Wikipedia photo
ORIGINAL
NE of water’s unique properties is surface tension. This is
because the tiny water molecules attract one another, and
A Water Strider walking on water.
form a kind of film.We can observe this in the way that water
The
surface tension is clearly visible
clings to things, and forms into drops.
where the legs touch the water
Some insects are able to literally walk on water by using surface. Their hind legs are used for steering and their
the surface tension. These middle legs for “rowing.”
These insects certainly do appear to be “anatomicalinclude around 1,700 species
ly built” for what they do. But without the surface
of water striders.
A Wikipedia article about wa- tension of water they wouldn’t be able to walk on the
ter striders, states: “Water surface, even with their specially-designed legs.
striders, are anatomically
Could chance evolutionary processes, over thoubuilt to transfer their weight
This bead of water on a leaf to be able to run on top of the
sands or millions of years, have produced the water
Is caused by surface tension
striders’ special apparatus? Walking on water
water's surface.”
couldn’t happen by gradual steps! In fact, the
Four of their legs are extra
oldest water strider fossils are no different from
long, allowing them to spread their weight over the invisimodern forms, which suggests creative design not
ble surface film. Their feet are covered in thousands of
evolution.
microscopic hairs which help them to stay on the water
Why did the scientist install
a knocker on his door?
He wanted to win the Nobell prize!
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Original View is published three
times a year by the Creation Resources Trust (Reg. Charity No.
1016666). Editing, design and layout
by Geoff Chapman. Articles are written by the editor.
There is no subscription charge, but
donations are invited. Contact CRT
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etc., also available by post or on-line
at www.crt.org.uk Unless otherwise
stated, Scriptures are taken from the
The Holy Bible, New International
Version. © 1984 International Bible
Society.
Photo: NASA
Water is made from two gases — hydrogen and oxygen. A water molecule (right) consists of two atoms of
hydrogen and one of oxygen. That’s why we call it
H2O. However, water actually exists in three forms
— solid, liquid and gas — and we find all three on
the earth. Water molecules are held together by
hydrogen bonds, but when water is heated to
boiling-point (100oC) the molecules separate and
become a gas. When water is cooled, the molecules join tightly together, and at freezing-point
become ice — the solid form of water.
MILLIONS OF YEARS
AGO OUR ANCESTORS
LEFT THE SEA TO
LIVE ON LAND, GEN.
&
SO, DIDN’T
THEY LIKE IT
THEN, EV?
WHAT DO
YOU MEAN,
GEN?
WELL, ACCORDING
TO YOUR THEORY,
OUR ANCESTORS
TOOK TO THE
TREES!
!
Drawn by Michael Huggins
Teacher: “This essay on your
dog is, word for word, the
same as your brother’s.”
Student: Yes, sir, it’s the
same dog.”
About 70% of the earth’s surface is covered in water. This
is why it is sometimes called the “blue planet.” Most of this
water is in the oceans — the Pacific Ocean alone contains
one third of earth’s water. There is also a lot of frozen water
in the polar icecaps and mountain glaciers, and a small
amount in lakes, ponds and rivers. Earth is the only planet
we know of that has a plentiful supply of liquid water.
Water is essential for life: About 60% of our body weight
is water, and our blood is mostly water, too. Is it just a
coincidence that our planet is so well supplied with this
unique and precious liquid?
© Nikkytok : Dreamstime.com
An abundant supply of water makes life on earth possible. It’s surely
no accident that we are so well provided with this vital liquid, although ensuring that everyone has clean water is an ongoing challenge. Without water, we couldn’t survive for more than about three
days. Water is precious — we should never take it for granted.
There is another kind of thirst — unique to humans — that water cannot
quench. It is spiritual thirst. Although secularists and humanists deny it,
humans are spiritual beings, which is why belief in some kind of religion
is universal, and has been since humans have lived on earth.
Millions of people, even in the affluent West, are searching for ways
to satisfy that spiritual thirst. The
popularity of “Mind, Body and Spirit” fairs (left) is proof of this. However, the ideologies and
spiritual experiences offered at these events can never provide a lasting solution to our spiritual thirst. This can only
come through a relationship with the Living God who created us. The Bible tells us that in the beginning there was a
close relationship between human beings and God, but that
this was marred by human rebellion. (Genesis chapter 3). The Bible also tells us that God came to
us in the Person of Jesus Christ, His Son. By dying on the cross, Jesus dealt with the sin which
separates us from God. When we accept God’s forgiveness through faith in Jesus, He gives us
“living water.” Jesus promised, “Whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed,
the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” (John 4:
13). Jesus really will satisfy that thirst that water can never quench!
No. 76
THE WATER OF LIFE
© 2015. Printed by CPO Worthing
A THIRST WATER CAN’T Q
VIEW
Reconstruction: European Space Agency
ATER behaves differently from almost every other
substance. Most liquids contract when they cool. Water
ICE
does too — until it gets near freezing-point (0oC) — then it
starts to expand. That’s why water pipes
sometimes burst in cold weather (left).
Ice is also less dense than liquid water,
which means that ice floats on the
surface. If water behaved like other
liquids then, when it froze, ice would This diagram illustrates the way that ice, being less
sink to the bottom, and lakes dense than liquid water, stays on the surface, keeping
the temperature of the water above freezing-point.
and ponds in the colder parts
of the earth would turn to
solid ice.
But because of the special
way water behaves, ice forms
a blanket, keeping the water
below much warmer than the
air above, providing a much
warmer environment below
the ice. Without this insulating
layer, many fish and other
Icebergs float because ice is less dense than liquid
Ice fishing on a frozen lake. This is only creatures that live in the
water. The largest part of an iceberg is often below
possible because water expands and water would die. Is this
the surface, which presents a danger to shipping.
becomes less dense when it freezes.
accident — or design?
On 12th November 2014 the European Space Agency’s Rosetta
mission (left) succeeded in landing the Philae probe on a comet
called 67P. Many space scientists believe that the water in our
oceans was dumped on the earth by comets. Unfortunately for
them, the Philae probe revealed that the water on the comet
is different from the water on earth. Analysis of ice on the
comet revealed that it contains about three times more deuterium – a heavy form of hydrogen – than water on Earth. The
Guardian (11th December 2014) reported: “The discovery
seems to overturn the theory that Earth got its water, and so
its ability to harbour life, from water-bearing comets that
slammed into the planet during its early history.”
insights into the
The BBC reported that “organic molecules” were also detected on the comet. This was “likely to provide
blocks
building
possible role of comets in contributing some of the chemical
1
to the primordial mix from which life evolved on the early Earth.
guarantee
doesn’t
Although life can’t exist without liquid water, its presence
is a
bricks
of
pile
a
life. And “organic molecules” are not life, anymore than
and
non-life
between
house. Life is more than a mix of chemicals. The gulf
even a single cell is huge, and, as far as natural explanations are concerned,
as unbridgeable as ever. True science says that life only comes from preexisting life. So even the discovery of water on other planets would not mean
that we should expect to find life there.
As for the origin of earth’s abundant supply of water, maybe it has
been here since God created the earth, just as the book of Genesis says.
th
1. BBC News online: Science and Environment 18 November 2014
Apart from drinking, we use water
for cleaning our teeth, washing,
bathing and showering, washing
clothes and dishes, cooking, flushing
the toilet, watering plants. The list
seems endless.
Water is good at dissolving things,
and is the nearest thing we know to a universal
solvent. Pour sugar or salt into a full glass of water
and the glass will not overflow. This is why it’s
important not to allow harmful chemicals to get into
rivers and oceans, where they will dissolve and
pollute them. Most of us only have to turn on a tap to
get all the water we need, but the water has been
through a long process to make it clean and pure.
In many parts of the world
clean water isn’t available,
and many people die from
diseases through drinking
contaminated water (left).
Special charities are working
to provide clean water and
sanitation for all.
Less than 2% of earth’s
water is drinkable, so it’s important not to waste
this precious liquid.
Moving water is very powerful, and
for centuries people have harnessed
this power. One of the most common
uses was the waterwheel (right)
which powered machinery for such
things as grinding corn. Today, water
power is used to generate electricity.
Moving water has played a large
part in shaping the earth, carving out
canyons and eroding mountains. Many people believe that
this takes long periods of time — thousands or millions of
years. However, there is much evidence that it can happen
very rapidly — in months or
even days — especially in
times
of
catastrophic
flooding.1
Most early geologists believed that the Biblical
flood2 had shaped many of
earth’s geological features,
and a growing minority of
This gully near the Dead Sea, Israel,
modern geologists now
was cut by floods in less than a year.
takes this view.
Wikipedia photo by Mark A Wilson.
1. www.icr.org/article/texas-canyons-geologic-catastrophe
2. Genesis chapter 6-8
By Brian: Geograph.org.uk
A precious liquid!
www.crt.org.uk
The total quantity of water on earth remains roughly the
same, but is constantly recycled. It falls as rain, hail and
CONDENSATION
PRECIPITATION
snow, and returns to the upper atmosphere as it is evaporatEVAPORATION
ed by the sun. Until the 16th century many natural philosophers believed that rain provided too little water to replenish
the springs and rivers, and that these were supplied by water
from inside the earth.
Amazingly, the Bible described the process around 1520 BC.
“He draws up the drops of water, which distil as rain to the
streams. The clouds pour down their moisture and abundant
showers fall on mankind.” (Job 36: 27-28) “All streams flow
A simple diagram of the Water Cycle
into the sea, yet the sea is never full. To the place the streams
come from, there they return again.” (Ecclesiastes 1: 7).
Water, in all three of its states, plays an important role in the
earth’s climate. Liquid water in the oceans helps moderate the
climate, because water loses and gains heat slowly. As the seasons change, the sea temperature changes only gradually. Water
vapour in the atmosphere gives the earth a “greenhouse effect”,
which traps heat and keeps our planet warm enough for life to
exist. This is balanced by ice and snow at the poles, which reflect
solar radiation and store a large amount of water. If the polar
icecaps disappeared sea levels and temperatures would rise.
Fortunately, after several years of shrinkage, the Arctic icecap has
recovered somewhat, and in October 2014 NASA reported that
the area of sea ice at the South Pole had reached a record high.
Rain falling from storm clouds
The total area of polar sea ice is currently above average.
By Vatyka: Wikipedia
U.S Fish & Wildlife Service
Tinajeans | Dreamstime.com
W
By Klaus-Dieter Kellar: Wikipedia
WATER’S STRANGE BEHAVIOUR IS VITAL!