47, Number 1
Volcanism, “Fountains of the Great Deep,”
and Forty Days of Rain
The Bible references the fountains of the deep and forty days of rain as contributors to the global Flood. Magmas are ideal candidates for fountains of the deep since water is the primary gas released during virtually all volcanic eruptions. The geologic record preserves volcanism on a level not observed today, especially with the existence of large igneous provinces. Gravimetric analysis of large igneous provinces indicates the liberation of water from their magmas could have contributed at least 58 cm of rain worldwide every day for forty days. Diatremes could be signature structures for volatiles launched into suborbital trajectories. The possible cause of the volcanism, Flood, and forty days of rain could have been concentrated, global decompression due to multiple bolide impacts. Under the scenario of global decompression from bolide impacts, the forty days of rain came from four potential sources: (1) liberation from volcanism, (2) destruction of vapor canopy, (3) vaporization of existing liquid water upon bolide impact, and (4) vaporization of bolides.
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Evaluation of the Ar/Ar Dating Process
Richard L. Overman
Abstract During the last half of the twentieth century, the argon-argon method of dating geologic rocks and formations became very popular. This method replaced K/Ar as the method of choice for many types of rocks. This paper explores the fundamental mathematics of the argon-argon dating method and evaluates the impact of the assumed date of the “standard sample” on the calculated argon-argon date. A method for testing the validity of an argon-argon date is proposed with example evaluations. The analysis in this paper shows that when the results of dating studies are validated against the foundational equations upon which the argon-argon dating method is based, the “older” the standard sample the greater the results differ from the foundational equations. This seems to indicate that the assumed age of the standard sample has an effect on the calculated age of the unknown sample. The paper proposes a way to further investigate and quantify the effect of the assumed age of the standard sample.
(available to the public)
The Mystery of Trilobite Evolution
One of the most ancient of all known fossils is the trilobite. Fortunately, a large number of well-preserved examples exist that allow a detailed study of this complex animal. As a result, much is known about it, including its external morphology and even its advanced, welldesigned, complex eye. Research on the trilobite eye shows that it is far more complex and better designed than thought, even just a few years ago. This paper concludes that no evidence exists in the fossil record for trilobite evolution from lower forms of life and that the first trilobite was unequivocally a trilobite.
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The Origin of Grand Canyon
Part III: A Geomorphological Problem
Michael J. Oard
Though the origin of Grand Canyon is of great interest to sedimentologists and structural geologists, the problem more properly rests within the field of geomorphology. That is because in spite of its imposing size, it is a water gap—one of over a thousand catalogued across the Earth. Like many other geomorphological features, most water gaps are best explained as formed during the retreating stage of the Flood. Clues to the formation of Grand Canyon are provided by the processes that occurred when the glacial Lake Missoula flood overtopped a ridge between Washtucna Coulee and the Snake River in the southeast Channeled Scabland. There are other water gaps present on the Colorado Plateau, and all are readily explained by the distinct processes of the retreating stage of the Flood. None of these features are easily explained by any dam-breach hypothesis.
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