ABSTRACTS
A New Species of Fluke, Ascocotyle howei, in the Context of Sibling Speciation
Richard D. Lumsden and Mark H. Armitage
Ascocotyle (L.) howei, n. sp., is described from adults found in the intestines of naturally infected Colombian opossums, Didelphis marsupialis L. The new species is characterized by a distinctive flagon-shaped body, and 24-28 scalpel-shaped spines per row, arranged in two complete circumoral rows around a massive oral sucker. This new species most closely resembles A. (L.) megalocephala by way of a large oral sucker, a reduced pre-oral lip, a short ceca, and vitellaria which extend anteriorly to the level of the pharynx and posteriorly to the upper margin of the testes. Some characters, however, would place it in subgenus Ascocotyle or even Phagicola. In an introduction, the typical life histories and anatomical designations are reviewed for Ascocotyle trematodes, commonly referred to as flukes. Remarks concerning sibling speciation and its relevance to creation are summarized in the appendix.
The Florida Keys: Evidence in Support of Slow Floodwater Retreat
PART I: THE UPPER KEYS
Carl R. Froede Jr.
The Florida Keys extend from just south of the city of Miami (Soldier Key) to the Dry Tortugas, a distance of 150 miles. They are composed of two different types of calcium carbonate (i.e., limestone) rock. The upper Keys are exposed sections of former living coral reef (Pleistocene–Key Largo Limestone) and the lower Keys are lithified oolite (Pleistocene–Miami Oolite) accumulations. The Key Largo Limestone contains coral species similar to the modern-day reef. In places it is greater than 170 feet thick. I propose that the Key Largo Limestone coral reef tract developed during the period of slow Floodwater retreat spanning from 500 to over 1,000 years following the one-year-long global Flood of Genesis.
Ring Muhly—A Grass That Grows in Circles
Van Andel Creation Research Center Report Number 4
George F. Howe, Emmett L. Williams, and John R. Meyer
There is a grass that grows in ring-like patterns at the Van Andel Creation Research Center (VACRC), Chino Valley, Arizona. We discuss some aspects of the morphology, growth habits, and possible ecological benefits of Muhlenbergia torreyi which is also known as the “ring muhly.” A study of its growth rate and growth pattern is being initiated at VACRC. We recommend ring muhly as a subject of future investigations by other creationists. In this paper we also comment on the origin of grasses and their significance in the creation model.
The Nampa Image—An Ancient Artifact?
Robert E. Gentet and Edward C. Lain
The July 1889 find in Nampa, Idaho, of a small human figure during a well-drilling operation caused intense scientific interest last century. Unmistakably made by human hands, it was found at a depth (320’) which would appear to place its age far before the expected arrival of man in this part of the world, according to accepted evolutionary dating techniques. Although all but forgotten by the general scientific community, the evidence, when viewed without evolutionary bias, still sounds convincing over a century after its discovery.
Placer Mineral Deposits on a Young Earth
Alexander V. Lalomov and Serguei E. Tabolitch
We present a mathematical model for stream placer accumulation far from the source. Determination of the model’s parameters is discussed, and the model is applied to field data from northeastern Russia. The model calculated the age of these “far transfer” placers in northeastern Russia as not more than 2000 years, hundreds of times less than predicted by uniformitarian geologists. Field data were used to calculate both average and initial denudation rates during the post-Flood time for northeastern Russia. The model can be applied in similar settings to provide an age estimate for other “far transfer” placer deposits, and should provide considerable economic benefit in prospecting for commercial alluvial placer deposits.
The Putative Evolution of the Animal Eukaryote Cell Ultrastructure
Jerry Bergman
Research in the field of molecular biology and cell ultrastructure has revealed that a vastly greater level of complexity exists in the cell than was envisioned to exist in the entire human body before 1960. Cells are complex machines and, like all machines, their many parts (trillions in the case of cells) must all work in complete harmony yet not interfere with the function of other parts. The cell is not an amorphous bag of water, minerals, grains and food as once thought. Modern research has eloquently revealed it as the most complex machine in the universe. We now know that the eukaryote cell is vastly more complex than the gross anatomy of the entire human body. This review briefly summarizes the enormous complexity of the eukaryotic cell. Also discussed is the lack of evidence for the evolution of these organelles, revealing a “missing link” much larger and of far greater significance than all others. The gap between organelle containing cells, the eukaryotes, and those cells lacking them, the prokaryotes, is greater than any morphological gap between animal body types.