Page 128 - The Miracle of Electricity in the Body

126 THE MIRACLE OF ELECTRICITY IN THE BODY

generalization and understanding of deep, sometimes counter intuitive,
questions about the universe. Our brains are capable of this and much
more. How? We don’t know: the mind is a daunting problem for science. 74
Nerve cells possess many of the same properties as other cells, but
exhibit one extremely important difference: They process data. Their
ability to process information depends on characteristics peculiar to the
nerve cell membrane, which controls those substances (sodium, calcium,
potassium ions) to be taken into the cell. Since ions are electrically
charged, these particles’ movement in or out through the cell membrane
gives rise to a number of electrical changes within the cell. A nerve sig-
nal is the transmission of this electrical change arising along the neuron
membrane.
No doubt that the electrical transmission of data and the perfor-
mance of any action by means of electricity are signs of a superior
knowledge. The matchless technology in the body demonstrates the ex-
istence of a single Creator possessed of that knowledge. Our Omniscient
Lord is He Who has power over all things, as is revealed in the Qur’an:

Does He Who created the heavens and Earth not have the power to
create the same again? Yes indeed! He is the Creator, the All-
Knowing. His command when He desires a thing is just to say to it,
“Be!” And it is. Glory be to Him Who has the Dominion of all things
in His Hand. To Him you will be returned. (Surah Ya Sin, 81-83)

The Brain’s Parallel Data-Processing Ability

The brain’s activities are controlled by electrical currents and chem-
icals. In this system, millions of different processes operate in parallel to
one another. You can wiggle your fingers and toes at the same time, ex-
tend both your arms and then rotate them in different directions, and
move your head first to the right and then to the left, while humming a
tune at the same time. Even while you manage all of this easily, the com-
plexity of the processes being carried out in each of your muscles would
fill many volumes. For example, the way that you can read the words on
this page is made possible by signals from the optic nerve being
processed simultaneously in the nervous system.