Atheism is Stupid V

Astrophysicist Neil Degrasse Tyson

This is the fifth installment of my popular "Atheism is Stupid" series.  In it, I will touch upon some misconceptions atheists have regarding the universe and the uniqueness of the human species.

Atheists often claim that our universe is extremely hostile to life.  Since it is hostile to life, it is logical to conclude (according to them) that human life is not special nor does it have a unique role. They also conclude that an "intelligent designer" is not possible.  At first glance, this argument does seem to make sense despite it being a Special Pleading fallacy.


The universe is indeed hostile.  
If a human being goes into space without protection from a suit, he/she will not last very long.  The

Scene from "Total Recall"

skin will have severe burns due to the direct contact of ultraviolet rays from our sun as well as radiation from space itself.  Gasses in the body will expand causing pressure issues that will damage organs. Nitrogen in the blood will turn into bubbles causing "the bends" which is an extremely painful condition some divers experience.

Without pressure, water will begin to boil and evaporate which means saliva, tears and the water in the body will immediately begin to dissipate.  Due to lack of oxygen, the body will go into hypoxia and it will decrease in temperature as the skin turns bluish due to cyanosis.  The body will bloat and blindness will come instantly as a person looses consciousness.  Death will follow.

So who wants to take a walk in space? :-)

Space is indeed a dangerous place for human life or any life for that matter.  However, does this reality mean that there is no God?  Does this mean that God is not perfect?  Absolutely not!

As I wrote in my post "Evidence for God I:"

"While some astrophysicists such as Neil Degrasse Tyson claim that the universe is harsh and hostile to human beings, this does not take away from the fact that human beings exist in an environment that caters to them. The anthropic principle is an indication of this. 

Yes there are parts of the universe that are hostile to human beings; however, this is not because these parts somehow exist to destroy us but because we were not meant to exist in them. For example, fish are designed to exist solely in water. If a fish goes out of its element, it will die. Similarly, human beings are designed to exist solely on Earth within the troposphere. Logically speaking, they will indeed suffer or die if they step outside of this habitable zone. 

Interestingly enough, we have the brains that allow us to defy this “prison” and go beyond it into outer space. That begs the question, why? It would seem that our brains too were designed to figure out how to counter any harsh situations nature may throw at us. The existence of harsh environments does not mean there is no intelligent design. Rather, it shows there is specificity in the design."

Furthermore, let us take into account some instances in which intelligent intention is present in regard to the design and function of the universe and preservation of life.

EARTH'S OUTER BODYGUARDS
The outer planets such as Jupiter protect Earth from impacts from asteroids and other stellar bodies.  These planets are so large that their gravitational pull has great effect on objects flying thousands of miles away.

As you may know, there is an asteroid belt between the orbits of planets Mars and Jupiter.  This asteroid belt is believed to be the remains of a planet that did not form due to the gravitational pull of Jupiter.

This asteroid belt contains rocks of all shapes and sizes that contain nickel and iron elements.

These objects sometimes fly off and can become a threat to planet Earth.  However, Jupiter and the other outer planets prevent this by "slinging" asteroids away from Earth.  Objects from the asteroid belt are not the only danger to Earth.  The entire universe is full of meteoroids, asteroids, comets and other things that originate in interstellar space, or the space outside of the Solar System.  The outer planets with their massive gravitational pulls also deflect these foreign objects away from Earth and the rest of the Solar System.  

THE OZONE LAYER
This layer is probably one that we hear the most about on the news, in school and possibly now after the world has been facing extreme weather.  The Ozone Layer is extremely important to Earth.  Without it, life will not be possible.  It is an invisible layer of ozone with only three to four molecules present for every 10-12 million molecules of oxygen or air.

Most of the ozone exists between six to ten miles above surface level with 35 miles extending into the stratosphere.  This layer is responsible for absorbing UV-B or ultraviolet rays from the Sun which are extremely harmful to biological life.  It only allows the right amount in order to regulate weather and allow for life to exist and grow.  The Earth is the only planet to possess this layer.      

THE MAGNETOSPHERE
The Earth also has its own shield that protects it from the harmful energies of space.  Like the
starship Enterprise in the franchise Star Trek, the Earth generates a magnetic field that deflects radiation from our Sun and from space itself. This is called "Geodynamo."

This shield is generated by the Earth's core. The core is made of iron and is spinning deep in the Earth.  Gravity keeps the iron compressed into a solid state despite the high temperatures. However, the outer core is liquid and moves as the Earth rotates.  This motion of hot molten iron and other metals generates an electrical current which travels out into space generating a field around the planet. This field offers protection from cosmic radiation and solar flares.  Without this force field of sorts, life would not be possible on Earth.  

THE HELIOSPHERE
If the protection of Jupiter/outer planets, the ozone layer and magnetosphere on Earth were not enough, there is another line of defense called the Heliosphere.

The Heliosphere is a gigantic magnetic energy field or bubble that contains the Solar System. This field is generated by the Sun and serves to protect the Solar System from interstellar cosmic radiation that would be extremely harmful to the planets, in particular Earth which has life.

CONCLUSION
These are just some instances showing how there is an intent in the structure of our Solar System geared towards the protection of life.  One may say, "it just formed this way, there is nothing supernatural about this."  While this may be true, it still does not account for the intention for the preservation of life.  The structures I have described here all serve one common theme: preservation of life.

• If the universe was created by mere chance from an unconscious flow of energy and interaction of matter, how did it know when, where and how to protect life?  
• How did this unconscious agent of energy and interaction of matter know where life existed and that it needed to be protected?  
• How did it know how to protect this life?    

Trial and error here cannot apply because the universe was created from one "Big Bang."  This "Big Bang" formed all there is today in a specific order using the "instructions" in the laws of physics without the use of trial and error.  It did not have time to have "test runs" until it found the right processes that served to adequately form and protect life.

It is logical to conclude that there is an intelligent direction in the formation of these natural defenses and life in general.  Only an intelligence can be aware of the existence of life in a particular region and that it needs protection.  Moreover, only an intelligent agent can be aware of how to protect this life by installing the right processes and procedures in order to allow for the preservation of the former.  Lastly, an intelligent agent that knows how to design a system to protect life does so because this agent created the life and knows how to preserve it.  Only the inventor of a product knows how it is supposed to work, where it is supposed to work and how to extend its shelf life.

Life is indeed special and the universe has shown this with how it protects it and allows it to evolve.
Atheism is stupid for the allowance of the suggestion that an unintelligent unconscious agent created the universe while designing safety measures in order to allow for the preservation of life in a hostile environment.  It is stupid for assuming that life is not special in the universe and that it is just a produce of "good luck."  The logical conclusion is that an intelligent conscious agent knew what to create, how to create it and how it should protect life.            

Evidence for God I - Philosophy Thought Experiment

The new Star Trek movie is out in theaters, so I have decided to present a Star Trek themed thought experiment to show evidence for God by using reason.

"Space, the final frontier.  These are the voyages of the Starship Sacerdotus.  It's continuing mission, is to explore strange atheist worlds, to seek out new life in Christ and teach civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before."  

"Star Trek" - The Search for God in Nature

Suppose you are in the year AD 2487.  Things have changed on Earth.  New technologies have replaced the old.  What seemed impossible in 2013 is now possible.  Humanity has reached the point where it has designed warp drive and vessels that can travel long distances in space in a matter of seconds.

Human beings are naturally curious creatures.  They will study and observe anything, even if it is dangerous to them. Whatever is observed is processed in the brain and then rationalizations come about.

Anyhow, the human race has explored the Solar System by this point and is hungry for more.  The Triangulum galaxy (M33) is huge and looks interesting to study from Earth; however, the human race wants to actually visit it.  At over 2 million light years from Earth, it would take a considerable amount of time to reach the galaxy.

Nevertheless, humanity is stubborn and willing to do whatever it takes to get the mission done.  They study wormholes and how to bend time and space and develop means of creating an artificial one that will shorten the trip.  The trip is risky.  A wormhole can become unstable and those within it can be lost forever if the wormhole collapses.

With determination in mind, the human race continues with its plan and begins searching for qualified experts who can travel there, investigate and bring back whatever knowledge is obtained.  They interview thousands of scientists, pilots, engineers, medical personnel and others in order to finalize the crew that will participate in this mission.

Twelve are chosen from among the thousands and are given training.  This training will hopefully prepare each participant with facing whatever challenges may lie ahead.

After the training, the twelve begin to board the USS Sacerdotus.  The USS Sacerdotus is specifically designed to handle the harsh environments of outer space.  It's computers host vast amounts of data regarding the human race as well as programs needed to study whatever data is acquired from the galaxy Triangulum.

The astronauts board and begin to travel outside the Solar System to a point where space and time
are mildly unstable and a wormhole can be opened.  The deflector array is turned on and a beam of exotic baryons are shot at the point where space and time are at its weakest.  A rift begins to open and disturbs normal space and time.  When the rift is large enough for the USS Sacerdotus to enter, the vessel begins to move towards it.  The inside of the rifts is white - a sharp contrast to the blackness of outer space.  The USS Sacerdotus enters it and begins moving at an incredible speed due to the absence of normal space, time and gravity.  Within two seconds the USS Sacerdotus emerges into normal space once again.  It is right in the Triangulum galaxy.  The twelve on board celebrate the success of the trip.  All is well, the USS Sacerdotus suffers no damage and it begins to explore this strange new galaxy in ways observatories on Earth could never possibly do.

The USS Sacerdotus detects a local star system similar to the Solar System back home in the Milky
Way galaxy.  The crew sets course to it and arrives a few hours later at warp nine.  As the USS Sacerdotus approaches the system, it detects a planet in the "Goldilocks's zone" or habitable zone.  The planet has an indigo tone to it and is four times the size of Earth.  It has oceans, lakes, rivers, mountains; all of the geological features found on Earth.  The crew is ecstatic!  They immediately test the gases on the planet to see if they are safe.

Tests indicate that there is oxygen on the planet that is safe to breathe; however, there is more concentration of it.  The oxygen content in the atmosphere is 58% which could post a threat to the health of the astronauts.  Human lungs are designed to intake about 21% oxygen.  Anything greater can cause harm such as fluid in the lungs, damage to capillaries and alveoli.  Depending on the atmospheric pressure, other issues such as dizziness, nausea, vomiting, muscle twitching can occur.

Undeterred by this, the crew continues to plan a way to go on the surface and investigate this new world.  While scanning the surface, the crew discover something even more exciting.  Ship sensors detect structures of some sort that do not match the surrounding landscape.  This discovery increases the zeal to launch an away team to the planet to investigate.  All adjustments necessary to survive the planet's surface are made to the crew's spacesuits.  Six of the twelve prepare to make the trip down to the surface in order to investigate the planet as well as these structures.

They all board a shuttle craft with the necessary items for the mission.  The shuttle craft leaves the bay and begins its decent to the planet.  The trip takes about 20 minutes.  The shuttle lands and the crew sets foot on the alien world 14.6 quintillion miles from Earth.  The world is a bit gloomy looking.  It is not as bright as a spring day on Earth, nevertheless, the crew steps afoot and begins to investigate.  They walk about and study ever inch of the landing zone.  Their instruments detect identical minerals to those found on Earth.  Nothing seems out of the ordinary other than the fact that they are on a different world.

Life is detected such as plants, bacteria and strange looking arachnids, but nothing similar to animal wildlife or human beings.  The crew continues walking towards the site where the ship's sensors detected structures that did not match the natural landscape.  As they get closer, they can see some of the structures in the distance.  Wonder fills their minds as they try to make sense as to what these structures are.

They finally reach the area and find ruins scattered about.  There are structures, buildings and other things that are not naturally part of the landscape.  The scientists begin to study them.  They realize that these structures are not made by an unconscious agent; that is to say, they did not form themselves.

The geologist on the crew clearly states that neither weathering nor tectonics can account for the formation of these structures.  They are clearly made by a conscious intelligent source capable of manipulating materials found on the planet.  The scientists conclude based on what is observable that life existed on this planet and constructed these structures.  The ruins clearly indicate that an intelligent conscious civilization once inhabited the planet.

*******************************************************************************

Objection 1:

The structures on the planet could have been created due to winds, weathering and other natural phenomenon.  The "face on Mars" was created this way.  Some believed it to be a structure on Mars; however, as technology improved, it was determined that the face was really a mountain and its shadows created the illusion of a face.  This is nothing more than Pareidolia, or the psychological phenomenon of interpreting images and sounds into identifiable stimuli.  The human mind is wired to detect faces.  

Response:

While nature can "create" things such as valleys, cliffs, mountains and other elaborate designs, it cannot create complex ones which involve planning and mathematics.  A mountain is not the same as a pyramid or a building of some sort.  Pyramids and other edifices require mathematics and planning in order for the structure to stand and survive.  Moreover, pareidolia cannot be a factor in the astronaut's experience because the structures were confirmed by technology.  They existed prior to the arrival of the crew and will exist when they leave.

Objection II:

The astronauts were hallucinating due to the difference of pressure, oxygen levels and gravity.  These factors caused them to see things that are not there just like people on Earth can experience mirages.


Response:

While people do hallucinate and can misinterpret visual stimuli, the astronauts on this mission had suits that shielded them from any external effects from the planet's surface.  They did not inhale the planet's oxygen, but that found in their suits.  Moreover, their instruments detected the structures and these instruments cannot hallucinate nor experience mirages.
                        

Conclusion: 

Atheists often claim that there is no evidence for God.  They demand "peer reviewed" journals, empirical evidence and the like in order to believe that there is a God.  The reality is that nature is evidence of God's existence.  Just like the astronauts concluded that structures made with intelligence, precision and purpose are not the result of weathering and other natural phenomenon; so to we can determine via this same reason that the universe cannot be a product of random probability and natural forces.  Buildings, cities cannot create themselves.  When early European explorers came across Mayan temples and the like, they immediately knew that these structures were designed by someone.  Similarly, if astronauts find ruins of a civilization on a foreign body in space, it is logical to conclude that they were constructed by a conscious intelligent people and did not build themselves.  

While some astrophysicists such as Neil Degrasse Tyson claim that the universe is harsh and hostile to human beings, this does not take away from the fact that human beings exist in an environment that caters to them.  The anthropic principle is an indication of this.  Yes there are parts of the universe that are hostile to human beings; however, this is not because these parts somehow exist to destroy us but because we were not meant to exist in them.  For example, fish are designed to exist solely in water.  If a fish goes out of its element, it will die.  Similarly, human beings are designed to exist solely on Earth within the troposphere.  Logically speaking, they will indeed suffer or die if they step outside of this habitable zone.  

Interestingly enough, we have the brains that allow us to defy this "prison" and go beyond it into outer space.  That begs the question, why?  It would seem that our brains too were designed to figure out how to counter any harsh situations nature may throw at us.  The existence of harsh environments does not mean there is no intelligent design.  Rather, it shows there is specificity in the design.

The universe with its laws, order and harmony even within the chaos of subatomic particles shows an intelligence is behind its construction.  It is not logically nor mathematically possible for a universe like ours to appear randomly in such a way as to allow life and the maintenance of galaxies and other bodies in space.

As Psalm 19:1-4 states:

"The heavens declare the glory of God;
the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
Day after day they pour forth speech;
night after night they reveal knowledge.
They have no speech, they use no words;
no sound is heard from them.
Yet their voice goes out into all the earth,
their words to the ends of the world.
In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun"