Page 740 - Atlas of Creation Volume 2

Prior to reacting with rhodopsin, transducin is bound to another molecule called GDP. When it connects

with rhodopsin, transducin releases the GDP molecule and is linked to a new molecule called GTP. That is why
the new complex consisting of the two proteins (rhodopsin and transducin) and a smaller molecule (GTP) is
called "GTP-transducin-rhodopsin."
But the process has only just begun. The new GTP-transducin-rhodopsin complex can now very quickly
bind to another protein resident in the cell called "phosphodiesterase." This enables the phosphodiesterase pro-

tein to cut yet another molecule resident in the cell, called cGMP. Since this process takes place in the millions
of proteins in the cell, the cGMP concentration is suddenly decreased.
How does all this help with sight? The last element of this chain reaction supplies the answer. The fall in the
cGMP amount affects the ion channels in the cell. The so-called ion channel is a structure composed of proteins
that regulate the number of sodium ions within the cell. Under normal conditions, the ion channel allows
sodium ions to flow into the cell while another molecule disposes of the excess ions to maintain a balance.

When the number of cGMP molecules falls, so does the number of sodium ions. This leads to an imbalance of
charge across the membrane, which stimulates the nerve cells connected to these cells, forming what we refer
to as an "electrical impulse." Nerves carry the impulses to the brain and "seeing" happens there. 318
In brief, a single photon hits a single cell, and through a series of chain reactions the cell produces an elec-

trical impulse. This stimulus is modulated by the energy of the photon—that is, the brightness of the light.
Another fascinating fact is that all of the processes described so far happen in no more than one thousandth of
a second. As soon as this chain reaction is completed, other specialized proteins within the cells convert ele-
ments such as 11-cis-retinal, rhodopsin and transducin back to their original states. The eye is under a constant
shower of photons, and the chain reactions within the eye's sensitive cells enable it to perceive each one of
these.

The process of sight is actually a great deal more complicated than the outline presented here would indi-
cate. However, even this brief overview is sufficient to demonstrate the extraordinary nature of the system.
There is such a complex, finely calculated system inside the eye that it is nonsensical to claim that it could have
come about by chance. The system possesses a totally irreducibly complex structure. If even one of the many
molecular parts that enter into a chain reaction with each other were missing, or did not possess a suitable

structure, then the system would not function at all.
It is clear that this system deals a heavy blow to Darwin's explanation of life by "chance." Michael Behe
makes this comment on the chemistry of the eye and the theory of evolution:

Now that the black box of vision has been opened, it is no longer enough for an evolutionary explanation of that
power to consider only the anatomical structures of whole eyes, as Darwin did in the nineteenth century (and as
popularizers of evolution continue to do today). Each of the anatomical steps and structures that Darwin thought

were so simple actually involves staggeringly complicated biochemical processes that cannot be papered over with
rhetoric. 319
The irreducibly complex structure of the eye not only definitively disproves the Darwinist theory, but also

shows that life was created by the All-Wise and All-Powerful God.

The Lobster Eye

There are many different types of eye in the living world. We are accustomed to the camera-type eye found
in vertebrates. This structure works on the principle of the refraction of light, which falls onto the lens and is fo-
cused on a point behind the lens inside the interior of the eye.
However, the eyes possessed by other creatures work by very different methods. One example is the lob-
ster. A lobster's eye works on a principle of reflection, rather than that of refraction.

The most outstanding characteristic of the lobster eye is its surface, which is composed of numerous
squares. As shown in the picture, these squares are positioned most precisely. As one astronomer commented
in Science: "The lobster is the most unrectangular animal I've ever seen. But under the microscope a lobster's
eye looks like perfect graph paper." 320
These well-arranged squares are in fact the ends of tiny square tubes forming a structure resembling a hon-

738 Atlas of Creation Vol. 2