Luke 6:44 "For every tree is known by his own fruit. For of
thorns men do not gather figs, nor of a bramble bush gather they
grapes."
If you want to snack on fruit from a
10-story-high Grandidier's baobab tree, you'd better bring a very tall
ladder. That's because there are no branches to climb until you get to
near the very top of the tree. And you can forget about wrapping your
arms and legs around the trunk. The baobab's massive cylindrical trunks
measure up to 10 feet across, and are quite smooth.
The
Grandidier's baobob is probably the strangest and most magnificent of
the eight species of baobab, and it is found nowhere else on earth than
Madagascar. Lack of water can sometimes be a problem for plants in
Madagascar, so the baobab overcomes this by storing water within the
fibrous wood of the trunk. It is so effective at storing water, the
tree's diameter actually fluctuates with rainfall. Though the tree
trunks look solid, elephants know they can gouge into the wood with
their tusks to enjoy a nice drink of water.
Other species of baobab tree – like the ones
in Africa – look as if they were built upside down – with their roots at
the top of the tree. African baobabs are also the fattest trees in the
world. Some have a "waist size" of more than 165 feet, which is bigger
around than their height. Baobabs can also grow to a great age – some
are said to have been alive at the time of Christ.
Baobab trees look very different than any
other trees on our planet and demonstrate that there is no end to the
creativity of God.
Happy Saturday!! What are you doing this weekend?
Love,
Ashley
The
same pattern holds true in creation. If you were designing genetic
material that did one thing in one type of creature and a similar thing
in a completely different type of creature, you would use the best
design for both. That would result in similar genetic material in both
creatures that was subtly different enough to do its unique job in each
creature. As a result of using the best design solution, rather than
chance, two very different creatures would have similar genetic
material. And that's what we are finding as we learn more about
genetics. For example, we know that a particular gene in a developing
mouse embryo influences the development of the back part of its brain. A
very similar gene in the fly influences the development of its antenna,
which are sensors that are tied into the brain. Another gene that is
similar in people, fish and flies, influences the unique development of
eyes in those creatures.
Only
about three percent of bird species are known to sing duets. In a duet,
one mate begins singing, and the other mate begins a half second later.
Among Australian magpie-larks, pairs that are newly mated usually lack
that precision. However, in pairs that have been together for two years,
the lag time of the duet usually varies by only a few hundredths of a
second. 
One
good example of this is Xylitol, also known as birch sugar. Earlier
research showed that birch sugar, used more in Europe than America as a
sweetener, inhibits growth of bacteria that cause tooth decay.
Researchers in Finland wondered if birch sugar inhibited any other
bacteria. They gave one group of pre-school children sucrose-based
chewing gum and a similar group birch-sugar gum five times a day. The
group that used the birch sugar gum had only about half as many ear
infections. Scientists aren't sure how the birch sugar reduces ear
infections. They suspect that it somehow prevents the bacteria that
cause the infections from attaching to cells in the mouth and ear. If
this is what happens, there is an added bonus. Since the sugar does not
attack the bacteria directly, the bacteria would be unlikely to develop
any defense against it.
Scientists
Peter D. Ward and Donald C. Brownlee concluded that conditions could
exist elsewhere in the universe that could support microbes. However,
there may be nowhere else in the universe that life above that level
might exist. First, they say, we can rule out life near the centers of
galaxies because lethal levels of several types of radiation exist
there. The scientists conclude that the Earth is perfectly placed for
intelligent life. Our moon is just the right size to control our
climate, tilt and tides. The planet Jupiter acts as a giant shield to
protect us from meteors and asteroids, and it, like the Earth, has an
orbit that does not threaten other planets. Our sun is a heavy-element
star with a rare elliptical orbit. And earth's atmosphere has a
carefully balanced mix of elements with just enough carbon to support
life.
Though
grouper are very fast in the open water, they are much too big to
pursue prey that swim into small areas. But that's not a problem for the
giant moray eel. Their slim bodies make it easy to crawl into small
holes. So when the grouper's prey flees to an area it can't reach, the
grouper points to it by rotating its body so that its head faces
downward and then shakes its head back and forth in the direction of the
potential meal.
Winter
moths can live as they do – even though they freeze below 32 degrees
Fahrenheit – because they emerge from the leaf clutter on the forest
floor where temperatures almost never fall below 37 degrees. But when
the air temperature rises above freezing, the moths emerge, shiver for
several minutes to warm up, and look for food. Maple sap is among their
favorite foods. One stomach full of this high-energy food provides
enough energy for one of these moths to hibernate all winter. When
active, they are able to increase their metabolism by over 8,000 times,
using the same amount of energy that sustains them all winter, in a mere
30 minutes. Summer moths shed heat from the thorax, while winter moths
conserve their heat with an entirely different heat exchange system.
Medical
researchers have been testing a growth factor known as IGF 1 to see if
it will stop this damage. To their surprise, not only did it stop the
nerve damage in diabetic rats, it actually reversed the damage that had
already been done! Tests are continuing to see if this treatment is safe
for humans.
The
parrots' names are Griffin and Alex. Researchers can show Alex two
triangles, one red and one green. They ask what's different about them.
Alex will answer, "Color." When asked what's similar about them, he will
answer, "Shape." If there is nothing similar, Alex even understands the
concept of nothing. Asked what's similar about the shapes, he will
answer, "None." Researchers say that about five percent of the time
someone will mistakenly tell Alex that he has given a wrong answer when
he has not. Alex, however, insists that his answer is right until the
questioner discovers the mistake. 
But
scientists are now trying to find out why zebras have stripes at all.
The best they can tell, the stripes may make zebras less appetizing to
large biting flies that often carry fatal diseases. Using painted
horses, Swedish scientists found that zebra stripes disrupt light
patterns that tsetse flies and horseflies use to find food and water.