ITS THE RATS’ WHISKERS
It has long been known that rats use their whiskers as special sensors to help them navigate in sewers and other dark places. LiveScience.com (27th February 2008) reported that a new study by the McGovern Institute for Brain Research reveals that a rat’s sensory system is even more sophisticated than originally thought. “Like a finely tuned harp, the whiskers on a rat's snout pick up particular frequencies and send these teensy signals to the brain.” The shorter whiskers at the front of rats' snouts are tuned to vibrate at higher frequencies than the longer ones. Scientists have caught the whisker signals on video, using a system that can capture whisker movements at a rate of 3,200 frames per second — 100 times faster than typical home videos . Rats were trained to use their whiskers to pick out either a rough or smooth surface, and the results were analysed on a computer. Lead researcher Jason Ritt said: "We knew from watching rats' behaviour that there must be whisker micromotions that were too rapid to measure using available recording techniques.” The resulting signals, which are sent to the rat’s brain for decoding, are “larger and more complex than anything previously observed.”
COMMENT: Most people don’t particularly like rats, but we have to admire their amazing sensory system which is “like a finely tuned harp.” Have the scientists involved in this fascinating research considered who tuned it?

WINNING BY A NOSE:
Scientists have designed an electronic nose with "olifactory sensors" which can detect chemicals that mammalian noses cannot, e.g. carbon monoxide. However, according to a report in, Sciencedaily.com (12th March 2008) "Despite 25 years of research, development of an "electronic nose" even approaching the capabilities of the human sniffer remains a dream." The report went on: "Ideally, however, an electronic nose should mimic the discrimination of the mammalian olfactory system for smells -- reliably identifying odors like 'fruity,' 'grassy' and 'earthy' given off by certain chemicals. Until electronic noses become more selective, their roles probably will be limited to serving as valuable tools for tasks such as monitoring air quality and detecting explosives.
COMMENT: We note that the electronic nose — which is inferior to the real thing —needed 25 years of research, and has obviously been intelligently designed. Will these scientists recognise that the organ they are trying to imitate must have been designed also?

MORE MOONSHINE ON ALIEN LIFE:
Scientists searching for evidence of alien life have a new strategy, according to World-science.net (19th. February 2008). " Astronomers should study giant planets that, while uninhabitable, lie in areas suitably warm for life, the authors say. These may turn out to have moons—some of which might indeed support life." Rsearchers say that large Jupiter-like planets are easier to find that earth-like ones, and moons orbitting these planets may harbour life. The report continued: "If their moons do harbor life forms, these might even be more interesting in some ways than their planet-dwelling counterparts. For instance, if one moon of a distant “Jupiter” had life, so might others, as they would all lie in the same general temperature zone. If advanced enough, the inhabitants might even regularly exploit the proximity among moons to travel or communicate among them. Or, bizarre evolutionary experiments might arise when meteors randomly plop small organisms from one moon onto another." However, Scott Fleming of the Uinversity of Florida, lead author of the report, admitted, " On the other hand, a large percentage of moons may be hostile to life, for instance because they’re too small to hold atmospheres."
COMMENT: Given the fact that no moons with conditions suitable for life have ever been observed, and the fact that life cannot come from non-life in any case, we would describe this latest bit of science fiction as "moonshine"!

EVOLUTIONIST ADMITS: 'THERE IS DESIGN IN NATURE':
Prominent evolutionary biologist Dr Kenneth Miller says we have to "hand one victory to the 'intellignet design' crowd," reported ScienceDaily.com (18th. February 2008). "The idea that there is 'design' in nature is very appealing," Dr Miller said. "People want to believe that life isn't purposeless and random. That's why the intelligent design movement wins the emotional battle for adherents despite its utter lack of scientific support. To fight back, scientists need to reclaim the language of 'design' and the sense of purpose and value inherent in a scientific understanding of nature." Dr Miller agrees that "the human body bears the hallmarks of design, from the ball sockets that allows hips and shoulders to rotate to the "s" curve of the spine that allows for upright walking." However, Dr Miller insists that all of this is "an evolutionary design." He believes that "scientists should embrace this concept of 'design,' and in so doing, claim for science the sense of orderly rationality in nature to which the anti-evolution movement has long appealed."
COMMENT: It's no surprise that people "want to believe that life isn't purposeless and random." We predict that Dr Miller's efforts to persuade people that they can see purpose in the idea that they arrived on earth through a mindless evolutionary process over millions of years, is doomed to failure. When compared with the concept of intelligent design, design by evolution cannot complete, especially when the scientific case for evolution is so incredibly weak. Dr Miller's comments are tantamount to admitting that the opponents of evolution are winning the argument.