Refutation of Grade 9 Homeschool Creationist Textbook: Biology PACE 1099

A few months ago, a smart friend of mine in Louisiana sent me several pics of his home school textbooks. Thankfully he is a smart kid who saw through the lies and nonsense in these books, and thankfully he convinced his grandfather that he should not be home schooled with such nonsense and enrolled in a school. (Unfortunately, he cant even escape a overwhelming Christian bias classrooms and harsh environment from his Christian peers in a Louisiana school. Best of luck mate!)

I already posted a blog reviewing the Geology textbook, now here comes the Biology. I thought there would be a lot to cover, but thankfully, all the creationist nonsense was near the back. The book covers a fair good amount how basic biology works, they do not mix the "magic" and "pseudoscience" until near the end.

PACE 1099 covers Dinosaurs, supposed dinosaurs in the Bible, fossils and bashing evolution.

Page 28-29

Dinosaurs

“Alligators and crocodiles are very large reptiles, but some dinosaurs grew to be the worlds largest reptiles and land animals. After the first finds of some large reptile fossils, the term “dinosaur” was coined from two Greek words meaning “terrible” and “lizard.” Although we think of the larger dinosaurs, most were probably the size of a horse or smaller.”

I love it when even creationists can't agree with each other.

Dinosaurs are reptiles, dinosaurs are not reptiles.

To show you how WAY out of touch with reality some creationists are...

Now to clarify, invertebrates ARE ANIMALS. Even a child knows that.
I mean, it doesn't even take 5 seconds on Google to learn that. Even the first line on Wikipedia for Invertebrates says "Invertebrates are animals species."

“Biblical and scientific evidence seems to indicate that man and dinosaurs lived at the same time. Some scholars believe that two references in the Biblical book of Job refer to dinosaurs. One reference mentions the “Behemoth,” whose description fits the brachiosaur, and the other refers to “leviathan,” whose description fits the plesiosar. Job's description indicates either he personally saw these creatures or he was familiar with someone else who did see them.”

Get one thing crystal clear: there is NO scientific evidence AT ALL to indicate that man and dinosaurs lived at the same time.

None.

Nada.

Zilch.

Believe what you wish that certain mythical creatures mentioned in the Bible or Where the Wild Things Are lived on this Earth alongside humans. Believe what you wish, but the reality is that you are A) simply wrong and B) totally delusional.

The Bible makes references to unicorns, talking snakes, dragons, but does it mention dinosaurs?

Apparently.... no, it does not.

The Bible says Behemoth's tail "was like a cedar." The "tail like a cedar," which creationists think indicates a large dinosaur, is not even a real tail. "Tail" was used as a euphemism in the King James version. A more likely translation for the phrase is, "His penis stiffens like a cedar" (Mitchell 1987). The behemoth was probably a bull, and the cedar comparison referred to its virility.

Lets read Job 40 carefully and see what creature this "Behemoth" may be.

Job 40:16 - Lo now, his strength is in his loins, and his force is in the navel of his belly.

(It should be noted, dinosaurs back in the day did not have navels. Dinosaurs are reptiles, that is they are egg-laying animals, did not have umbilical cords, and therefore did not have navels. )

Job 40:17 - He moveth his tail like a cedar: 

(Creationists IGNORE the swaying in which trees move. Instead they try to imply that these tails should be the size of a tree - except the Bible does not describe it that way. They also omit that the word "cedar" was sometimes used to describe the material people would use to swat flies from themselves -- and that looks exactly like an elephants tail. So the description matches an elephants tail quite well, if you take the dinosaur image out of your head.)

Job 40:17 - the sinews of his stones are wrapped together.

(it should also be noted, external genitalia (especially the "stones") are typically mammalian traits and NOT VISIBLE on reptiles like dinosaurs)

Job 40:18 - His bones are as strong pieces of brass; his bones are like bars of iron.

(the elephant is the biggest strongest animal people have ever seen in the Bronze Age)

Job 40:19 - He is the chief of the ways of God: he that made him can make his sword to approach unto him.

(elephants are extremely intelligent creatures, even compassionate animals.)

Job 40:20-21 - Surely the mountains bring him forth food, where all the beasts of the field play. He lieth under the shady trees, in the covert of the reed, and fens. The shady trees cover him with their shadow...

 (the shady trees cover him with their shadows.)

Job 40:22-23 -  the willows of the brook compass him about. Behold, he drinketh up a river, and hasteth not: he trusteth that he can draw up Jordan into his mouth.

(this verse better suits an elephant than it does any sauropod)

Job 40:24 - He taketh it with his eyes: his nose pierceth through snares.

(note that it does not say a horn on the nose that is piercing anything, this is the nose itself.)

Basically, BEHEMOTH WAS NOT A DINOSAUR. 

But what about “Leviathan”?

Just read Job 41 and look at this picture

“Fossilized tracks in the bed of the Paluxy River near Glen Rose, Texas, also give evidence that men and dinosaurs existed simultaneously. Fossilized human footprints and three-toed dinosaur tracks occur in the same rock stratum. In 1982 Dr. Carl Baugh, a Creation scientist, removed layers of rock from the riverbank and uncovered more of the human tracks. This discovery showed that they could not have been carved in stone as many evolutionists have suggested. These human footprints are five-toed with the big toe longer than the other four and have the left-right pattern of a man walking. Three fossilized dinosaur skeletons have also been uncovered along the Paluxy River.”

1. The alleged human footprints involve a number of misidentified and spurious phenomena.
   • Most supposed "man tracks" in the riverbed are forms of elongate, metatarsal dinosaur tracks-- made by dinosaurs that at times impressed their metatarsi (soles and heels) as they walked. When the digit impressions of such tracks are subdued by mud-collapse, erosion, infilling, or a combination of factors, the remaining metatarsal portions often superficially resemble human footprints. However, when well cleaned such tracks show definite indications of tridactyl, dinosaurian digit patterns (Kuban, 1986a, 1986b; Hastings, 1987).
   • Some of the reputed human prints are erosional features or other natural irregularities. They do not show clear human features without selective highlighting, nor occur in natural striding sequences (Cole et al, 1985).
   • A smaller number of alleged "giant man tracks" are carvings on loose blocks of rock (Godfrey, 1985; Kuban and Wilkerson, 1989).
2. Creationists often failed to exercise scientific rigor and due caution in their early Paluxy field work and promotions. Subseqwuently many also mischaracterized or minimized the mainstream work and alalyses which prompted creationist reevaluations of the evidence (Schadewald, 1986; Kuban, 1986c). However, most no longer use the Paluxy tracks among their arguments, and major creationist organizations such as ICR and AIG have advised that the Paluxy tracks not be cited as evidence against evolution. Continuing "man track" claims by a few individuals such as Carl Baugh and Don Patton have not stood up to close scrutiny (Kuban, 1989).

“In addition to the footprints of man with dinosaurs, pictures of dinosaurs have been discovered in ancient rock carvings and paintings. A reptile that seems to be an allosaur or a tyrannosaur is etched on the walls of Rattlesnake Canyon in Colorado. African bushmen painted pictures of other dinosaurs with pictures of hippopotamus, giraffe, and elephant on the walls of a cave near Harare, Zimbabwe. Some scientists believe that these drawings made by man are proof that dinosaurs coexisted with man.”

“Chinese, Egyptian, and Irish stories of dragons may also have their roots in history as men who saw dinosaurs passed their descriptions down to later generations.”

“That dinosaurs existed with humans is an important discovery disproving evolutionists theory that dinosaurs lived 70 million years before man. God created dinosaurs on the sixth day. He created man later the same day. Fossils of dinosaurs are of those that died in the Flood. As the Floodwaters subsided, their bodies were covered in silt, fossilized, and preserved until their recent discovery.”

Page 29-Backcover

“Some scientists speculate that Noah took small or baby dinosaurs on the Ark. If dinosaurs survived the Flood, why aren't more dinosaurs alive today? The Flood made drastic changes on Earth and it's climates. Dinosaurs could not survive in the changed environment, and most species became extinct. Are dinosaurs still alive today? With some recent photographs and testimonies of those who claimed to have seen one, scientists are becoming more convinced of their existence.”

“A Japanese fishing vessel brought up the decomposing body of a dinosaurlike sea creature off the coast of New Zealand. Caught at a depth of 900 feet (300 m), the creature weighed 4,000 pounds (1,800 kg), measured 32 feet (10 m) in length, and was seen and photographed by the crew members. The animal could not be matched with any living species but certainly resembles a supposedly extinct species of dinosaur.”

Actually, it was the statistical analysis of the results which gave >.96 confidence value for rejecting the null hypothesis (the specimen not being a basking shark). The amino acid sequence of composition was all but identical to elastoidin with decay accounting for the expected differences. (Source: Kuban, Gilen J., 1997. Sea monster or shark? An analysis of the supposed Plesiosaurus carcass netted in 1977. Reports of the National Center for Science Education 17(3):16-28)

“Have you heard of the “Loch Ness Monster” in Scotland? “Nessie,” for short, has been recorded on sonar from a small submarine, described by eyewitnesses, and photographed by others. Nessie appears to be a plesiosaur.”

The Loch Ness monster.....

Ugh...geh....oh....ow, I think I'm having a stupid-induced stroke!!!

I... just... can't think straight.

Just read this site, and learn something.

Ow, I think I'm going to need a beer or something after reviewing this. I swear, creationists are just so flippin' annoying.

“Could a fish have developed into a dinosaur? As astonishing as it may seem, many evolutionists theorize that fish evolved into amphibians and amphibians into reptiles. Evolutionists further theorize that all this change took place gradually over millions of years. This gradual change from fish to reptiles has no scientific basis. For the change to have taken place many transitional forms would have developed. However, no transitional fossils have been or will ever be discovered because God created each type of fish, amphibian, and reptile as separate, unique animals. Any similarities that exist among them are due to the fact that one Master Craftsman fashioned them all.”

This gradual change from fish to reptiles has no scientific basis.

Dead wrong.
Check out the proof here.

For the change to have taken place many transitional forms would have developed. However, no transitional fossils have been or will ever be discovered–– What's that? I couldn't hear you over the overwhelming avalanche of transitional forms discovered by scientists, fossils that said creationist quacks said will not ever be discovered.
(Skip to 5:25 if you don't want to wait for the Avalanche of Transitional Fossils)

http://www.detectingdesign.com/fossilrecord.html
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/06/080625140643.htm

Any similarities that exist among them are due to the fact that one Master Craftsman fashioned them all.

This is such a poor Christian argument.

For all the implications of apparent design, there is never any indication of any intended goal or final product, nor any hint of infallibility on the part of the designer. In fact, so many errors of so many types are known that even if there was an unnatural architect using miraculous means instead of natural ones, then it seems that entity must either be blind and barely competent, or there are whole teams of designers working on separate lines competing against each other.

Natural selection even mimics the experiments of human designers when new technologies emerge. For example, when men first achieved powered flight, there were myriad marvelously imaginative contraptions all at once collectively trying to set the standard for what airplanes should be. Eventually, they followed a more standardized pattern as many of the fancier designs were discontinued and more functional tried-and-true contrivances remained. Significant improvements occasionally appear, but there are no more wildly diverse variants like the pioneer planes built when aviation was new and less understood.