Those of us who are given to talking to animals cannot help wondering if any of them have a sense of humor or laugh at themselves or each other. There are some intriguing studies done about this that offer some insights, but the cat has yet to share any feline jokes with me, nor have any of the critters I have come across in my wilderness wanderings ever said to me “Say, have you heard the one about the travelling bear?” But if the critters were capable of intelligible human speech I often wonder what stories they might tell?

Looking into the eyes of some animals you cannot fail to see real intelligence there, but just how this intelligence works in animals is not clearly understood and is often unpredictable. While some animals like dogs can be trained to do extraordinary tasks, there is always that unpredictable characteristic in animals that distinguish between them and humans. Even understanding this there are some that will say, “I wish my wife or husband was as well behaved and loyal as my dog.”

Human beings among the more civilized have developed standards of manners and laws that are expected to be adhered to and differentiate them from the barbarous. The seemingly erratic flight of butterflies lends charm to these delightful jewels of nature, but would be grotesque in some other creatures. However, the behavioral patterns of all living things are something that has always invited scientific study.

Despite all the marvelous computer generated graphics and the various theories it still does not seem possible to me that life came from the Big Bang, and I continue to believe life came from God after the creation of the physical universe as described in Genesis, though I believe the Devil may have gotten here first with some truly diabolical and grotesque life forms before God created Adam and Eve.

It’s almost a scene out of Frankenstein where an infinitesimal electric charge has to be induced in order for in vitro fertilization to take place and scientists do not know the reason for this. We know such energy is required for life, but do not know what this energy is, “this fire of life we carry about  in these mortal bodies.” Until we know exactly what life and death are these will continue to be the greatest mysteries of all, the greatest mysteries they have always been. At that, these may continue to be unknowable.

The “God particle” is a misnomer since the Higgs boson if found by physicists will still be a creation of energy, the source of which will still be unknown. Energy produces motion which produces phenomena does not explain the energy. But I continue to applaud the scientists that keep poking their fingers into the empty light sockets risking the jolt and Dee Dee looking at that button saying “Oooo” and then pushing the button. The Darwin Award does not do justice to the many survivors of “I wonder what this thing does?” Not a few such things among others have elicited the occasional “Heath! You stupid idiot!” from my own lips.

A living cell continues to be one of the great mysteries of life, and scientists have yet to understand the mysteries of this literal miracle of life. The more that is discovered about living cells, the more mysterious these become:

Evolution Continues to Be a Hard Cell: By Frank Sherwin, M.A. September 2008. The increasing amount of research at the cellular level has boded ill for the naturalist who insists that life must be interpreted (strained?) through a Darwinian explanatory filter. For instance, recent studies have focused on ion channels, which are passages designed to transport charged atoms (ions) through a membrane formed by a specific protein or proteins on the surface of cells. Energy (adenosine triphosphate, or ATP) is not required; instead, passive transport is utilized in this very complex gating process. In 2006, researchers discussed a unique bacterial voltage-gated potassium ion (Kv) channel from the genus Listeria. They stated, "The fundamental principles underlying voltage sensing, a hallmark feature of electrically excitable cells, are still enigmatic and the subject of intense scrutiny and controversy…"

No less mysterious is the fact of our solar system, something I continue to believe is unique in the universe. As with studies of living cells, studies of our solar system seem to point to a unique structure, one in which a planet exists capable of supporting intelligent life:

September 2, 2008. New Study Shows Solar System is Unique: TFOT (The Future Of Things): Research conducted by a team of North American scientists shows our solar system is special, contrary to the accepted theory that it is an average planetary system. Using computer simulations to follow the development of planets, it was shown that very specific conditions are needed for a proto-stellar disk to evolve into a solar system-like planetary system. The simulations show that in most cases either no planets are created, or planets are formed and then migrate towards the disk center and acquire highly elliptical orbits…

But the contributors to the Kurzweil Report as yet have not put their finger on “Ah, sweet mystery of life at last I’ve found you.” I still watch the old Nelson Eddy and Jeannette MacDonald films, I still thrill to the operatic music and the old songs I recall from childhood. Few things serve so well for renewal of purpose than music that lifts the soul. What exactly the purpose is remains a mystery; but I suppose Moses struggled with “I AM” in answer to the question of God’s name.