This is an incredible video and RARE footage of an erupting volcano, Mt. Sinabung in Indonesia. The announcer has no idea what she is seeing (other than a volcano erupting) because she does not have a trained eye. Geologists will recognize the pyroclastic cloud hurtling down the mountain-side. This is a dense ultra-hot cloud of burning ash and rock that travels at speeds greater than a hundred of miles an hour burning and killing everything in its wake. While the erupting ash and gases are extremely hazardous, they are nothing compared to the pyroclastic cloud that kills everything in its wake, instantly. A pyroclastic cloud from exploding Mt. Vesuvius in August 29 AD killed and destroyed the ancient Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum. After killing everything and everyone, the tons of ash encased the bodies in erie casts that are still visible today. The top image shows casts from Pompeii. Below it is an image of skeletons from Herculaneum.
The devastation from a pyroclastic cloud (or pyroclastic flow) is sudden and complete. Although people in the video are truly awe-struck they (including the announcer) have no idea of the true danger posed by the pyroclastic cloud rushing down the mountain at them. Maddalena Environmental Inc. Al Maddalena We vacationed in Hawaii this year and went on a tour of the active volcano Kilauea. Our tour guide Scott from Volcano Van Tours took us on an awesome journey over a hardened lava flow from 1973-82. We visited a feeder channel and the crater of the Mauna Ulu lava flow which forms part of the eastern rift zone of Kilauea. This video does not do justice to the spectacular views we had. You need to see these sights in person to fully appreciate the views!
Al Maddalena Maddalena Environmental Inc. This video by DonExodus2 provides several good tests of both Evolution vs. Creationism. He examines each theory by using the following: 1) What is found in the fossil record. 2) What is revealed by DNA sequences. 3) What is seen by Comparing Anatomy. In the first test Don describes how the fossil record shows that we NEVER find human remains in rocks where dinosaurs are present. This is true not only with humans but with numerous other animals and plants. This COMPLETELY supports Evolution that predicts living things that evolved later should not be found with its earlier ancestors.
In the second test, Don indicates that DNA sequences between dinosoars and birds are essentially in tact indicating that birds are directly related to dinosoars. This again completely supports Evolution that predicts there should be commonality in DNA between related living things. In Fact, all animals share some DNA to some degree. In the third test, Don indicates if Evolution occured, there should be vestiges of anatomy left over as one species evolves into another. We see these vestiges in numerous animals as well as humans. This is expected if Evolution is true and this is what we see. Again, evidence provided by comparative anatomy COMPLETELY supports Evolution. When reviewing all these data it is clear that Evolution is responsible for the vast diversification of life on Earth. It has occurred and is still occurring today. Not only is Evolution a FACT, it is responsible for the indisputable link between humans and all other life on this planet which originated from a single common ancestor. Maddalena Environmental Inc. Al Maddalena Here is a rather good video by CrashCourse that explains evidence for evolution. It incorporates the DNA similarities between humans and all other animals as just 1 line of evidence to support Evolution. Video is compliments of CrashCourse
To reiterate, yes Evolution is the thing, it did occur and is occurring still today through Natural Selection. It has occurred over millions of years with every species that lived on Earth, and that is still living. While not perfect, it is the most powerful biologic process ever discovered. Maddalena Environmental Inc. Al Maddalena Evolution through Natural Selection is scientific fact. This is based on an enormous volume of evidence in the scientific database to date. Natural Selection occurs through the "passing on" of good genetic traits that benefit a species to survive. Good traits are essentially "passed on" to daughters and sons because they help them to survive and further pass on good traits. Bad traits, if passed on to progeny, will eventually die out (given enough time) because they offer a disadvantage to that species that eventually leads to their demise. When a species with a bad trait dies, so does the bad trait.
So how does this explain the fact that humans still have numerous genetic diseases present within our genome today? We would have thought that 2 million years of Evolution Through Natural Selection would have selectively removed all those diseases that posed a threat to our human existence. One researcher has an intriguing theory and believes he can explain it. In his book, Survival of the Sickest, Sharone Moalem argues that Evolution Through Natural Selection has actually preserved certain diseases within the human genome because at some point back in Human history, these diseases actually provided a certain key benefit to our human ancestors that allowed them to survive hash climatic conditions, such as Ice Age or infectious plagues. For example, he explains, the Bubonic Plague (a.k.a The Black Death) killed 25,000,000 people in Europe during the 1800s. To put this in perspective, this is approximately equivalent to the number of people killed during World War I and World War II COMBINED. The plague killed so many people because it was highly contagious, its cause was unknown and the way it was spread was also unknown. The key to stopping the plague was not due to some revolutionary cure discovered by a brilliant physician, but to our remarkably resilient human genome. As it was discovered many years later that certain people actually survived the plague. It was through the study of those survivors that it was discovered some people had the necessary genes to stop the plague in its tracks. Therefore the human genome through Natural Selection, developed the key to stopping the plague. The Bubonic Plague, was a bacteria that thrived on iron. After entering the body, the immune system would send out its white blood cells to consume the invader. However, the plague cells would use the iron of the white blood cells to grow and multiply. Acting like a “Trojan Horse” these cells would ultimately spread to other cells and be carried to other parts of the body, within the white blood cells (particularly the lymphatic system) spreading. This remarkable adaptation of the Bubonic Plague cells was extremely efficient, killing approximately 60% of all those infected in four days if untreated. Iron is abundant in the cells of a normal human being, and this is why the Bubonic Plague was so effective. It would use the body’s own iron-rich immune system against it. However, the plague cells did not do well in iron-poor conditions. Hemochromatosis is a genetic disorder (although not always genetic) that comes from the accumulation of iron in the body. In this disease, iron enters the body through food we eat, but continues to build up instead of being removed after the body has used all it can. The result is essentially “Iron Poisoning”. As it turns out, people with Hemochromatosis do not have high Iron in all cells of their bodies. Unlike healthy people, white blood cells of their immune system are actually “IRON POOR”. So you see, this genetic trait of the disease actually makes them ideally suited to fight the Iron-seeking Bubonic Plague Bacteria. As the plague bacteria entered the body of a person with Hemochromatosis, the White blood cells would attack and ingest the bacteria. However, as the white blood cells are devoid of Iron, the Bubonic Plague Bacteria had no way of surviving and multiplying. Therefore, it was stopped in its track. This was one of the main keys in halting the Bubonic Plague which devastated Europe in the 1400s. The human genome, through Natural Selection, had developed a specific beneficial trait against a specific intruder bacterium to end the most devastating plague in human history. This benefit (although an iron accumulating disease) was passed on to future generations because they survived the plague to pass it on. This is an intriguing book, describing an intriguing theory and has numerous other examples and corroborating data that I will describe in future posts. I highly recommend reading it. Maddalena Environmental Inc. Al Maddalena |