Perspectives sank to the bottom of the flow. Such 8. Huber, B.T., Macleod, K.G. and Wing, S.L., Nucleic acid bases rocks would end up ‘floating’ in fine- Warm Climates in Earth History, Cambridge University Press, London, UK, pp. 239–318, grained sediments or finely-bedded 2000. in Murchison sedimentary rocks. They would have 9. Bornemann, A. et al., Isotopic evidence ? Have the appearance of dropstones and may for glaciation during the Cretaceous not have the appearance of a mass flow supergreenhouse, Science 319:189–192, they proved that product. This is probably the case for 2008. life came from the Spanish example above, since the 10. Kerr, R.A., More climate wackiness in rocks were found dispersed within the Cretaceous supergreenhouse? Science outer space? 319:145, 2008. 8,000 m of sedimentary rock!17 The gastroliths found in fine- 11. Flint, R.B., Ambrose, G.J. and Campbell, K.S.W., Fossiliferous Lower Devonian Jonathan Sarfati grained sediments from the ‘Lower boulders in Cretaceous sediments of the Great Cretaceous’ Cloverly Formation have Australian Basin, Transactions of the Royal ave evolutionists proved that life been interpreted as material carried 200 Society of South Australia 104(3):57–65, Hcame from outer space? to 400 km in a mass flow.18,19 This could 1980. Evolutionary papers are buzzing well be another example of material 12. Oard, ref. 1, pp. 41–47. with the reports that nucleobases were deposited in the Flood. Billions of 13. Chumakov, N.M. and Frakes, L.A., Mode found in a meteorite. In some minds, nautiloids (similar to ‘floating rocks’) of origin of dispersed clasts in Jurassic this is tantamount to discovering life shales, southern part of the Yana-Kolmya were deposited in a 2-m-thick bed at fold belt, North East Asia, Palaeogeography, itself. But does the discovery justify the bottom of the Redwall Formation in Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 128:77–85, the hype? the Grand Canyon and vicinity.20 1997. Dropstones do not seem to be a 14. Doublet, S. and Garcia, J.-P., The significance Introduction problem for the Flood paradigm, but of dropstones in a tropical lacustrine setting, In 28 September 1969, fragments eastern Cameros Basin (Late Jurassic–Early are sometimes a conundrum within the Cretaceous, Spain), Sedimentary Geology of a meteorite landed 2 km south of the uniformitarian model. 163:293–309, 2004. small village of Murchison, Victoria, 15. Doublet and Garcia, ref. 14, p. 293. Australia. Local residents collected References 16. Donovan, S.K. and Pickereill, R.K., Dropstones: about 100 kg of material, and the 1. Oard, M.J., Ancient Ice Ages or Gigantic their origin and significance: a comment, largest fragment was about 7 kg. Submarine Landslides? Creation Research Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, The Murchison fragments came Society Monograph No. 6, Creation Research Palaeoecology 131:175–178, 1997. from a class of meteorite called Society, Chino Valley, AZ, pp. 57–67, 1997. 17. Doublet and Garcia, ref. 14, p. 294. carbonaceous chondrites, because 2. Bennett, M.R., Doyle, P. and Mather, A.E., 18. Zaleha, M.J. and Wiesemann, S.A., they contain small nodules called Dropstones: their origin and significance, Hyperconcentrated flows and gastroliths: Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, chondrules. Since this class is rich sedimentology of diamictites and wackes Palaeoecology 121:331–339, 1996. in and water, right from the of the Upper Cloverly Formation, Lower 3. de Long, W.P., de Lange, P.J. and Moon, V.G., Cretaceous, Wyoming, U.S.A., Journal of beginning the has Boulder transport by waterspouts: an example Sedimentary Research 75(1):43–54, 2005. been analysed for organic . from Aorangi Island, New Zealand, Marine 19. Oard, M.J., ‘Gastroliths’ deposited by mass Chemical evolutionists, who have Geology 230:115–125, 2006. flow, Journal of Creation 20(2):18–19, 2006. faith that life evolved from non- 1 4. Miall, A.D., Sedimentation on an early 20. Austin, S.A., Nautiloid mass kill and living chemicals, were hoping to find Proterozoic continental margin under burial event, Redwall Limestone (Lower evidence to support their faith. They glacial influence: the Gowganda Formation Mississippian), Grand Canyon region, Arizona had hoped that this meteorite would (Huronian) Elliot Lake area, Ontario, Canada, and Nevada; in: Ivey Jr, R.L. (Ed.), Fifth provide evidence that such processes Sedimentology 32:763–788, 1985. International Conference on Creationism, were widespread in the universe, even 5. Eyles, N. and Januszczak, N., Syntectonic technical symposium sessions, Creation subaqueous mass flows of the Neoproterozoic Science Fellowship, Pittsburgh, PA, pp. 55–99, if some of them were pessimistic that Otavi Group, Namibia: where is the evidence 2003. life could arise on earth.2 of global glaciation? Basin Research 19:179– One of the first discoveries was 198, 2007. amino acids, the components of 6. Oard, M.J., An ancient ‘ice age’ deposit proteins.3 Later, there were dubious attributed to subaqueous mass flow—again! claims that some of the amino acids Journal of Creation 22(2):36–39, 2008. had a slight excess of the ‘handedness’ 7. Eyles, C.H. and Eyles, N., Subaqueous mass (chirality4) required for life.5 Still flow origin for Lower Permian diamictites and associated facies of the Grand Group, later, there were claims that sugars Barbwire Terrace, Canning Basin, Western and sugar-related compounds were Australia, Sedimentology 47:343–356, 2000. discovered, which excited many

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because the backbones of DNA and Surrounding soil samples RNA contain the sugars deoxyribose had a much lower 13C/12C and ribose respectively.6 ratio.9

What was just discovered? Worldviews matter A team led by Zita Martins of As always, creationists Imperial College, London and Leiden do not necessarily dispute Institute of Chemistry, Netherlands, the observations of reported that they discovered two evolutionists, but often nucleobases in this meteorite.7 dispute the interpretations

This could be important, because of these observations. Photo from Wikipedia these are the letters of the genetic code Most of the researchers are not trying to find out Fragment of the Murchison meteorite (at right) and that stores the information of life in isolated individual particles (shown in the test tube). DNA and RNA.8 In particular, the whether chemical evolution bases found were uracil, a pyrimidine has occurred. Rather, they assume that huge problem for chemical evolution.11 (single-ringed base), and xanthine, a it has occurred, and merely trying to And cytosine pairs with guanine, which purine (double-ringed base). Uracil is find out how. So it is small wonder breaks down to form xanthine. found in RNA, and pairs with adenine, that many are excited by the finding of ‘Degradation of nucleobases in the thus it substitutes for DNA’s thymine. the ‘building blocks’ of life anywhere, hydrated parent body environment Xanthine is not part of the genetic code, although they are light years away from also has to be considered. For but it is found in living organisms from finding proof that they ever could build example, cytosine degrades to the breakdown of guanine, which is a anything. uracil with a half-life of 17,000 base in DNA and RNA. years and guanine decomposes to Contamination? xanthine with a half-life of 1.3 Ma These compounds were highly 12 enriched in a heavy isotope of carbon, Even some evolutionists are not at 0°C and pH 7. Consequently, 13C, and this was said to be consistent convinced that these nucleobases meteoritic nucleobase distributions with formation in space, not Earth. formed beyond earth, and believe are the result of both synthetic that contamination has not been and subsequent degradation 2 ruled out. For example, Sandra reactions.’ Pizzarello, a chemist at Arizona State However, this would be Xanthine University in Tempe, US, who has consistent with degradation from previously researched amino acids terrestrial sources as well. In DNA in this meteorite, is unconvinced. A of living organisms, G-C linkages New Scientist report on the discovery are somewhat more stable than A-T includes: linkages, because the former have three ‘But it may be too early to conclude hydrogen bonds while the latter have these nucleobases formed beyond only two. the Earth, says Sandra Pizzarello, a Small molecules are not life chemist at Arizona State University in Tempe, US. The study “raises a Creationists have long pointed out very interesting question that was that some monomers (the components raised a very long time ago, but I of big molecules or polymers) would don’t think it solves it”, she told be expected to be able to form Uracil New Scientist. … naturalistically. So it is not surprising ‘But Pizzarello says too many that some have been formed in both other chemicals were present in the outer space and in the Miller–Urey samples to clearly distinguish the simulation experiments.13 However, carbon ratio. “Analytically, it’s not rather than proof of chemical evolution, convincing,” Pizzarello told New the observations are evidence against Scientist.’10 it. This is because we never see Contamination is not so them progress any further—they are implausible. Uracil is not just a chemical dead ends. nucleobase in its own right, but also In particular, to form DNA and forms from hydrolysis of cytosine. RNA, it’s far from enough to find Indeed, this instability of cytosine is a nucleobases.

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1. They must be purified from other But this is true only in the sense that 6. For why this offers no support for chemical closely related compounds, then a steel plate is an important part of an evolution, see Sarfati, J., Sugars from space? Do they prove evolution? Journal of Creation concentrated. early car, or that a letter of alphabet 16(1):9–11, 2002; . form a nucleoside. But this reaction component of an early message. 7. Martins, Z. et al., Extraterrestrial nucleobases in just doesn’t occur in water. And the Murchison meteorite, Earth and Planetary even in a dry environment (a Science Letters 270:130–136, 15 June 2008 primordial soup doesn’t quite | doi: 10.1016/j.epsl.2008.03.026; . been formed, but even this failed 8. Sarfati, J., DNA: marvellous messages or to form pyrimidine nucleosides. mostly mess? Creation 25(2):26–31, 2003; 3. They must combine with phosphate . to form a nucleotide. Yet phosphate 9. ‘Carbon isotope ratios for uracil and xanthine of concentrations in naturally δ13C=+44.5‰ and +37.7‰, respectively, indicate occurring water are far too low. a non-terrestrial origin for these compounds … And this phosphate must be Soil uracil has a δ13C value of −10.6‰ (±1.8‰) Photo from Wikipedia and xanthine was below the detection limit of activated otherwise the reaction GC-CIRMS (~1 ppb). Thus, there should be won’t occur. Pair of grains from the Murchison meteorite. no terrestrial contribution from the landing site 4. These nucleotides must be soil to the value for xanthine measured in the activated, purified and concentrated Conclusion meteorite.’; Martins et al., ref. 7. so they will combine to form 10. Courtland, R., Genetic building blocks polymers. But even then, This is hardly the first time that the may have formed in space, New Scientist. polymerization must have first pro-evolution mass media have hyped com news service, 13 June 2008; . evidence is analysed, even if reported even with a polypurine tem- 11. Sarfati, J., Origin of life: instability of building plate.14 correctly, it fails to support what it blocks, Journal of Creation 13(2):124–127, 5. The biological significance of claims. In the case of the origin of life, 1999; . DNA and RNA is in the sequence such discoveries really show the limits 12. Levy, M. and Miller, S.L., The stability of the of the nucleobase ‘letters’. There of what real chemistry can achieve RNA bases: implications for the origin of life, is nothing in the bases themselves without intelligent design. That is, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. 95:7933–7938, 1998. that would make them join up in not only do the observations provide 13. Bergman, J., Why the Miller–Urey research predetermined ways that have any no support for chemical evolution, argues against , Journal of Creation they are actually further evidence that 18(2):28–36, 2002; . than forces between ink molecules chemical evolution is based on blind 14. Pointed out by chemical evolutionist Cairns- make them join up into letters and faith rather than fact. Smith, A.G., Genetic Takeover, and the words. Michael Polanyi (1891– Mineral Origins of Life, Cambridge University 1976), a former chairman of References Press, 1982; physical chemistry at the University 1. Yockey, H.P., A calculation of the probability 15. Polanyi, M., Life’s irreducible structure, of Manchester (UK) who turned to of spontaneous biogenesis by information Science 160:1308, 1968. philosophy, confirmed this: theory, Journal of Theoretical Biology 16. Scientists confirm that parts of earliest genetic 67:377–398, 1977; quotes from pp. 379, 396; material may have come from the stars, ‘As the arrangement of a printed . page is extraneous to the chemistry Imperial College News Release, 13 June 2008,

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