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Truth & Trials in Togo
Throughout my journey through medical education, my goal was to use the career God gave me to serve vulnerable international...
In 1971 Ford introduced their now infamous Ford Pinto with its rear mounted gas tank. It tended to explode and catch on fire when hit from behind. Fortunately, the designers at Ford, through the process of evolution, “evolved” the gas tank from the vulnerable rear position back to its traditional position for future cars. Unfortunately for the Ford Pinto, it never saw the light of day again through the process of “natural selection”, when this little car went extinct.
The same cannot be said of the Bombardier Beetle. This little arthropod has the ability to explode as well, but unlike the Pinto it doesn’t destroy itself in the process. The Bombardier Beetle has twin spray nozzles that shoot a mixture of gas and steam at 100 degrees Celsius at any would-be predator1. It does this by combining two inert chemicals with a catalyst which causes the explosion.
If we adhere to a slow, steady evolutionary theory, the first Bombardier Beetle capable of this reaction would have exploded itself. And even a kid in the first grade knows that bug guts can’t evolve. Good thing the chamber in the beetle where these chemicals are mixed has an “asbestos” lining to handle the heat, on top of having spray nozzles that can aim this mixture 360 degrees, in any direction.
But that’s not all, the beetle doesn’t discharge this in a single large explosion, because that would knock it off its feet every time. Rather, the spray pulsates at 500 shots per second, causing a continuous spray and distributing the force so the beetle can stay on its feet1.
Wow! All the design elements in this beetle would have made the engineers at Ford blush. There are so many design features in this one beetle that we can know beyond a shadow of a doubt there is a Creator, who not only intentionally designed the beetle but designed you as well.
- Viet, K. “A Beetle’s defense system blasts evolutionary claims!”, answersingenesis.org, Answers In Genesis, 15 Aug 2017, https://answersingenesis.org/creepy-crawlies/insects/bombardier-beetle-arsenal-insect/. Accessed Feb 28, 2022.
