China where dinosaurs were called "dragons". Some of the first evidences of dinosaurs laying eggs came from Asia. In China, preserved egg nests and shells, along with preserved embryonic Therizinosaurs, have been found in abundance, giving information to paleontologists about the reproduction of the dinosaurs as well as the dinosaurs parental care of their unborn young. With painstakingly slow laser work, paleotechnicians have opened unhatched dinosaur eggs. Seeing the embryo within can help scientists come to conclusions about the dinosaur's stage of development, age, and major characteristics. With this comes negatives as well; embryos are not always as developed as scientists would like, meaning they may not be able to gather too much evidence from them. Dinosaur eggs have not only been found within China but also within Mongolia and South Korea. These countries are a few of many in Asia and there are several sites spread throughout the entirety of the continent. Recently, the largest dinosaur eggs were foung in Korea. Some of the dinosaurs found in Asia had outstanding features, such as as exceptional size or length. Mamenchisaurus was a large sauropod with one of the longest necks ever found -- nearly forty feet in length. Elasmosaurus, a huge plesiosaur reaching forty-eight feet in length, has also been found in Japan. The Tuojiangosaurus, a close relative of the North American Stegosaurus, is one of the most thoroughly plated dinosaurs ever discovered with a back supporting up to fifteen pairs of armored plates. Other discoveries included the Oviraptor, a small, bird-like omnivore with a parrot-like beak. Asia brings evidence of man existing side-by-side with the dinosaurs. There are many stories about "dragons" from the Orient, especially from Japan and China. Ancient drawings and written accounts have been discovered, giving evidence that dinosaurs were not extinct before humans existed. Chinese accounts tell of a man named Yu, who drove the "dragons" and "serpents" into the divided land after the world flood. There are also stories of dinosaurs being kept as pets or chariot pullers. In addition, there is Biblical evidence for the co-existence of "dragons", or rather, dinosaurs, and humans co-existing together. Nehemiah 2:13 states, "And I went out by night by the gate of the valley, even before the dragon well, ..." The "behemoth" (Job 40:15-24) and the "leviathan" (Job 41) are perfect descriptions of dinosaurs. The paleontology expeditions within Asia have considerably strengthened scientists' knowledge about the dinosaurs, especially about their eggs and their parental habits. Catalogs of different dinosaurs have been discovered throughout Asia, and new dinosaurs continue to be discovered. New record-breaking dinosaurs have been found, giving fresh additions to some of the dinosaur genera. One can only hope that continual digging will come to find more and more dinosaurs within Asia, bringing evidence to light of the world's past as we have never known it. Bibliography Australian Museum Online. 2002. Australian Museum. 01 Dec. 2003 http://www.amonline.net.au/chinese_dinosaurs/factsheets/04.htm. Destination Education: Asian Dinosaurs. Dec. 2001. Destination Education. 01 Dec. 2003 http://www.destinationeducation.com/resources/ti/dinosaurs/au/by_cont_asia.shtml. Dino Data: TUOJIANGOSAURUS. Dino Data. 1 Dec. 2003 http://www.dinodata.net/Dd/Namelist?Tabt/T154.htm. Dinosaurs of the Gobi Desert. 2003, The Natural History Museum, London, 01 Dec. 2003 Http://www.nhm.ac.uk/museum/tempexhib/gobi/gobi2.html. McClung Museum: Dinosaur Eggs. 04 Sept. 2003. McClung Museum. 01 Dec. 2003 http://mcclungmuseum.utk.edu/specex/hatching.html. TrueAuthority.com: Dinosaurs In History. 2002. TrueAuthority.com. 1 Dec. 2003 http://www.trueauthority.com/dinosaurs/dinosaurhistory.htm.
GIGANOTOSAURUS by Sherah Szukala
Giganotosaurus carolinii is one of the largest meat-eating dinosaurs ever discovered, even bigger than the well-known Tyrannosaurus rex. This behemoth was 44-46 feet long and weighed at least eight tons, compared to 41 feet and six tons for T. rex. Its prey included young, sick, or injured Argentinosaurs. Because of its immense size (90 to 110 tons), a healthy, adult Argentinosaurus was probably safe from attack, even from Giganotosaurus. Giganotosaurus was bipedal and had a brain the size of a banana. Its skull was six feet long (compared to five feet for T. rex), and its enormous jaws were lined with eight-inch serrated teeth. Some of the sauropods had armor on their backs to protect them from an attack that could have only come from a predator as large as Giganotosaurus.
Giganotosaurus' skeleton was first unearthed near El Chocon in northern Patagonia, Argentina, in 1993. Near it, fossils of seventy-five foot long sauropods were found, probably victims of the giant carnivore. Giganotosaurus, which means "giant southern lizard", was named by Rodolfo Coria and Leonardo Salgado in 1995 in honor of its discoverer, Ruben Carolini. In 1996, another huge theropod was found in North Africa by Paul Sereno and named Charcharodontosaurus saharicus. This carnivore was forty-two to forty-four feet long, had a five and one-half foot skull and weighed about seven tons (slightly smaller than Giganotosaurus). It is very similar to Giganotosaurus and certainly belongs in the same genus.
Bibliography
Giganotosaurus - The Academy of Natural Sciences
http://www.acnatsci.org/museum/dinohall/gigano.html
Giganotosaurus - Dinodata
http://www.dinodata.net/Dd/Namelist/Tabg/G023.htm
Giganotosaurus - The Dinosauricon
http://dinosauricon.com/genera/giganotosaurus.html
|
|
|
|
