Page 245 - The Errors the American National Academy of Sciences

The NAS's Errors in the Chapter on Creationism and
The Evidence for Evolution

In short, a single photon strikes just one of the cells in the retina, and
thanks to the ensuing chain reaction, the cell is enabled to produce an electri-
cal impulse. This varies according to the energy of the photon, giving rise to
the concept of "strong" and "weak" light. One of the most interesting aspects
of this whole process is the fact that all of the complex reactions described
above take place in one-thousandth of a second, at most. Even more interest-
ing is the fact that when this chain reaction is completed, certain special pro-
teins within the retinal cell—including 11-cis-retinal, rhodopsin, and
transducin—return to their previous states. Thus, as the eye is struck by new
photons every moment, the chain reaction system within the cells of the
retina enables the person to perceive every one of these photons.
The process of seeing that we have summarized here actually contains
a great many more complex details. Yet, even this crude picture is enough to
show what a magnificent system we are dealing with. The eye is such a com-
plex, such a finely tuned system that it is totally irrational to maintain that it
could have come about by chance. The system possesses a complex structure
that is completely irreducible. The absence of even a single one of the huge
number of molecules that enter into chain reactions with one another would
mean the utter failure of the whole system.

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