science and christianity 1

7/31/2019 Science and Christianity 1

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Science & ChristianitySeminar Series

Part 1: Origins of Life?

ABSK [Asian Baptist Student Koinonia]

presents:


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Outline of todayssession

1. Precise Universal Physical Constants

2. Consequences of Big Bang

3. Origin of Biological Molecules


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Universal PhysicalConstants


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Just how precise?

Example 1: Expansion of the Universe

If larger, no galaxy formation

If smaller, universe collapses beforestar formation

In fact, it is precise to a factor of

1 in 100,000,000,000,000,000


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Even more precisefor

Force of Gravity

If larger, stars would be too hot and

would burn up quickly & unevenly

If smaller, stars would be too cool and

nuclear fusion would not ignite (no

heavy element production)

In fact, it is precise to a factor of

1 in 10100 [thats 100 zeros]


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Very, very, veryprecise!

50 such universal physical constants are likewise

fine-tuned

[over many years there had grown up a

collection of] a series of mysterious coincidencesbetween the numerical values of the fundamental

constants of Nature. The possibility of our own

existence seems to hinge precariously upon

these coincidences

[Preface to The Anthropic Cosmological Principle

by Barrow & Tipler]

universe seems to be intentionally designed

and created for life


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Background on BigBang Theory

Evidence for the Big Bang Theory has

been quite superior to competing

cosmology theories since 1929

But many scientists refused to accept it

for one reason or another


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Fears about the BigBang

Philosophically, the notion of a

beginning of the present order of

nature is repugnantI should like to

find a genuine loopholewe must

allow evolution an infinite time to get

started. [Sir Arthur Eddington]


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Big evidence for BigBang

1992 COBE satellite (Cosmic Background

Explorer satellite)--Background radiation

its the discovery of the century, if not for all

time [Stephen Hawking, Cambridge Univ.]

the handwriting of God

[Dr. George Smoot, astrophysicist,

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory] there was a definite beginning to the universe


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But does it give usenough time?

Agnostic biophysicist Dr. Harold

Morowitz wondered

Suppose you break all chemical bondsin the simplest organism (a bacteria)

and put those atoms under ideal

chemical conditions

Question: How long would it take for it

to reassemble?


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Answer: 10100,000,000,000years!

Written out completely, that would be:

1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,00

0,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,

000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,

000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,00

0,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,

000,000,000,000,000,(on and on)

a thousand sets of Encyclopedia Britannicas

filled with zeros!!


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So, is it feasible?

10100,000,000,000 yrs is impossible because

Hydrogen atoms would decay after [~1033 years]

500,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 years

Heat death of the universe will occur at80,000,000,000 years

Big Bang restricts the age of the universe to be


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But even a narrowerwindow

Life has been abundant on earth throughout the

past 3.86 billion years

Life must have originated & reoriginated as many

as 50 times in the 360 million-year time span Thus, life must have begun in within a 10 million-

year window (thats just 10,000,000 years)

but this is way too short for random chance.

3.86 billion

years ago

3.5 billion

years agofossil records available

at least 50 life-ending catastrophes* * * * *


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Origin of BiologicalMolecules

Big Problem: enzymes are required tohelp amino acid & nucleotide formation

So how did the first amino acids &

nucleotides get formed?

Nucleotides (4) RNA & DNA

Amino Acids (20) Proteins & Enzymes


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From the prebioticsoup?

Oparins hypothesis on prebiotic

earths composition (1924) :

Ammonia, methane, and hydrogen

In 1953, Miller boiled the above in

water and added electrical sparks to

simulate early earth and obtained 3

kinds of amino acids


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Flaws of Millersexperiment

Only 1 out of 200 tries got amino acids

Just 2% of it was amino acids

Just the simplest amino acids

produced

Also, as reaction continued, the aminoacids degraded


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More problematicfactors

UV radiation was also present back then:

Methane would be converted to

hydrocarbons (oils)

Ammonia gets destroyed

Hydrogen would have escaped into the

atmosphere

Atmospheric physicists & geochemists

now say early earth only had nitrogen,

carbon dioxide, and water


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Miller nowconfesses

[40 years later after his first experiment]

the problem of the origin of life has

turned out to be much more difficultthan I, and most other people,

envisioned.


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Problems with buildingRNAs

Incompatibility within nucleotide synthesis:

Cytosine & Uracil are made near boiling

water temperatures

BUT Adenine & Guanine are made near

freezing water temperatures

Some byproducts actually inhibit RNA

production

Also, prebiotic earths surface temperature

of 80-90C results in degradation of RNA


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More difficulties

Researchers now say there was

sufficient oxygen gas (O2) on planet

earth in the past 4.1 billion years

Under such oxidizing conditions, amino

acid and nucleotide production operate

30 million times less efficiently


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Concluding comments

"Astronomy leads us to an unique event, a

universe which was created out of nothing and

delicately balanced to provide exactly the

conditions required to support lifethe

observations of modern science seem to suggestan underlying, one might say, supernatural

plan

[Nobel Laureate Arno Penzias ]

the origin of life appears to be almost a miracle,so many are the conditions which would have

had to be satisfied to get it going [Nobel

Laureate Francis Crick]


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Some references

John D. Barrow and Frank J. Tipler, The Anthropic

Cosmological Principle (New York: Oxford University

Press, 1996)

J. P. Moreland (ed.), The Creation Hypothesis

(Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 1994) Charles B. Thaxton, Walter L. Bradley, and Roger L.

Olsen, The Mystery of Lifes Origin: Reassessing

Current Theories (Dallas: Lewis and Stanley, 1992)

Robert Shapiro, Origins: A skeptics guide to thecreation of life on earth (New York: Summit Books,

1986)

www.origins.org - www.arn.org - www.leaderu.com


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Investigate further

Part 2:Problems with Evolution

Nov. 7 (Tuesday), 7pm @ 1128 Hart Hall

Weekly ABSK Bible studies on campus

Friday 7pm @ 194 Young Hall

Looking for a church? Visit BBC-Davis Chapel

Sundays 1:30pm @ 1801 Oak Ave.


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ABSKwww.absk.org/davis October 24, 2000

science and christianity 1

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