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Five Features Correlate
with Seed Weight in Yuccas
to Support a Seed-Dispersal Hypothesis

George F. Howe

Morphological observations were made on fruits, seeds, stems, leaves, and flowers of 13 species of Yucca at various locations in California, Arizona, and eastward. The dates of flowering, fruit production, and fruit fall (or fruit persistence) were recorded. Seed samples for 12 of the 13 species were weighed, and fell into two different weight classes: light and heavy. It was observed that the species producing light seeds had a suite of five other correlated morphological characteristics. Conversely, most of the heavy-seeded yucca species had five different or contrasting features. Neither the seed weight classes nor their systematic correlation with the other five traits were covered in the Yucca literature consulted. Seeds of 14 additional Yucca species and one Yucca subspecies, taxa that were unavailable during the field studies, were commercially available from seed suppliers. It was possible to determine from the literature which of these 14 species possessed dehiscent pods, one of the attributes correlating with light seeds; and which ones produced indehiscent pods—the contrasting feature regularly associating with heavy seeds. The weights of the purchased seeds were consistent with the predictions that: (1) seeds from plants known to possess dehiscent pods would be light, and (2) the seeds from plants having indehiscent fruits would be relatively heavy. The few exceptions to other correlated features are listed and analyzed. It is proposed that the five features correlating with light seeds aid in transport of the seeds by wind. It is further hypothesized that the five contrasting attributes, which are usually present in heavy-seeded yuccas, foster seed dispersal by animals. These two hypotheses find support in the present data. Several additional morphological traits were analyzed and appear to be unrelated to seed dispersal or to phylogeny, posing a problem for neo-Darwinian macroevolution. The yucca correlations support a nonevolutionary origins model for Yucca species. Based on these data, further predictions are made, including the prediction that the correlations of seed weight with other features will also exist in the species and subspecies of Yucca not yet analyzed. Other possible avenues for future yucca research are enumerated.

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Reports of Living Pterosaurs
in the Southwest Pacific

Jonathan D. Whitcomb

Standard models of evolution assert that all species of dinosaurs and pterosaurs became extinct long ago and that their fossils are evidence for unlimited common ancestry, the extinction of the vast majority of species opening the way for those more fit to survive. Although all species of pterosaurs could have been destroyed by the Flood and post-Flood changes, the young-earth view holds out the possibility of extant pterosaurs. Investigations of reports of creatures whose descriptions suggest Rhamphorhynchoid pterosaurs in remote areas of Papua New Guinea were carried out between 1994 and 2007. Two expeditions to Umboi Island in 2004 resulted in formal interviews with villagers, and an expedition deep into the interior of the mainland in 2006 resulted in indirect video evidence and a sighting by two native explorers. Although no direct proof has been presented, the indirect evidence is substantial and intriguing.

Full Article: [PDF]

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Why the Inverted Human Retina Is a Superior Design

Jerry Bergman and Joseph Calkins

It is often claimed that the human retina is poorly designed because light must travel through the nerves and blood vessels to reach the photoreceptor cells, which are located behind the eye’s wiring. Many specific reasons exist for this so-called backward placement of the photoreceptors. A major one is that it allows close association between the rods and cones and the pigment epithelium required to maintain the photoreceptors. It is also essential in both the development and the normal function of the retina. Both the rods and cones must physically interact with retinal pigment epithelial cells, which provide nutrients to the retina, recycle photopigments, and provide an opaque layer to absorb excess light.

Full Article: [PDF]
(available to the public)