I find the Wow! signal of the terrestrial genetic code to be a pretty compelling indication of our genetic code having been created by extraterrestrial intelligence.
"The term “Wow! signal” represents a decade-long mystery in astronomy: In 1977, the astrophysicist Jerry Ehman received a
strong narrowband radio signal on the frequency of the 21 cm line of hydrogen with the gigantic big-ear radio telescope in Delaware in the US state of Ohio. There seemed to be no natural explanation for the persisting 72 s signal from the Sagittarius constellation, which was 30 standard deviations above the background noise. The profile of the strong, narrow-band signal corresponds to that of a communication antenna. Its discoverer highlighted the signal on the printout with a red circle and added an expression of astonishment by noting “Wow!” In the period that followed, there was a lively debate among experts as to whether it was an artificially generated or a natural signal. Although objects like pul-sars seem to be a possible source, the controversy continues to this day.
A few years ago, a team of Kazakh scientists published a
paper claiming to have discovered a Wow! signal in the genetic code of living beings. The code structure, so they claimed, is statistically so striking that its origin could be explained only by the presumption of an intelligent actor. The paper, published in Icarus, was somewhat off-topic since Icarus is a journal for planetary science rather than molecular biology or evolution. Since then, the paper has been celebrated as evidence for the extraterrestrial origin of the genetic code by support-ers of ancient astronauts and by the intelligent design movement; see, for example,
here,
here, and
here, as well as
this arti-cle in a German creationist journal. What’s it all about?
Ominous divisor 37 as a design signal
The authors of the paper are the mathematician Vladimir shCherbak from Al-Farabi University in Kazakhstan and the physicist Maxim Makukov from the Fessenkow Astrophysical Institute. The publisher of Icarus, a refereed journal, is the American Astronomical Society (AAS), an association of professional astronomers. The journal is mainly de-voted to initial publications in planetary scienceand is neither esoteric nor religious.
In order to track down the alleged Wow! signal, shCherbak and Makukov first divided the 20 genetically encoded amino acids into two groups: In the first group, they listed all amino acids that are sufficiently defined by the first two bases of a base triplet (meaning that any change of the third base would not change the amino acid) (Fig. 1). A base triplet or codon is a sequence of three bases (“letters”) on the genetic molecule DNA (or on the RNA) coding for a specific amino acid. The authors placed the remaining amino acids into a second group. Then they calculated the nucleon number (molecular weight) of every amino acid in both groups, as well as the nucleon number of every amino acid basic structure (“block nucleons”) and side chain. Finally, they sorted the numbers and added them up.
After this operation, shCherbak and Makukov came across numerical ratios in which the divisor 37 appears again and again: In the first group, the nucleon sum of all side chains is 333 (= 37 x 3²), that of all “block nucleons” 592 (= 37 x 4²), and the total 925 = (37 x 5²). Moreover: “With 037 cancelled out, this leads to 3² + 4² = 5² – representation of the Egyptian triangle…” (p. 6). The number 37 also appears in the second group; the total number of nucleons in the amino acids is 1110 (= 30 x 37).
Fig. 1. Structure of the side chains of those eight amino acids which are clearly defined by their first two codon bases. Side chains and their nucleon numbers (molecular weights) are shown in ascending order. The total is 333. However, this requires targeted manipulation (here: with proline). Further explanation in the text.
shCherbak and Makukov discuss various other examples using different sorting and exchange operations. Another one is discussed in Fig. 2. In all those cases, the divisor 37 appears prominently.
Fig. 2 There are 24 codons, each with three very different bases (A, T, G, and C). shCherbak and Makukov arranged those codons in such a way that their nucleic bases are interchanged according to certain rules: Within each “block” of 3 codons, the first nucleic base is shifted from one row to the next one onto the third position. From block to block, A is exchanged for G, and T for C (and vice versa). On the left and right column, the codons are arranged mirror-imaged. Next to each codon, it is noted which amino acid it codes for, and the molecular weight of the side chains and whole molecules is noted. In total, there are numbers that are completely divisible by 37. Source: shCherbak and Makukov, p. 5.
According to the authors, the frequent appearance of “37”, the emergence of “Egyptian triangles”, etc. are far beyond the statistical significance of randomly generated patterns. Thus, these appearances cannot be explained by natural processes since they are not relevant for biological function. The number “0” is also represented, as a corresponding symbol for start/stop codons. The authors claim: “Nature is indifferent to numerical languages contrived by intelligence to represent quantities, including zero”. Such a “privileged numerical system is therefore a reliable sign of artificiality” (p. 4). Ergo: “Whatever the actual reason behind the decimal system in the code, it appears that it was invented outside the solar system already several billions [of] years ago” (p. 8)."
Does the genetic code reveal a Wow! signal?<br/> A team of scientists claim evidence for "intelligent design" (pandasthumb.org)
Reference: The "Wow! signal" of the terrestrial genetic code
Author: Vladimir I. shCherbak, Maxim A. Makukov
Publish Year: 2013
Cite as: arXiv:1303.6739 [q-bi
T]
DOI: 10.1016/j.icarus.2013.02.017
Journal reference: Icarus, 2013, 224 (1), 228-242
The “Wow! signal” of the terrestrial genetic code (earth-chronicles.ru)