All the physical laws in the universe are delicately balanced and specifically measured
for the existence and support of life.
The general structure of the universe, the place of our earth in that universe, our planets,
physical features such as air, light and water all possess properties that are essential
to our survival.
When we inspect and study at the molecular level, the special creation of the microcosmic
world reveals a clear and an even more unique order.
At the molecular level, or smaller, such as the atomic level, which is too small to
be seen with the naked eye, everything is flawless.
The elements that make up our hands, eyes, hair and lungs, or all of the living things
such as plants, animals, trees and birds that provide food for us are all specially created
building blocks.
In his work, The Universe, Plan or Accident, the physicist Robert Clarke describes how
the building blocks of life were brought into being with a very special and a very superior
creation.
As if the creator has given us a kit of prefabricated parts ready made for the work in hand.
One of these special components referred to by Clarke is the element called carbon.
In many respects, carbon has different properties compared to other elements.
These differences make it essential to life.
Carbon is the sixth element in the periodic table.
Its most important characteristic is that it constitutes the basis of many things on Earth,
from our car tires to our computers, from the natural gas we use to cellulose, from the
meat we eat to the DNA in our cells.
The film you are about to watch provides information about the structure of carbon and allows you to
witness a great proof of creation.
The element carbon, the basis of all life, is only produced as the result of very special
and miraculous reactions in the centers of giant stars.
If these miraculous reactions did not take place, there would be no such element as carbon
in the universe today, and thus no such concept as life.
We describe these reactions as miraculous because they only take place in conditions that are
impossible under normal circumstances when they combine together.
Let us now examine this phenomenon.
The carbon atom comes into being as a result of a two-stage process in the nuclei of giant stars.
Two helium atoms first combine together, resulting in an intermediate element with four protons
and four neutrons.
This intermediate element is known as beryllium.
When a third helium atom is added to beryllium, the result is a carbon atom with six protons
and six neutrons.
The beryllium that emerges in the first stage has a different structure to the beryllium found
on Earth.
The ordinary beryllium in the periodic table has an extra neutron.
The beryllium that forms inside red giant stars, on the other hand, is a different version.
Chemists call this an isotope.
Physicists have long been amazed because this beryllium that forms in red giants is abnormally unstable.
It is so unstable that it disintegrates in as little as one quadrillionth of a second after it is formed.
So how is it that this beryllium isotope that vanishes the moment it forms turns into carbon?
Does the helium atom that will convert the beryllium isotope into carbon approach and bond to it by chance?
Such a thing is, of course, impossible.
It is just as or even more impossible as a third brick being added on top of two other bricks
that have come to be standing on top of one another by chance
in as little as a trillionth of a second
before the first two bricks collapse
and in such a way a sound piece of construction emerges.
The famous scientist Paul Davies describes this miraculous phenomenon in these words.
Carbon nuclei are made by a rather delicate process involving the simultaneous encounter
of three helium nuclei inside the cores of large stars.
Because of the rarity of triple nuclear encounters,
the reaction can proceed at a significant rate
only at certain well-defined energies called resonances
where the reaction rate is greatly amplified by quantum effects.
One of these resonances is positioned just right
to correspond to the sort of energies that helium nuclei have inside large stars.
A process known as double resonance takes place in red giants.
When two helium atoms resonate in union,
another resonance causes a third helium atom to join the beryllium atom
that emerged in as little as one quadrillionth of a second
and thus give rise to carbon.
This is a phenomenon that cannot possibly take place under normal conditions.
George Greenstein describes why this double resonance
is such an extraordinary mechanism.
There are three quite separate structures in this story.
Helium, beryllium and carbon
and two quite separate resonances.
It is hard to see why these nuclei should work together so smoothly.
It is like discovering deep and complex resonances
between a car, a bicycle and a truck.
Why should such a disparate structure mesh together so perfectly?
Upon this, our existence
Greenstein compares the formation of carbon in the nuclei of giant stars
to a phenomenon that could not possibly occur spontaneously,
but is reluctant to unequivocally describe this as a miracle of creation
due to his belief in materialist dogma.
It subsequently emerged that certain other elements such as oxygen
also form by way of such extraordinary resonances.
Fred Hoyle, who first discovered these extraordinary processes,
concluded in his book,
Galaxies, Nuclei and Quasars,
that this process was far too planned
to have come about by coincidence.
And despite being a committed materialist,
he admitted that the double resonance
he discovered was a regulated matter.
In another article, he stated the following.
If you want to produce carbon and oxygen
in roughly equal quantities by stellar nucleosynthesis,
these are the two levels you would have to fix,
and your fixing would have to be
just about where these levels are actually found to be.
A common sense interpretation of the fact suggests
that a super-intellect has intervened in physics
as well as chemistry and biology,
and that there are no blind forces worth speaking about in nature.
The numbers one calculates from the facts
seem to be so overwhelming
as to put this conclusion almost beyond a question.
So influenced was Hoyle by this miraculous phenomenon
that he stressed how other scientists
could not ignore this obvious truth.
I do not believe that any scientist
who examined the evidence
would fail to draw the inference
that the laws of nuclear physics
have been deliberately designed
with regard to the consequences
they produce inside the stars.
It has been estimated
that there are currently around
two million compounds on Earth
with different structures combined
in various ways.
In the same way
that these compounds may be able to form solely
by two atoms combining together,
they can also emerge
from a combination of millions of atoms.
The interesting thing, however,
is that the fact that every element
has its own particular ability
to produce compounds.
Some elements never combine
with another element
under any circumstance.
Some produce only one or two compounds.
carbon, however,
carbon, is very different to all of these.
It is able by itself
to establish 1.7 million compounds
of different kinds.
Bearing in mind
that the total number
of different compounds
in the world is 2 million,
we see that all the other elements,
excluding carbon,
produce the remaining 300,000 compounds.
The meaning of this
is that carbon
carbon is a great marvel
of creation.
It is also very interesting
that there is actually
quite a small amount
of this vitally important element.
Carbon represents only 9-10%
of living bodies
in weight
and only 17 parts
in 100,000
of the Earth's composition.
Despite being present
in only small quantities,
carbon is still present
in every part of our lives,
including our own bodies,
and there is no other element
that can replace it.
Carbon's property
of being easily able
to form compounds
with other elements
stems from the bonds
it establishes.
Because of its molecular properties,
carbon is able
to add atoms
of the same type
to one another
and also to combine atoms
of different kinds.
Other atoms
generally lack this property.
They can form bonds
with certain atoms
but differentiate
between others.
Carbon forms
very strong covalent bonds
with other carbon atoms.
Since these bonds
are very strong,
they allow very large
and long molecules
to form.
The carbohydrates,
protein,
and nucleic acids
in the body
are large molecules
that result
from such carbon bonds.
Scientists spent years
investigating
whether there was
any other element
that might replace carbon.
The element
with the nearest properties
to those of carbon
was silicon.
They therefore thought
that silicon
should be able
in some way
to build
the compounds
formed by carbon.
However,
all their efforts
proved to be in vain.
because silicon
had no ability
to form
a large number
of compounds
with other elements
in the way
that carbon does.
The main reason
for this
is the strong bonds
that carbon forms
with its own atoms.
The bond between
two carbon atoms
is very strong
for which reason
it permits
much longer
and highly stable bonds.
although silicon
is an element
very close
to carbon
it is unable
to form
such powerful bonds
with its own atoms.
The bond
it establishes
is weak
and unsuited
to the formation
of long chains.
In his book
The Chemical Elements
and Their Compounds
the British chemist
Neville Sedgwick
describes how
there is no alternative
to carbon.
We know enough now
to be sure
that the idea
of a world
in which silicon
should take
the place of carbon
as the basis
of life
is impossible.
The Earth
is the only known planet
to have
the necessary conditions
for carbon
to form
and give rise
to compounds.
For example
the temperature range
needed for a carbon
compound
to be able
to form
is between
minus 20
and
positive
120 degrees Celsius.
Carbon compounds
start to freeze
at minus 20 degrees
and to fall apart
at 120 degrees.
We can witness
this decay
and this falling apart
under world conditions.
In a forest fire
for instance
the extreme heat
entirely alters
the structure
of tree trunks.
Carbon compounds
undergo changes
which is the reason
that the tree structure
is radically altered.
The carbon
has now lost
its original structure.
as we have seen
carbon is impaired
by temperature changes.
If that change
were to prevail
across the world
life would disappear.
This is one
of the most important
proofs
that the Earth
is specially created.
the temperature range
that permits
carbon
to give rise
to organic compounds
exists only
on Earth
and this temperature range
is a highly
delicate one.
To make a comparison
the temperature
on Venus
the next planet
to the Earth
in the solar system
is around
450 degrees Celsius
and the temperature
on Mars
the next planet
after the Earth
is minus
53 degrees Celsius
it is impossible
for carbon
to give rise
to organic compounds
in such burning heat
and freezing cold.
It must also
not be forgotten
that the temperature
in the stars
measure millions
of degrees
and that the temperature
in the vasts
of outer space
is minus
273 degrees Celsius
or absolute zero.
The fact that
only the Earth
possesses
the specific
temperature range
necessary to support
carbon-based life
is a great blessing
and a special creation.
The important thing
is to realize
by seeing
these perfections
and by knowing
Allah's matchless
artistry
that one stands
in need of Allah
and should appreciate
His greatness.
Allah reveals
this fact
in the Quran.
I seek refuge
in Allah
from the accursed Satan.
Have you thought
about what you cultivate?
Is it you
who make it germinate
or are we
the germinator?
If we wished
we could have made it
broken stubble,
you would then be left
devoid of crops,
distraught.
We are ruined,
in fact,
we are destitute.
Have you thought
about the water
that you drink?
Is it you
who sent it down
from the clouds
or are we
the sender?
If we wished
we could have made it bitter,
so will you not
give thanks?
Have you thought
about the fire
that you light?
Is it you
who make the trees
that fuel it grow
or are we
the grower?
When we examine
carbon in detail,
we see that
not only the formation
of this atom,
but also its chemical
properties have been
specially determined.
In nature,
carbon is found
in two separate forms,
graphite and diamond.
However,
the compound it forms
produce very different
substances.
All the very different
organic structures
from the cell membrane
to tree bark,
from the lens of the eye
to a deer's antlers,
from the white of an egg
to snake venom,
all these consist
of carbon-based compounds.
Carbon combines
with hydrogen,
oxygen,
and nitrogen atoms
in very different
geometrical forms
and sequences,
thus giving rise
to very different
substances.
Some carbon compounds
consist of only
a very few atoms,
while others contain
thousands
or even millions.
Only carbon atoms
can form such long
and permanent compounds.
In his book,
Neville Sidwick
says this about carbon.
Carbon is unique
among the elements
in the number
and variety
of the compounds
which it can form.
Over a quarter of a million
have already been isolated
and described,
but this gives a very
imperfect idea
of its powers,
since it is the basis
of all forms
of living matter.
When carbon combines
with other atoms
to form organic compounds,
the bond established
between the atoms
is known as
a covalent bond.
Covalent bonds
are formed
when two atoms
share the same electrons.
Electrons revolve
in specific orbits
around the atomic nucleus.
There may be
only two electrons
in the orbit
closest to the nucleus.
The next orbit
may contain eight.
and one after that
18 and so on.
The noteworthy point
is that atoms
have a predisposition
to make up
the number of electrons
in their orbits.
For example,
oxygen with six electrons
in its second orbit
wants to add
another two electrons
and thus complete
and thus complete the orbit
with eight electrons.
No answer can be given
to the question
of why atoms
have such a tendency,
but were it not
for that predisposition,
life forms could obviously
never come into being.
Covalent bonds
are formed
thanks to the atoms'
desire to complete
their orbits.
Two different atoms
that want to complete
their orbits
do so by sharing
their electrons.
The two hydrogen atoms
and one oxygen atom
that constitute water,
for instance,
build a covalent bond.
The oxygen raises
the number of electrons
in its second orbit
by sharing one electron
with each of the hydrogen atoms.
each of the hydrogen atoms
raise the number
of electrons
in its second orbit
to two
by using one
of the oxygen electrons.
Carbon thus gives rise
to very different substances
by building
such covalent bonds.
Methane is one
of these substances.
the formation of methane
comes about
by four hydrogen atoms
building a covalent bond
with a carbon atom.
Since the atomic number
of carbon is
two less than that
of oxygen,
the carbon bonds
with four hydrogen atoms
instead of two.
As we said at the beginning,
the bonds built by carbon
constitute a very
wide spectrum.
The bonds
that carbon
establishes
with hydrogen alone
give rise
to the large family
known as hydrocarbons.
This family includes
natural gas,
liquid petrol,
fuel oil,
kerosene,
and various machine oils.
The hydrocarbons
ethylene
and propylene
are the basis
of the petrochemical industry.
Other hydrocarbons
give rise
to such compounds
as benzene,
toluene,
and turpentine.
The moth balls
we put in cupboards
to protect our clothes
against moths
contain another form
of hydrocarbon.
Hydrocarbons
that combine
with chlorine
or fluorine
produce such
different substances
as anesthetics,
fire extinguishers,
and the freon
used in refrigerators.
The covalent bonds
that carbon builds
with hydrogen
and oxygen
represent another
wide spectrum,
including alcohols
such as ethanol
and propanol,
as well as
aldehydes,
ketones,
and fatty acids.
Two important substances
formed by carbon,
hydrogen,
and oxidant compounds
are the glucose
and fructose
in the foods we eat
that provide us
with energy.
Cellulose,
the constituent
of the hard part
of trees
that represents
the raw material
for paper,
beeswax,
vinegar,
and formic acid
again form
as the result
of the covalent bonds
that carbon constructs
with hydrogen
and oxygen.
When carbon builds bonds
with hydrogen,
oxygen,
and nitrogen atoms,
very important compounds
once again result.
The most important
of these are amino acids,
which form proteins,
our body's building blocks.
The nucleotides
that make up DNA
are also molecules
made up of carbon,
hydrogen,
oxygen,
and nitrogen.
In short,
the covalent bonds
constructed by the carbon atom
are among the most
essential preconditions
necessary for life.
If carbon were unable
to build covalent bonds
with oxygen,
nitrogen,
and hydrogen,
then life could not exist.
What enables carbon
to form these bonds
stems from a characteristic
chemist preferred to
as metastability.
The well-known biochemist
John Burden Sanderson
Haldane
describes this feature
as follows.
A metastable molecule
means one that can liberate
free energy
by a transformation,
but is stable enough
to last a long time
unless it is activated
by heat,
radiation,
or union with the catalyst.
The carbon atom
has a very unique structure
thanks to which carbon
is easily able to form
covalent bonds
under normal conditions.
However,
there is one very interesting point here.
Carbon's metastability,
which is essential for life,
only applies within a very narrow
temperature range.
above 100 degrees Celsius,
carbon compounds
become highly unstable.
We all observe this
in our daily lives.
An example of this
is when we cook
a piece of meat.
Cooking it
is actually changing
the structure
of the carbon compounds.
One important point
needs to be emphasized.
The meat that is being cooked
now becomes
entirely dead.
In other words,
it assumes
a completely different structure
to that in a living organism.
Most carbon compounds
decay at above
100 degrees Celsius.
Many vitamins break down
at once.
Sugars undergo
structural change
in the same way
and lose their nutritional value.
At a slightly higher temperature,
150 degrees Celsius,
for instance,
carbon compounds
start to burn.
In other words,
the upper limit
of the temperature range
for carbon compounds
to establish covalent bonds
and maintain these
in a stable manner
does not exceed
100 degrees Celsius.
At a temperature
lower than 0 degrees Celsius,
however,
organic biochemistry
becomes impossible,
yet other compounds
are different.
Most inorganic substances
are not affected
in this way
by temperature changes.
In order to see this,
you can place
some metal,
glass,
or stone
in a frying pan
next to a piece of meat
and then heat them up.
You'll see that
as the temperature rises,
the structure
of the meat changes,
it darkens,
and eventually burns.
Yet nothing happens
to the metal,
glass,
or stone,
not even if you
raise the temperature
by hundreds of degrees.
Close inspection
shows that the temperature
needed by carbon compounds
in order to build
and maintain
covalent bonds
is exactly the range
that exists on Earth.
Yet as we have already said,
the temperature
in the universe
as a whole
vary from the fierce heat
of millions of degrees
inside the hottest stars
to absolutely zero
or minus 273 degrees.
Yet the Earth
created for human beings
possesses just
the temperature range
required by carbon compounds,
the building blocks
of life.
One more striking aspect
of all this
is that the temperature range
is also one
which water assumes
a liquid form.
As we saw earlier,
water,
one of the essential
preconditions for life,
needs exactly
the same temperature range
as carbon compounds.
Yet there is no natural law
that makes
such a harmony necessary.
This is an indication
that the properties
of water,
carbon,
and the Earth
were created
to be compatible
with one another.
The flawless nature
of Allah's creation
is revealed in the Quran.
He who created
the seven heavens
and layers,
you will not find
any flaw
in the creation
of the all-merciful.
Look again.
Do you see any gaps?
Then look again
and again.
Your sight will return
to you dazzled
and exhausted.
Covalent bonds
are not the only bonds
that keep the atoms
in the living body
together.
There is a second
class of bonds.
These bonds
of different kinds
are collectively
known as
weak bonds.
Proteins,
basic building blocks
owe their complex
three-dimensional shapes
to weak bonds.
In order to clarify this,
we now need to touch
on the structure
of proteins.
Proteins are generally
referred to as
amino acid chains.
This is an accurate
definition,
though an inadequate
one because the term
amino acid chain
calls to mind
a two-dimensional
series,
like pearls
strung out one
after the other
on a necklace.
However,
the amino acids
that constitute proteins
have a three-dimensional
shape,
like the leaves
on different branches
of a tree.
Covalent bonds
keep the atoms
that comprise
amino acids
together.
Weak bonds,
on the other hand,
combine amino acids
together
in the requisite
three-dimensional form.
Were it not
for the weak bonds,
proteins could not
exist,
and there could be
no life
in the absence
of proteins?
The noteworthy
aspect of this
is that the
temperature range
required by weak bonds
is,
as with covalent bonds,
exactly the temperature
range that exists
on Earth.
Yet weak bonds
and covalent bonds
have completely
different structures,
and there is
no natural reason
why they should
both require
the same temperature.
Nonetheless,
both classes of bonds
are established
at the same temperature.
If covalent bonds
were stable
at a different temperature
than weak bonds,
then protein building
would be impossible.
All of this information
about the
extraordinary properties
of the carbon atom
shows that there is
enormous harmony
between this atom
and other atoms
and compounds
that are the
essential building blocks
of life,
such as water.
There is also harmony
between the stability
of this atom
to form bonds
and the temperature
of our planet.
Our planet provides
a home
for all these elements
and compounds.
Michael Denton
emphasizes this fact
in his book
nature's destiny.
Out of the enormous
range of temperatures
in the cosmos,
there is only one
tiny temperature band
in which we have
one,
liquid water,
two,
a great plentitude
of metastable
organic compounds,
and three,
weak bonds
for stabilizing
the 3D forms
of complex molecules.
As we have already
seen,
this narrow temperature
range exists
solely on Earth
among all the known
heavenly bodies.
What is more,
carbon and water,
two of the main
building blocks
of life,
are found in large
amounts on the Earth.
All this goes to show
that the carbon atom
and its extraordinary
properties were
specially created for life
and that the planet Earth
was specially created
for carbon-based life.
What does a glittering diamond
have in common
with a drill bit?
An uncut raw diamond
is the hardest
of all minerals
and all substances.
For that reason,
crystal diamond
is used to cut
pierce
and plain substances
of all kinds.
Hardness is the resistance
that minerals display
to scratching
due to external forces.
Minerals can easily
be defined
according to their hardness.
A mineral's relative
hardness can be determined
by scratching it
with another.
Scientists
who established
a scoring system
in order to determine
the hardness
of all minerals
awarded the diamond
10 points out of 10.
So what is it
that makes the diamond
so hard?
It is noteworthy
that the brittle
and soft graphite
used in lead pencils
consists of the same
atoms as diamond.
Like diamond,
graphite is made up
of carbon atoms.
Yet one is very soft
and the other
exceptionally hard.
one is like a piece
of black coal
whereas the other
can have
a glittering surface.
One is present
in abundant quantities
in nature
where the other
is a rarity.
For all these reasons,
diamond is of course
incomparably more valuable
than graphite.
So how is it
that the carbon atom
is able to assume
both of these
totally different forms?
The crystal structure
of the diamond
is the most perfect example
in the whole crystal world.
The carbon atoms
in the diamond crystal
have the ideal
geometrical form
to endow the diamond
with its great hardness.
Although graphite
also consists
of carbon,
its atoms
are not laid out
in the same way
as in the diamond.
This state of affairs
is known to scientists
as
allotropy.
allotropy is the existence
of different physical forms
of a chemical element
by its atoms
being arranged
in different ways.
Each of these
different forms
is known
as an allotrope.
For example,
oxygen and ozone
are allotropes
of the oxygen atom.
Diamond,
graphite,
and amorphous carbon
are all allotropes
of carbon.
Some of the physical features
of diamond
and graphite
are as follows.
as we can see,
there are enormous differences
between these two substances
based solely
upon the difference
in the arrangement
of their atoms.
All of the properties
that make the diamond
valuable
depend on conditions
emerging
during its formation.
The extraordinary conditions
necessary for the diamond
to form
are extreme heat
and extreme pressure.
The diamond
is born
in the depths
of the Earth's crust.
Parts of this
that contain
melted diamond
may erupt
onto the surface
and freeze,
although this
is a very rare phenomenon.
That explains
why the number
of diamond seams
on Earth
is very low,
there being only
a few rich deposits.
The structure
of natural diamond
and the way it forms
have served
as a guide
for scientists,
thanks to which
artificial diamonds
can now be manufactured.
In some experiments,
graphite kept
at a pressure
of 100,000 atmospheres
and at a temperature
of 3,000 degrees Celsius
was converted
into diamond.
However,
synthetic diamonds
are not as valuable
as natural ones.
Because of their
hard structures,
such artificial diamonds
are used
as a kind of
abrasive
in industry.
As Sidgwick,
the chemist,
has said,
the carbon atom,
which contains
only six protons,
six neutrons,
and six electrons,
is a fully-fledged
miracle.
The difference
in the way
the atoms
are arranged
gives birth
to such
different outcomes.
The way
that these outcomes
are so beneficial
for man
is sufficient
for us to see
that all these
are a blessing
from Allah.
Therefore,
it is impossible
for any of the properties
of the carbon atom,
which are so essential
for life,
to have come about
by coincidence.
Allah created
the carbon atom
with all of its
different characteristics,
just as
he did
everything else.
What is
in the heavens
and in the earth
belongs to Allah.
Allah encompasses
all things.
Yes,
yes.
Yes.
Yes,
yes.
Yes,
yes.
Yes,
yes.
Yes,
yes.
Yes.