Museum Guide

Are you exasperated by all the hype about "millions of years" in secular museums? The Museum Guide will help! It tells the true history about dinosaurs, plate tectonics, the Stone Age, the Ice Age, human origins, and more.

Contents

• Glossary

  pp. 4–5

  Look up words from this book that you do not understand.

• Before You Go to the Museum

  pp. 7–24

  “Evolution” and “millions of years” stories abound throughout many museum presentations.

• What Is Science?

  p. 9

  The kind of science that we normally think of as science (called “operational science”) is a wonderful tool.

• Creation

  pp. 11–12

  God reveals to us how and when He created everything.

• Corruption (The Fall)

  pp. 12–14

  God’s creation was perfect; there was no sickness, pain, or death. But this perfect creation did not last long.

• Catastrophe (The Flood)

  pp. 14–16

  The sons and daughters of Adam and Eve continued to turn their backs on their Creator and do their own thing.

• Confusion (The Tower of Babel)

  

  p. 16

  Noah’s descendants disobeyed the Creator’s command to spread out and fill the earth after the great Flood.

• The Good News

  pp. 16–17

  Jesus is our only way to be reconciled with God.

• A Big Bang

  p. 19

  The most popular naturalistic explanation about the origin of the universe is the big bang hypothesis.

• Molecules-to-Man Evolution

  pp. 19–20

  A popular belief today is that all animals and humans evolved (changed) from one kind into another kind over millions of year. Is this true?

• Those Millions of Years

  pp. 20–21

  You’re not denying operational science when you deny the millions-of-years idea; you’re denying a naturalistic interpretation of the past.

• Natural Selection=Evolution?

  p. 20

  Natural selection may bring about a new species of animal, but it cannot generate a new kind of animal.

• Practically Speaking

  p. 23

  Most large museums are filled with a wide range of exhibits. It may be helpful to narrow down what you want to learn about.

• Hall of Life

  pp. 27–144

  From the deepest depths of the ocean to the upper layers of the atmosphere, life abounds on our planet.

• Life from Non-Life

  p. 31

  The naturalistic worldview claims that life arose from non-living chemicals. However, from the Bible, we know that God is the giver of all life.

• Miller-Urey Experiment

  p. 33

  Some museums may discuss the Miller-Urey experiment of 1953 as evidence that abiogenesis can occur.

• Endosymbiosis

  p. 35

  Did the first cells begin when they gobbled up other cells?

• The Cambrian Explosion

  p. 37

  Did life suddenly explode on the scene during the Cambrian Period?

• Reproductive Habits

  p. 39

  How did reproduction come about?

• Did We Come from the Ocean?

  p. 43

  From a biblical perspective, we know that God created living animals and plants according to their “kinds” in the beginning

• Is Our Blood Similar to Sea Water?

  

  p. 45

  The claim that the composition of blood is similar to sea water is based on the assumption that life came from the ocean.

• How Long Does It Take for a Coral Reef to Grow?

  

  p. 47

  Can coral reef “ages” of tens of thousands of years be correct?

• Whale “Evolution”?

  

  pp. 49–51

  Whales are thought by evolutionists to have evolved from land mammals. However there are many problems with this idea.

• Dinosaurs and Dragons

  

  p. 55

  In 1841, Sir Richard Owen coined the term “dinosaur” (meaning “terrible lizard”) for the great beasts that were being rediscovered at that time.

• Where are the Great Beasts Today?

  

  p. 57

  Are dinosaurs still alive?

• Lizard or Bird Hips?

  

  p. 59

  In 1888, British paleontologist Harry Seeley proposed that dinosaurs should be grouped according to the structure of their pelvic bones and joints.

• Did Dinosaurs Have Feathers?

  

  p. 61

  In many museums, the curators have fashioned some dinosaurs with feather-like coverings, instead of scales.

• Did Dinosaurs Turn Into Birds?

  

  p. 63

  In addition to the biblical teaching, there are many scientific problems with the dino-bird idea.

• What Are They, Really?

  

  pp. 65–67

  In evaluating the alleged transitional forms, it can sometimes be difficult to separate fact from fiction.

• Age of the Dinosaurs?

  

  p. 69

  Throughout your journey in the dinosaur halls, you’ll read a lot about the “age of the dinosaurs.”

• Dinosaurs and the Bible

  

  p. 71

  As you stand in front of a dinosaur, read the words that God spoke to Job in the Bible.

• Mammals

  

  p. 75

  From the tiny, gray mouse to the large, blue whale, mammals are found on every continent and in every ocean on earth.

• Monotremes

  

  p. 77

  Today, Australia is the only continent where monotremes live although fossil platypus teeth have been found in South America.

• Marsupials

  

  p. 79

  Some marsupials have very specialized diets.

• Placentals

  

  p. 81

  Placentals are mammals that bear live young, which are nourished in the womb by a placenta.

• Amphibian: The Transition from Fish to Reptile?

  

  p. 87

  Fossil and genetic evidence support the biblically-based fact that amphibians have always been amphibians.

• The Devonian: Did Fish Become Amphibians?

  

  pp. 89–90

  Fossil and genetic evidence support the biblically-based fact that amphibians have always been amphibians.

• Mammal-Like Reptiles: Transitional Forms?

  

  p. 91

  Some creatures appear to have features found in both mammals and reptiles.

• Have Snakes Lost Their Legs?

  

  p. 93

  Despite no one ever observing it, descent from a common ancestor is once again assumed.

• Am I an Animal?

  p. 97

  Museums often go to great pains to emphasize that humans are just another animal, like all the other mammals in the museum.

• What Are They, Really?

  pp. 99–100

  Are there any human transitional forms?

• Cavemen?

  

  p. 101

  Some museum dioramas may feature stooped, brutish, unkempt humans living in caves—primitive, subhuman cavemen.

• Stones, Bronze, Iron

  

  p. 103

  Almost from the beginning, men were working with metals, making tools of iron.

• What About Those Dates?

  

  p. 105

  When looking at human artifacts, keep in mind that these “ages” are based on many assumptions.

• The Origin of the People Groups

  p. 107

  Genesis 10 gives us a list of the names of the grandsons of Noah.

• How Similar is Our DNA?

  p. 109

  Some newer museum exhibits have begun to cite genetic “evidence” that humans and chimps are related.

• Are Plants “Alive”?

  p. 113

  Plants grow and reproduce, and many scientists consider plants “alive” in the biological sense. What does the Bible say?

• Plant “Evolution”?

  p. 115

  God created the various kinds of plants on Day 3, before He created the sun, moon, sea creatures, or land animals.

• The Origin of Photosynthesis

  p. 117

  Plants are able to transform sunlight, carbon dioxide, and water into energy in a marvelous process called photosynthesis.

• How Old Are the Trees?

  p. 119

  It’s highly unlikely that any vegetation (other than seeds, spores, and floating mats of vegetation) would have survived the Flood.

• Food Chain From the Beginning?

  p. 123

  In the beginning, God created plants for us and the animals to eat.

• Does Speciation = Evolution?

  pp. 127–128

  Some museums show their lack of understanding of the biblical position when they claim that creationists believe in the “fixity of species.”

• Do Mutations Fuel Evolution?

  p. 129

  Some exhibits may present mutations as the fuel for particles-to-presidents evolutionary processes.

• Is Natural Selection Evidence for Evolution?

  p. 131

  Natural selection actually works in the opposite direction of what molecules-to-man evolution requires.

• Are Adaptations Evidence for Evolution?

  p. 133

  Adaptations can be defined as physical traits or behaviors due to inherited characteristics that give organisms the ability to survive in a given environment.

• What About Those Embryos?

  

  p. 135

  Most museums now recognize that the human embryo does not pass through various evolutionary stages, known as embryonic recapitulation.

• Are Similarities Explained by Evolution?

  p. 137

  As is obvious even from a quick glance at earth’s fauna, there are many similarities among organisms.

• A Common Ancestor Isn’t the Answer

  pp. 138–139

  Recent findings from various scientific disciplines confirm that homology is not evidence that all living things share a common ancestor.

• How to Read a “Family Tree”

  p. 141

  Most museums feature charts that illustrate the alleged evolutionary lineage of the animal in question.

• How Important Is Evolution to Science?

  p. 143

  Some museum exhibits may claim that evolution is the foundation to all of science.

• Hall of our Exciting Earth

  pp. 145–200

  This section of the guide deals with exhibits of the many geophysical features of our earth. It also deals with the various dating methods.

• A World Without Oxygen?

  pp. 149–151

  Scientists have now discovered that the earth’s atmosphere has never been without oxygen.

• Past Supercontinents

  p. 155

  How did earth’s continents look in the past?

• Have the Continents Moved?

  p. 157

  Most creationists believe the continents have moved, although not as slowly as the museum exhibits may claim.

• Why Are There Ocean Basins, Continents, and Mountains?

  p. 159

  Psalm 104 suggests an answer.

• When Did Canyons Form?

  p. 161

  Creation scientists believe that most of the world’s canyons formed sometime after the Flood.

• How Old Are Rocks?

  pp. 165–167

  A major assumption of any radioisotope dating method is that the decay rate of a given isotope is constant

• Unconformities—Millions of Years of Missing Rock?

  pp. 168–169

  Flood processes responsible for depositing the sedimentary layers were also capable of eroding significant thicknesses of both loose sediment and consolidated rock.

• Is There an Order to the Fossil Record?

  p. 173

  Based on what the Bible says, some creationists expect the fossil record to be divided into two broad categories.

• Different Time Periods or Ecosystems?

  p. 175

  The usual story behind the fossil record is that each layer represents a period in time during which certain animals lived and died.

• How Old Are the Fossils?

  pp. 177–179

  How old are fossils? They are not found with tags that indicate their age.

• Those Wild and Woolly Mammoths

  p. 183

  The extinction of the woolly mammoth, and many other Ice Age mammals, is presented as a mystery in most museums.

• How to Read an Ice Core

  p. 185

  Most ice cores are alleged to show hundreds of thousands of annual layers. Is this true?

• How Was Coal and Oil Formed?

  p. 189

  Crude oils themselves do not take long to be generated from appropriate organic matter.

• How Were Caves Formed?

  p. 193

  Most museums teach that cave formations take hundreds of thousands of years to form.

• Opals

  

  p. 193

  How long does it take for opals to form?

• Diamonds

  

  p. 199

  Dr. John Baumgardner has conducted research on diamonds which shows that these gems cannot be billions of years old.

• Hall of our Expansive Universe

  pp. 201–220

  This section of the guide provides answers to the naturalistic explanation of our expansive universe.

• Extrasolar Planets

  p. 203

  Astronomers have discovered extrasolar planets that orbit distant stars.

• Is There Liquid Water Elsewhere in the Universe?

  p. 205

  Physicist Dr. Russell Humphreys believes that the Genesis account of creation implies that there was a water origin for our universe.

• Does Water = Life?

  p. 207

  It takes much more than liquid water for life to originate.

• What About the Big Bang?

  p. 209

  The most popular naturalistic explanation about the origin of the universe is the big bang hypothesis.

• What About the Nebular Hypothesis?

  p. 211

  In retelling how our solar system originated, many museums will feature the nebular hypothesis.

• Is the Universe Expanding?

  p. 213

  The Bible indicates in several places that the universe has been “stretched out” or expanded.

• What Is the Fate of our Universe?

  p. 215

  There are many different naturalistic ideas about how the universe will come to an end.

• Are We Starstuff?

  p. 217

  Some universe-oriented exhibits may claim that “we are all starstuff.”

• Do Stars Evolve?

  p. 219

  Stars change to some extent, but not over billions of years.