Page 290 - Darwinism Refuted
P. 290

Utriculus  Vestibular nerve
                                        Sacculus               Tympanic canal
                      Common crus
                         Superior
                  semicircular canal                             Cochlea duct

                                                                    Vestibule canal
                 Lateral
             semicircular
                  canal
                                                                     Cochlea
               Ampulla




                                                      Vestibular nerve
                                         Oval window
                            Posterior semicircular canal
             The complex structure of the inner ear. Inside this complicated bone structure is found
             both the system that maintains our balance, and also a very sensitive hearing system
             that turns vibrations into sound.


             been unable to determine whether the frequency-distinguishing system
             takes place in the inner ear or in the brain.
                 At this point, there is an interesting fact we have to consider
             concerning the motion of the tiny hairs on the cells of the inner ear. Earlier,
             we said that the hairs waved back and forth, pushing each other like
             dominos. But usually the motion of these tiny hairs is very small. Research
             has shown that a hair motion of just by the width of an atom can be
             enough to set off the reaction in the cell. Experts who have studied the
             matter give a very interesting example to describe this sensitivity of these
             hairs: If we imagine a hair as being as tall as the Eiffel Tower, the effect on
             the cell attached to it begins with a motion equivalent to just 3 centimeters
             of the top of the tower.  351
                 Just as interesting is the question of how often these tiny hairs can
             move in a second. This changes according to the frequency of the sound.
             As the frequency gets higher, the number of times these tiny hairs can
             move reaches very high levels: for instance, a sound of a frequency of
             20,000 causes these tiny hairs to move 20,000 times a second.
                 Everything we have examined so far has shown us that the ear
             possesses an extraordinary structure. On closer examination, it becomes
             evident that this structure is irreducibly complex, since, in order for


                                              288
   285   286   287   288   289   290   291   292   293   294   295