An exceptional oddity occurs in Africa, Australia, and South America during dry seasons: an oval-shaped, cocoon-like structure that is found under the ground which when gently broken open produces a long and curled live fish like something out of a sci-fi movie! One can continue to dig the surrounding area and find hundreds more of these fish peacefully resting under the ground.

This fish, bestowed with life in a cocoon of mud it fashions under the ground, is called the “lungfish.” It has been discovered that lungfish can survive thanks to their wonderful features for several years in cocoon-like pits under extremely severe and arid conditions. The secrets to this amazing phenomenon lie in the fish’s exclusive respiratory system.

While lungs are the respiratory organs for vertebrates that live on land, the respiratory organs known as gills have been granted to most aquatic animals. Lungfish actually breathe through both gills and lungs. This is why they are also known as dipnoid, a special type of “double breathing” species which have one or two lungs next to their gills. These are not actually lungs but are instead air sacs surrounded by capillaries. They function as lungs when the fish need to utilize them. In particular, these sacs are activated when the water in the fish’s environment dries up. Lungfish are able to overcome drought periods that may last many years by remaining buried in mud and breathing through these God-gifted air sacs.

There are six lungfish species known to be living in Africa, South America, and Australia. The fish resembles the eel due to their prominently long and cylindrical body structure. Studies have shown that the African species tend to be the largest and can reach up to two meters in length, while its Australian and South American counterparts can grow up to 1.25 meters. Fossil prints indicate that African lungfish emerged roughly 400 million years ago and are thus often called “living fossils.”

Just as everything is created and equipped in accordance with their exact needs, so is the lungfish. Lungfish do not have dorsal fins. Their chest and abdominal fins have features that make it easier for the fish to crawl on the ground. The fins are long, adhesive, and highly mobile, and their tips have a very delicate sense of touch. Moreover, the fish’s olfactory and taste receptor cells, and its lateral lines that detect pressure and turbulence, have been created to be extremely sensitive. These structures function as senses that support the fish’s weak sense of vision. Additionally, there are electro-receptors on the fish’s nose that help it to easily perceive their surroundings and aid with their survival.

As the water recedes during the dry season, each lungfish first digs a tunnel for itself in the slime and settles in it. At the top of the tunnel is a porous cover that allows air to smoothly enter and exit. It is within this tunnel that the fish fashions a cocoon for itself made out of a mucous it spews which is designed to keep moisture and allows air in. After these meticulous preparations, the fish goes into a summer sleep that is similar to hibernation. Its physiology also changes during this period as its metabolic speed is lowered to 1/60 of the normal circumstances and its body functions are brought almost entirely to a halt. The fish spends this whole period in this way until the next rainy season arrives.

The lungfish, no doubt, also need to maintain their energy during this deep sleep. They can generate energy by dissolving a portion of their own muscle tissues as a sort of “fat reserve.” Consumption of muscle tissue as food leads them to lose about 3 centimeters in size during one season, and they also lose almost half of their weight during extensive droughts.

An incredible respiratory mechanism

Animals of the underwater world use their gills for breathing. The multi-functional gills are delicately structured to allow the dissolved oxygen in the water to be released into the bloodstream and have the carbon dioxide removed. The gills are also instrumental in several processes including gas exchange, osmoregulation, acid-base adjustment, and nitrogenous waste disposal. A fish normally only has oxygenated blood in its gills. In the fish classified as dipnoid, the extremely thin membrane covering the inner surface of the air sac connected to the circulation system is conducive for gas exchange, thus it helps respiration by acting like a lung.

Different from other species, the lungfish are equipped with a highly developed exclusive respiratory mechanism that enables them to live both in water and on land. While some fish species that can breathe air do so by using basic gas sacs, the system in lungfish is far more complex.

There is a main canal in their breathing organs that serve as a type of de facto lungs, and this canal is surrounded with numerous chambers that increase when expanded but decrease in size. Most chambers have a central space linked with a ventilation duct. The inner surfaces of these structures are lined with numerous honeycomb-like air sacs fed by fine capillaries. A gas exchange occurs in these small vesicles, thus maximizing the surface area on which this gas exchange takes place. Additionally, these fish also have a circulation dedicated to the air sac which functions as a separate lung that is the same as in land vertebrates.

Lungfish go up the surface to breathe and position their heads in a way so that the tip of their nose touches the water’s surface. Meanwhile, they open their mouths and draw air from just above the water. During this process, they usually make a characteristic sound that varies slightly across species. The lungfish in Australia are a little different from the others; they breathe air through their nasal openings while their mouths are closed. In addition, the lungfish in Australia breathe air in shorter periods and they use their lungs only in high activation periods in their natural environment. This is why their gills are very strong since they have only one lung. Due to intense use under severe climatic conditions, the African and South American lungfish have two lungs instead of one and their gills are much smaller than that of other lungfish.

With unique features bestowed to their respiratory system, lung and gill structures so they can survive under extreme conditions, lungfish are a treasure for us to think and marvel on the mysteries found in nature.

References

• Olga Carvalho, Carlos Gonçalves. “Comparative Physiology of the Respiratory System in the Animal Kingdom.” The Open Biology Journal, 2011, 4, 35–46.
• en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lungfish
• www.britannica.com/animal/lungfish
• www.nationalgeographic.org/media/west-african-lungfish

Animals such as butterflies, turtles, and birds are given the ability to perceive the Earth’s magnetic field and navigate themselves accordingly. Migratory species also benefit from the sun, stars, and even scents in nature as they from one place to another.

Magnetic fields and poles

Modern studies have focused on how animals perceive the Earth’s magnetic field and act accordingly. We need to look closer at the Earth’s “magnetic polar points” to understand how magnetic fields work exactly.

It is important not to confuse geographic and magnetic poles. There is a layer called the “inner core” in the center of our Earth where all substances are in a fluid state, similar to those seen in volcanic eruptions. Volatile and molten elements such as nickel and iron form a magnetic electric field above the Earth. This is also the force that is responsible for causing our compasses to point north. At the center, the Earth’s magnetic field changes due to these fluid substances. That is, our compass does not always show the “true north,” i.e. the exact geographical north.

As of the last decade, the Earth’s magnetic pole has kept moving at a rate of about 55 km per year. The magnetic north pole, found in Canada in 1831, has now shifted 2300 km and approached Siberia. Scientists say that about 780 thousand years ago, today’s southern and northern magnetic poles were exactly the opposite. Although the magnetic poles shift, the Earth’s magnetic field continues to function properly. This is imperative for protecting all life on Earth, as a balanced magnetic field protects our planet from the magnetic effects of solar flares and solar winds.

Effects of polar shift

A new magnetic map of our planet is released every five years due to the fact that our magnetic poles are constantly shifting. This does not affect most people on a daily basis, however it does present a challenge for people and vehicles that rely on a compass. Due to the shift, a difference called “magnetic declination angle” occurs between the magnetic north pole and the geographic north pole. This angle varies according to the location. For example, in Canada the magnetic deflection angle is 13 degrees whereas in Brazil it is 20 degrees. In order to determine their exact location, military and civilian aircraft and ships manually or automatically calculate their location based on the angle of deviation and navigate accordingly. Even if we are not aware, our mobile phones are automatically updated according to this calibration. In physics, the formula known as Lenz’s Law, or a tool called a gaussmeter, can be used to calculate the Earth’s magnetic field.

Cryptochromes

This complex and intricate system affects most animal life on Earth, including birds, insects, and fruit flies. So, if these magnetic poles keep changing how do animals find their way? Most creatures utilize cryptochromes, a type of flavoprotein that affects their body clock.

Cryptochrome (CRY) [1] is found to play a leading role in this regard. Cryptochrome-2, one of the two cryptochrome photoreceptors, has been proven to be instrumental in regulating the daily life rhythm of beings by fine-tuning their body clocks and assisting certain animals such as migratory birds, king butterflies, and fruit flies to navigate their migratory paths accurately.

Years of research conducted by Steven Reppert and his team at the University of Massachusett’s School of Medicine on fruit flies and butterflies revealed the function of cryptochrome-2.

According to the research published in Nature magazine in 2009 [2], Dr. Reppert and his team found that flies could not adjust themselves to a new magnetic field without any form of cryptochrome, but that they could regain their sensitivity to a magnetic field only after cryptochrome-2 production.

During the study, the genetic structure of fruit flies was examined and it was ensured that they produced cryptochrome-2.

Speaking to the BBC, Dr. Reppert emphasized that they developed a system to understand how the perception of the magnetic field works in fruit flies. They sought the answer to the question, if cryptochrome-2 was to be transferred from animals to flies, can these proteins act like magnetic sensors in other forms? They have found out that human beings were the most effective option among all vertebrates to yield cryptochrome for this purpose. Their experiment with butterflies yielded the same results. They observed that flies without cryptochromes did not show any signs of magnetic field detection only until their genetic structure was intervened to produce a human version of the molecule.

In another experiment carried out by scientists, a group of migratory birds had iron nuggets, some of which were magnetized to scramble the Earth’s magnetic field, attached to their feet. It was observed that the birds with magnetized nuggets lost their migration path and the birds with unmagnetized nuggets could navigate as easily as usual.

Of course, birds could not know these exact calculations that many people do not even know. Pathfinding skills are “programmed” into birds before they are born so that even if the magnetic field shifts this wonderful mechanism in animals always delivers them to the right location.

The loggerhead sea turtles

As soon as they hatch on the east coast of Florida, the loggerhead sea turtles, Caretta Carettas, swim into Sargasso Sea, migrate into the North Atlantic Circle, and then subsequently into the Atlantic Ocean. The turtles first swim to the northeast towards Europe, then to the south, and return to North America after spending 5-10 years in this hot and nutrient-rich migratory loop.

Dr. Kenneth Lohmann and his team at the University of North Carolina wanted to observe whether loggerhead sea turtles used regional magnetic fields to find their migration paths. They set up a mechanism in a large water tank that was installed with coils in order to form multiple magnetic fields. 79 newly hatched turtles were then clad in cloth vests with wires connected to a computerized monitoring system and left in the same tank. Juvenile turtles were subjected to magnetic fields equivalent to those that exist at critical points of the North Atlantic Cycle, such as in the north of Florida, off the coast of Portugal, and at the southern end of the cycle. As a result, it was observed that in every magnetic field simulated in the experiment, the turtles begin to swim in the opposite direction. For instance, when the magnetic field in the northeastern part of the loop was applied, the animals headed south. In a real ocean setting, this direction keeps them on the right track and prevents them from entering icy waters and dying of hypothermia.

How do animals do it?

There are several research works documenting that not only birds, but also bats, ants, foxes, deer, and even cows feel magnetic fields.

Animals generally migrate to find more suitable reproductive, feeding and living areas for themselves. It is amazing how they know which way to go as soon as they are born. How do they decide that a place they’ve never been to is most suitable for them? How did they learn those navigational skills?

It is amazing to observe this intricate and interlinked system between the Sun, the Earth, and all the living things in it: while the rays of the Sun are needed for life, the harmful ones among them need to be shielded away from the Earth with a magnetic field, a field which is detected by a protein in animals so they can travel to places to continue their lives.

Human cryptochrome

Cryptochrome proteins are also present in the human body [3]. Cryptochrome-2 is especially functional and is linked more to adjusting biological rhythm rather than perceiving the Earth’s magnetic field.

Dr. Aziz Sancar, Chemistry professor and Nobel Prize winner, observed in his experiments of circadian clocks [4] that the cryptochrome pigment located in the eye, skin, and part of the brain regulated the circadian rhythm of mammals.

Currently, many theories are proposed and experiments are conducted on discovering the extent that human beings can perceive the Earth’s magnetic field.

Meanwhile, the wisdom behind the constant shift in the Earth’s magnetic pole awaits to be revealed.

Notes

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cryptochrome
2. Buchen, Lizzie. “Butterflies’ Migrational Timekeeper Found.” Nature, September 24, 2009.
3. Discovered between 1996 and 1998 in humans by Aziz Sancar and his colleagues, cryptochrome is one of the four genes that set the circadian clock in mice. This protein is also a member of a family of proteins including photolyase, DNA’s repair enzyme, on which Prof. Aziz Sancar has worked throughout his scientific career.
4. Rhythmic behavior and physiological changes that have a 24-hour cycle and regulate the day and night cycles of living beings. 

Further reading

Attenborough, David. 1998. The Life of Birds, Princeton University Press Princeton, New Jersey.

The teeth of a tiny mollusk (Patella vulgata), which is a species of sea snails, have been found to be some of the strongest biomaterials in the world. Also known as limpets, these mollusks are a very small crustacean, often around 0.05-2 cm in size with a large cone shell and possess an incredibly complex system of teeth that dazzles the mind.

Research has revealed that the tensile strength of the sea snail’s teeth is higher than that of spider silk and is comparable to only the strongest commercial carbon fibers. It was found that the teeth of sea snails scraping algae off of rocks showed a tensile strength between 3 and 6.5 GPa (gigapascals). Spider silk roughly reaches a tensile strength of about only 1.3 Gpa. Scientists say that the snail’s teeth can even withstand the pressure that turns carbon into diamonds. Studies have determined that, to our current knowledge, there is no other material of this size (roughly 100 μm micrometers) with as much strength and durability.

This exceptional durability has led scientists to do research on the structure and functioning of these teeth, and the studies showed fascinating results.

The role of teeth in nutrition

Sea snails have a special tongue, called a radula, which they use to scrape off food from rocks. The most important feature of the radula is that it contains more than 100 rows of iron-mineral teeth. However, those used for food intake consist of only 10 rows on the outermost part of the teeth. During eating, a tremendous mechanism operates: the teeth are constantly repositioned according to their conditions of maturation and wear. Worn teeth are replaced by newly matured teeth over the course of 12 to 48 hours to ensure that fresh, sharp teeth are used instead of dulled ones.

This wonderful displacement system operates in a similar way to the movement mechanism on a conveyor belt where the teeth begin to grow primarily in the posterior part of the radula. Meanwhile, they are strengthened and matured by iron mineralization. When this mineralization is complete, they are moved towards the front of the radula. In this way, completely matured teeth are permanently retained at the far-front scraping area. During the scraping process, the matured teeth wear out at a rate equal to the growth rate. In the meantime, a new set of teeth begins to grow. By means of this magnificent cycle, new teeth are constantly created and matured so that there are no disruptions in nutrition.

Biomineralization

The structure of the sea snail’s teeth is also a masterpiece of material science. The dazzling durability of its structure provides optimum strength when scraping food off of rock surfaces.

Although the exact process of biomineralization of the teeth is not known, it is believed that it involves reactions of dissolution and re-precipitation. When the non-mineralized matrix is examined, well-arranged and densely packed chitin fibers are observed that are only a few nanometers apart. The matrix is a structure which keeps the reinforcing material together in layers that are composed of different materials. This organic matrix serves as a framework for crystallization in the structure of the teeth. In the mineralization system, the basic macromolecule α-chitin component is created first. The first mineral that then precipitates is the “goethite,” i.e. the aqueous iron-oxide mineral, which crystallizes parallel to the chitin fibers. These crystals are nucleated on the chitin fibers and formed between them by pushing and pulling the fibers. This way, crystals placed in order cause biomineralization of the structure.

It was found that 80% of the overall volume of the structure is composed of these crystals. The gap between the crystals and the chitin matrix is filled with amorphous silica (SiO₂). The iron contained in the aqueous iron-oxide mineral is the metal that constitutes the largest proportion of the composition. Other metals such as sodium, potassium, calcium, and copper are present in different proportions depending on the sea snail’s exact geographic location.

Critical factors in durability

The most important reason that the sea snail’s teeth have such high durability is because the fibers of the aqueous iron-oxide minerals in the teeth are nano-scale. This is due to the fact that materials of this size are not affected by the conditions that reduce strength.

Another critical durability factor is the small length of critical fibers. Critical fiber length is a parameter that defines the length of a material required to transfer strain from the matrix to the fibers at the time of external pressure. To achieve maximum strain, the length must be greater than the critical length. Materials with a large critical fiber length can hardly reinforce the matrix because most of the strain is not transferred to the fibers and remains on the matrix. On the contrary, materials with smaller critical lengths can transfer the strain on the matrix to the fibers. Therefore, they serve as an effective reinforcement for the matrix.

Fibers of aqueous iron-oxide minerals are of a critical length of 420 to 800 nanometers. This is much smaller than the length of the fibers in the teeth of about 3.1 µm (micrometers). This shows that nanofibers are an effective reinforcer for the matrix and contribute greatly to the ability of the teeth to bear loads.

Besides the structure and composition of the snail’s teeth, its morphological shape is also important in providing strength. It ensures that the strain is evenly distributed all over the tooth.

Modeling of biomaterials

All these studies indicate the presence of high-strength composites, which is when a material obtained by combining two or more materials with different physical characteristics, in nature.

Sea snail teeth, which have been created as a highly resistant and strong biomaterial, act as an inspiration for engineering and material science. Their characteristics, such as content and design, are expected to be modeled in areas that require durability and rigidity.

These marvelous systems found in the natural world, sometimes in creatures as tiny as a snail or mollusk, serve as a reminder that nature is filled with wonders for us to explore.

References

· Barber, Asa H., Dun Lu ve Nicola M. Pugno, Extreme Strength Observed in Limpet Teeth,  Journal of The Royal Society Interface, April 2015, DOI: 10.1098/rsif.2014.1326, PubMed.

· World’s Strongest Natural Material Discovered, How It Works, Imagine Publishing, No. 71, p. 11.

· en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Limpet
www.iflscience.com/plants-and-animals/worlds-strongest-natural-material-limpet-teeth/

· www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Limpet

· Barber Asa H., Lu Dun and Pugno Nicola M. “Extreme strength observed in limpet teeth.” 12. J.R. Soc. Interface. http://doi.org/10.1098/rsif.2014.1326

His exalted name, “Light,” touches the darkness
and everywhere is filled with light.
The letters written from a brilliant world
are revealed to the hearts;
Then the Divine command,
“Read in the name of your Lord!”
descends and becomes our intentions.

We look around the Earth and believe that we start to sail into the dark upon reaching the depths of the skies, the land, and the oceans. But if we look with care, we may notice that the inhabitants of those places often inform us of the beauties they are created with.

The depths of the oceans, especially, are where what we see leave us amazed. From microscopic bacteria to giant squids, and from tiny lighted jellyfish to spiny skin, many creatures, from ascidians to some sharks and stingrays, turn on their lights, literally, illuminating the darkness of the deep sea. This biological light-producing process in the body of some animals is called bioluminescence. It is astounding that these creatures can emit biological light with no change in their body temperature. Normally, light is formed by emitting heat. This basic principle applies to some of the most common sources of light that we know of, such as campfires and electrical lightbulbs.

A mechanism that produces light without heat has been created in some insects living under the sea as well as those on land. The basis of biological light production is generally the oxidation of luciferin, i.e. its conversion to oxyluciferin. The enzyme necessary for this chemical reaction to occur is luciferase.

Most living creatures that can produce bioluminescence live in deep, dark areas of the world’s various seas and oceans. Some of the inhabitants of these depths emit strong blue (secondarily green) light at an average wavelength of 475 nm. An interesting note is that underwater life forms are often created with sensitivity to the wavelengths of blue-green lights mentioned above. In rare cases, there are also sea creatures that emit light in the yellow-red wavelength range.

Animals with the ability to emit light are also usually given excellent control mechanisms so that they can use their equipment as a weapon. They can turn their lights on and off in a flash and can utilize complex chemical and neurological mechanisms that provide functions such as adjusting the intensity, color, and direction of the light. Creatures that produce light underwater sometimes do not need to use the light in order to see where they are going. Instead, they tend to use these marvelous gifts in a variety of strategic ways. Some will try to attract the attention of their prey; others will attempt to ward off predators and aggressors; still others will use their lights to indicate that they are ready for reproduction. It is even possible for some creatures to utilize several of these functions at the same time.

Let us now examine some specific species and how they employ bioluminescence.

Light vomiting shrimp

One of the most interesting examples of bioluminescence in animals is the light-emitting deep-sea shrimp Acanthephyra purpurea. This shrimp will actually vomit light from its mouth as a last-ditch effort to deter predators. The intent is to disorient, confuse, and even temporarily blind other creatures, similar to the effect of a flashbang grenade, so that the shrimp can retreat into the dark. As a result of their research on the shrimps, marine biologist Edith Widder states that the chemical substances sprayed are not blue when they are in the body and that the blue light production occurs when the luciferin substance in the sprayed liquid comes into contact with the oxygen in water.

Loosejaw fish

There are at least 42 recorded families of bony fish that have bioluminescent properties. One of them is the Photostomias guernei, or the “loosejaw fish”. This fish has a remarkable organ that emits light on the sides of its eyes. These lights, which resemble the headlight lamps of our cars, are not constantly lit, in order to avoid waste. When hunting, the fish illuminates the way ahead with the light it produces, and it can turn these lights off when they are no longer needed. A wonderful feature of this organ is that, just like headlights, a highly reflective layer is created behind the main center of the light. The reason that the fish is able to turn the light off may be because its black velvety body is contrasted by the light color of the organ and would thus attract much unwanted attention.

Deep sea hatchetfish

Bioluminescent systems were also given to creatures in order to act as a means of camouflage. They work phenomenally for both hunting and survival in situations where blending in with the environment is paramount for catching prey or evading predators. In the depths of the underwater world, the silhouette of an animal bathing in light is an easily recognizable target. One of the best examples of this phenomenon is the deep-sea hatchetfish. The fish has been created with its eyes on top of its body and its mouth facing upwards, making it easier to hunt. It also emits bioluminescence from its abdomen to provide camouflage against more aggressive, larger fish that swim lower than itself. The color of the light emitted makes it difficult to recognize the fish from below as it perfectly matches the color intensity of the environment. In the meantime, if the sunlight that hits the sea is interrupted in any way, the fish will turn off its lights and the camouflage will continue.

Black dragonfish

Diversity in the light organs of the scaleless black dragonfish (Melanostomias bartonbeani)

This species of black dragonfish (Melanostomias bartonbeani) takes advantage of luminescence in a number of ways. An illuminated area next to the eyes is used to find prey and send signals to its mates. The black dragonfish’s chin also has an illuminated extension that dangles in the waves as bait for naive prey. In addition, a set of small organs of light arranged along its abdomen play a role in concealing its silhouette. Furthermore, light-emitting pocket-like structures surrounded by a gelatinous capsule embedded in the skin are used as alarm systems. The bioluminescent systems within this creature are immensely complex and beautiful, and when observed in detail reveal the dazzling splendor of the world that we live in.

Fish with 3 different types of illumination

The Northern Stoplight Loosejaw (Malacosteus niger) has three different types of light organs, the complex use of which cannot be possible without top engineering skills. The wide, drop-shaped, illuminated organ under its eyes emits a red light at a wavelength of 702 nm as if it knows the laws of optics under the sea. This red light is not visible to most deep-sea creatures, for it is quickly absorbed in water. Yet, with this red light this fish is able to have vision in a close proximity while remaining largely undetected. This is similar to infrared binoculars soldiers use for night vision without giving away their position. The loosejaw is thus a dangerous hunter that has an edge over its prey. There also exists a blue light-emitting oval section, behind the organ, that emits red light and is usually larger in males. A third light organ is round and smaller and is located between the eyes and the red-light organ.

Angler fish

The angler fish is one of the most iconic fish of the deep ocean due to its famous rod and bioluminescence. The angler fish does not actually produce its light on its own: the light is credited to bioluminescent symbiotic bacteria that inhabit the end of the rod on their forehead. This illuminated part, which resembles a worm-like bait, is very attractive to small fish. These fish are thus lured to the angler expecting a quick snack, but instead the angler swallows them whole with its massive mouth. While doing their task of helping the angler hunt small fish, the bacteria maintain a symbiotic relationship with the fish and also find an environment in which to proliferate. In this way, they form a good example of cooperation and solidarity. One may wonder: how can such a mutual agreement come into fruition between a fish and some bacteria which are deprived of a nervous system, mind, and consciousness?

One of the reasons that marine biologists are interested in light-emitting bacteria is the wide-lit regions called the “Milky Seas.” These can be observed in satellite images of Earth. Recently, satellites helped detect a bioluminescent area of roughly 5,946 sq. mi in the Indian Ocean; scientists wondered if some bioluminescent bacteria or Dinoflagellate-type flame-colored algae may be the cause of the phenomenon.

Alarming jellyfish

The luminescence of some marine life serves as an alarm or distress siren. A remarkable example of this is the Atolla jellyfish (Atolla wyvillei), an elegant inhabitant of deep waters. This jellyfish produces blue lights that are spread in circles in the water when it is attacked. Thanks to these lights, it tries to draw the attention of larger and stronger animals than the initial attacker in order to escape from harm’s way.

As can be observed in some species that we are familiar with, such as fireflies, the bioluminescence feature that is full of wisdom granted to some living beings is a thought-provoking biological miracle which does not only make us ponder where they got these abilities from but also reveals how so many intricate patterns are found in nature.

References

• Steven H.D. Haddock, Mark A. Moline and James F. Case. 2010. Bioluminescence in the Sea, Article in Annual Review of Marine Science, DOI:10.1146/annurev-marine-120308-081028 Source: PubMed.
• Edith A. Widder. 2001. Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution, Fort Pierce, Florida, Marine Bioluminescence, Bioscience Explained, vol 1, no 1, pp. 1-9.
• Edith A. Widder. 2010. “Bioluminescence in the Ocean: Origins of Biological, Chemical, and Ecological Diversity,” Science, vol. 328, pp. 704-708.
• www.wired.com/2012/01/glow-little-spewing-shrimp-glow/ March 28, 2018.
• en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malacosteus_niger / April 1, 2018.
• Harold, A. 2015. Malacosteus niger. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2015: e.T190149A21909439. http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-4.RLTS.T190149A21909439.en.
• https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/190149/21909439

Sharks are categorized in three groups according to their feeding style: those that feed on 1) plankton, 2) floating creatures, and 3) creatures on the sea floor. Although sharks are known as the best hunters in the sea, one out of two of their hunts ends with success. The prey is very unlikely to escape when caught by a shark. The great white shark has about 300 sharp teeth that bite with a force predicted to be as powerful as 18,000 Newtons, whereas a human bite can be as much as 1,300 N. Sharks use a sonar system (sound waves) to locate prey. The absence of swim bladders and the fact that their skeletons are cartilaginous rather than bony allow them to move quickly and swiftly underwater. Sharks also have an acute sense of smell. Their nostrils are only for smelling, not for breathing.

The unique design of their skin is part of what makes sharks such effective predators. In fact, suits made to imitate shark skin are banned at international swimming competitions. If you touch shark skin from front to back, it has a silky texture; but if you touch it from back to front, the texture is like sandpaper.

The surface of the skin is covered with geometric shapes similar to tiny teeth – or like roof tiles. There’s almost no gap between these shapes. These tiny, hard, and smooth structures have roots tightly attached to the skin. The denticles (microscopic scales) provide a hydrodynamic advantage to sharks when swimming by reducing the friction between water and skin.

The German paleontologist, Wolf-Ernst Reif examined the denticles of 46 shark species and researched on their features that enable them with hydrodynamism. Reif showed that the grooves and canals on the denticles are what reduce the friction with water. The hundreds of thousands of denticles come together to form a common flow path, reducing the turbulence caused by friction, preventing speed loss. These denticles allow sharks to swim 12% faster.

Swimmers wearing apparel using this technology swim about 7% faster. The denticles not only reduce friction, but they also increase repelling force. It was discovered that during the Beijing Summer Olympics in 2008, 23 of the 25 world record-breaking swimmers wore apparel made from the aforementioned fabrics. Thus, the garments were banned.

The swimming pool isn’t the only place where we can see the influence of shark skin. Hospitals, perhaps unexpectedly, have also been improved by the design of shark skin. Most exposed surfaces in hospitals are germ magnets. And because of the environment, hospital germs are resistant to antibiotics and disinfectants. The use of copper and silver coatings with anti-microbial structures is quite costly.

Researchers designed a material called Sharklet. According to a study published on September 17, 2014, in the journal Antimicrobial Desistance and Infection Control, researchers found it is possible to almost permanently disinfect surfaces using special coatings inspired by shark skin.

Simulating the grooves and canals of shark skin denticles results in 94% fewer germs. Sharklet coating material outdoes its competitors in applicability not only for wares, but also for medical devices. Of course there are different coating materials made in the same way. Another material made from silica, and also based on shark skin, solved one of the biggest problems facing ships. Water algae and lice adhere to the surface of ships and accelerate corrosion. In experiments conducted in the North Sea, it was found that the vessels with the shark-skin inspired coating saw 67% fewer mussels and 85% less algae adhering to them.

The work of human beings inspired by examining the skin of the shark is wonderful, but when we think of the number of all living beings, it is like a drop in the sea. There are millions of animal and plant species waiting for scientific study and perhaps hiding great inspirations. The keys to our discoveries and inventions are revealed when studies are done. Perhaps the creatures we know as useless today will show that they are the wonders of creation in the future.

The minimum work principle is the force used on deeper levels (the maximum economy principle in other words). According to this, every action in the book of the universe is completed in a fashion to cause minimal energy consumption in the present binding conditions. The term binding condition refers to conditions that are mandatory (forced) for the system here. For instance, the total energy of a gas in a container that is perfectly insulated from the external environment is constant and therefore when we are investigating this gas, we should not overlook the conservation of total energy as a binding condition. Therefore, even for tiny actions, from the swing of a tree leaf with the wind to the flight of a dust particle in the air, the lowest energy consumption is essential in terms of present binding conditions.

We can make the topic easier to understand via short cut events of circuit boards. The reason behind a short cut is the conduction of electrical charges by the route with the least consumed energy. If even multiple short cuts are designed to attract electrical charges in an electrical circuitry, these charges are conducted via the route that requires the lowest energy.

It is all right, but how do electrical charges know this route? It is possible to ask a similar question about the orbit a ball follows when we throw it forward in a horizontal direction. The thrown ball continues on the orbit with the lowest amount of energy consumption depending on the present binding conditions (such as wind direction, strength, and the ball’s geometry). This is all well and good, but how does the ball know it will exert more energy on another trajectory?

Light follows the path where it moves fastest in the environment. In physics, “Fermat’s principle” states that when light is passing from one environment to another, it will be refracted not in the shortest path, but in the fastest direction of travel in the new environment (Figure 2). Therefore Fermat’s principle is the projection of the minimum energy principle on optics. In other words, the least amount of energy is spent by light on the path in which it will move fastest. However, for light to determine the direction that will be fastest, does it not have to first display refraction in all angles to identify the fastest path?

For science historian James Gleick it is impossible for physicists to discuss the minimum energy principle without giving the ball some type of willpower; the ball seems to choose its own orbit, as if it has knowledge of all the possibilities ahead of time.

A nice example in the living world for the minimum work principle is the similarity of ant behavior to the maximum economy principle. When some groups of the ant colony set out to forage, they communicate with pheromone hormones amongst each other. An ant that has found food leaves pheromones on the ground – indicating the quantity and quality of food – to guide others.

Another ant that follows this pheromone trace reaches the food, and marks the surface on the path back to nest with the pheromone by assessing the amount and quantity. Pheromones in spots that are not renewed by the ants within a certain time frame evaporate. Upon investigation of the ant routes, they are always found to follow the shortest path in between the food and nest, and leave pheromone tracks accordingly. For instance, when an asymmetric obstacle is positioned on the ant route (Figure 1), ants after a certain time are able to locate the shortest route again.

However, a more interesting case is the movement of the ant species named Wasmannia auropunctata when they are passing from one environment to another (Figure 3). It’s based on Fermat’s principle.

Not only ants, but also humans display trends that follow Fermat’s principle. For example, an emergency worker trying to rescue a drowning swimmer adheres to the most suitable strategy to reach the person at sea: When the beach and sea are considered as two different environments, first the rescuer runs to the nearest point to the swimmer on the beach, then reaches swimmer by entering the sea. Since humans move at different speeds on sand and at sea, if rescuer tried to reach the swimmer by entering directly into sea, it would take longer to reach the swimmer.

As seen in the above principle, the natural order of the world is created with incredible wisdom, without wasting any energy. Each truth has different projections on each existence and event. However, this distance in between the events or existences feels very far to us, therefore it is necessary to look more carefully to notice this relation among different projections.

There are also projections of this minimum work principle in our personal lives too. During the position of prostration in prayer, which can be considered as the humblest state of being when one feels closest to the Divine, the head, the highest point of body, is brought down to the level of the feet to compose a potentially lower energy status. This, in terms of the physical sciences, is the situation with the lowest work achievement capability, and can be seen as a status in which human deficiency and weakness as opposed to the infinite power of the Almighty are declared.

The minimal work principle can also be adopted in shaping the methods and style of providing services to other people, especially in the service of faith. Humans are the sons of their ages. Each age can be defined as a different environment. Therefore, when humans interpret their experiences, the socio-cultural environment where one is born and the specifics of their period must be considered. The shortest cut to people’s hearts and minds with minimal work principle is possible when the conditions of the time are taken into consideration. Said Nursi once said if he were to live in the time of Rumi (13th century), he would have written the Mathnawi, rather than his magnum opus the Risale-i Nur, and Rumi would do the same if he lived during his time. The Mathnawi eight centuries ago was and the Risale-i Nur today is the safest, shortest, and widest public avenue of faith and reflected the zeitgeist of their respective periods in history, Nursi argued.

References

1. James Gleick, Genius, Richard Feynman and Modern Physics, Abacus, London, 1993.
2. Jan Oettler, Volker S. Schmid, Niko Zankl, Olivier Rey, Andreas Dress, Jurgen Heinze, Fermat’s Principle of Least Time Predicts Refraction of Ant Trails at Substrate Borders, PLoS ONE 8(3): e59739. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0059739

Brown and red algae are salt water organisms. These plants grow on rocky shores or in oceans with a rocky bottom. In quiet areas free of excessive waves they can live for up to 15 years. These can be utilized for the special polysaccharides in their bodies. That’s why they are commercially significant. For example, alginic acid and alginates obtained from brown algae can be used in many fields, from the food industry to the medical field, from cosmetics to paper and textiles. An algae species (Macrocystis Pyrifera) that can be found both in North and South America, New Zealand, Australia, and off the African coast is the primary source for the world’s production of alginic acid and alginate. In 2009, 26500 tons of alginate was produced, primarily by the countries of Scotland, Norway, China, and the USA.

Alginic acid is a macro molecule synthesized from mannuronic and gluronic acid molecules. Because of its hydrophilic property, the Na and K salts of alginic acid are used in providing homogeneity to frozen food during defrosting, preventing food decay related to instant temperature spikes, increasing viscosity, preparing jelly like deserts, and stabilizing fruit juices and ice cream. For similar reasons, Alginates are utilized in paper quality enhancement, and the advanced application of ink in glues and in pressed textile products, where they improve the flow of dye. Alginates are also used in cosmetic products, in production of waterproof or fireproof textiles, and in some synthetic dyes because they improve viscosity..

One of the most important uses of alginates is in the medical field. Many people suffer from stomach burn and acid reflux disease. In these treating these symptoms, the percentage of a prescribed medicine containing alginic acid content is 100 %, because in the case of acid reflux, alginic acid contains a preventive property, and antacids. This antacid neutralizes stomach acid. Alginic acid, however, reacts with saliva and Na Bicarbonate ion to produce foam in the upper stomach. In the case of a reflux, this foam barrier prevents the escape of acidic stomach content into esophagus.

According to a study conducted in England in 2010 about obesity treatments, alginic acid added natural fiber and was found to reduce lipid intake 75% in the intestines.

The absorption and removal of drugs in the stomach and intestines plays an important role in ensuring drugs act as intended. For instance a blood clog in a pulmonary vein can be transported to the lungs and may have fatal consequences (a pulmonary emboli). In order to prevent that, low molecular weight, heparin containing, drugs are used. The polymeric alginate beads in these drugs have been found to improve drug efficiency up to 80-90 %. In this kind of controlled release of drugs and enzymes, the use of polymeric alginate additives provides high efficiency.

A new kind of antimicrobial textile that does not stick to wounds is made from the silver coated fibers of an Alginate-carboxymethyl cellulose mixture. This fabric not only provides protection against infections but also, with its non-stick property, prevents traumas; and its high hydrophillic feature allows open wounds to heal faster.

Everything in the universe is beautiful, either directly, by itself, or indirectly, by its consequences. Algae, which many of us dislike, is in fact a great work of art as it is a source of food, a decoration of the seas, and is used to cure various diseases.

This beach is one of the starkest reminders of the extent of human impact on oceans.

Kamilo Beach is not the only junk beach in the world. Similar trashed beaches exist in the Azores in the Atlantic Ocean and Baja California. The litter on these shores and in the seas is so excessive that it is even visible to the people on land. Out towards the open seas, huge garbage patches fill the middle of the ocean, like wide loops of rotating currents, also known as gyres (www.marinedebris.noaa.gov).

Gyres

Gyres are major surface currents that circle the oceans. They are driven by persistent winds and the Coriolis Effect which is caused by the Earth’s rotation. The human impact on oceans is displayed by the gyres. They gather trash released into seas from countries around the oceans and through rivers they carry the floating objects and trash spewed from fallen shipping containers.

This was dramatically demonstrated when a cargo of sports shoes were lost in the sea in 1990. The shoes floated and drifted with the currents. Eventually thousands of them washed up on shores from Alaska to California. The manufacturer provided the serial numbers of the lost shoes. Beachcombers responded to calls by researchers regarding the time and location that they found the beached shoes. When all the data points were combined, the gyre’s circulation period over 3 years was obtained. Tracking a spill of bathtub toys provided similar results.

Outsourcing of manufacturing overseas and worldwide supply chains are made possibly by networks of container shipping lines. For reasons of economies of scale, the containers are stacked precariously high on the decks. At rough seas in the open ocean, some of these containers are washed overboard. There are about 10 million 40-foot cargo containers in use in the world. Every year a few thousand of them are washed off the decks of ships in heavy seas. The lost cargo rarely becomes news; it often stays confidential among the ship owner, the importer, the exporter and the insurer. Many of the lost containers sink to the bottom of the ocean. However some of them float and release their contents. This is the source of the flotillas of running shoes, or the toys that get carried away by the currents and winds.

The great garbage patch in North Pacific Ocean covers an area double the size of Texas. Like a conveyor belt, North Pacific Subtropical Gyre rotates clockwise, carrying with it the natural or man-made floating objects. The life span of a gyre is about three years. The floating objects may end washed up at beaches or they may be drifted to the center of the gyre where the currents are weakest. This is where the garbage patch forms—from millions of tons of plastic and other debris covering millions of square miles (www.dels.nas.edu).

Plastics

Plastic nurdles are a significant part of the pollution. These tiny beads are used as raw material in manufacturing. They are carried in container loads across the oceans and are occasionally spilled in large amounts and dispersed at sea.

Compared to organic matter that rots, decays, and gets recycled back into biomass by organisms, plastic is durable. A single plastic water bottle can last for hundreds of years. Suspended in sea water, these plastic particles absorb toxic chemicals. When marine animals consume the floating plastic, disproportionately high levels of these toxic materials are accumulated in their bodies. Some of these animals end up as food on our dinner table. Yes, that plastic tossed into the sea returns back as poisonous seasoning in our diet!

Plastics are contaminating the food chain at different levels. The animals at sea mistake trash for food. The microscopic particles get absorbed by animals filtering sea water for food. Easily mistaken for jellyfish in water, plastic bags suffocate sea animals that ingest them for food. Larger items threaten sea birds and mammals. Seabirds die when their guts get clogged with swallowed plastic items, and other animals starve because their stomachs are full of debris (www.commerce.senate.gov/pdf/marinedebris).

Fishing

A serious source of marine debris is the fishing industry. Numerous fishing nets and floats get lost and are abandoned at sea. These nets, which may extend a distance of many miles, strangle turtles and other sea mammals. Fishing industries should be inspected to keep track of their gear. There are organizations like the Monterey Bay Aquarium (www.montereybayaquarium.org) that distribute information about environmentally friendly fishing. In a free market economy where people vote with their money, consumers should inquire about the sources of seafood and support fishermen that do not leave their nets behind.

Enforcement in open seas requires international cooperation. Vessels should be inspected at their ports of call. Volunteers spotting container ships may record differences in cargo and alert authorities for missing containers. Marine laws, fees, taxes, and insurance premiums can be updated to deter unsafe loading of container ships. In the long run, vessel designs, navigational routes, shipping schedules and weather monitoring should be improved for minimization of cargo loss. An international cooperation is essential to oversee these efforts. The balance sheet of shipping business should include the cost of loss-free transport of containers.

Human negligence

The seas appear to be vast, but we seem to have come to the limits of it by the sheer amounts of garbage dumped into the rivers and by the contamination by marine transportation. These are inescapable reminders that we have reached the limits of this resource. The sea often regurgitates whatever is dumped inside it. This is like a slap on the beach, where the ocean hits back at us with our own trash, not to praise us or show approval, but to bring before our eyes the chaos we have created.

The universe is granted with an internal maintenance system, recycling its own waste products, hence reflecting the absolute purity of the Divine in His creation. The responsibility of humans as “vicegerents” of the earth include using the Earth’s resources without dumping or wasting but safeguarding the environmental balance and acknowledging that every creation has its purpose in being and should be treated accordingly.

The trashed beaches and mid-ocean garbage patches are signs of the deadly and long lasting effects introduced by humans into the seas. This is totally avoidable. We should employ a zero waste approach to our consumption habits. Cost of reusing, recycling and safe disposal of products should be reflected in the price of goods. Laws and regulations should be updated and enforced to minimize the dispersion of long lasting contaminants into the environment. The shipping and fishing industries should be accountable for lost cargo and gear. The seabirds should not starve, and the turtles should not drown due to our negligence.

References

• Auman, H.J., Ludwig, J.P., Giesy, J.P., Colborn, T., (1997) “Plastic ingestion by Laysan Albatross chicks on Sand Island, Midway Atoll, in 1994 and 1995.” in Albatross Biology and Conservation, (ed by G. Robinson and R. Gales). Surrey Beatty & Sons:Chipping Norton. Pp. 239-44
• Spear, L.B., Ainley, D.G. & Ribic, C.A. (1995). “Incidence of plastic in seabirds from the tropical Pacific, 1984–91: relation with distribution of species, sex, age, season, year and body weight.” Marine Environmental Research 40: 123–146
• http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2003/feb/26/20030226-085636-3495r/
• Ebbesmeyer, Curtis; Eric Scigliano. 2009. Flotsametrics and the Floating World: How One Man’s Obsession with Runaway Sneakers and Rubber Ducks Revolutionized Ocean Science. London: Collins.

Despite the extraordinary details, my story is quite ordinary. It is a story as quintessentially American as Henry Kissinger’s tale of arriving in New York after fleeing Nazi persecution or Madeleine Albright’s experience of seeking political asylum from the Czechoslovakian Communist Party. I was born in a Chicago hospital in the immediate days after my family fled Communist Vietnam on a 35-foot fishing boat. My mom gave me the nick-name “Nam-My,” literally “Vietnam-America” for being her first-American born child. Thus, I was different from the rest of the kids-simply by virtue of being born here. Unlike my siblings, whose early childhood memories consisted of eating plain rice with salt and hiding in underground shelters during bombings, I watched Rainbow Brite and Transformers before going to school every morning, ate Fruit Loops for breakfast, and had a regular supply of FDA-approved whole milk at my disposal- a luxury from the standpoint of my siblings who fled Vietnam with my parents in the early 1980s. My care-free childhood was like any other American kid – roller-skating madly up and down the two blocks outside of my house that made up my entire universe of a playground, playing Slip n’ Slide in my Latino neighborhood, fluent in Spanish slang phrases I did not know the equivalent to in English or Vietnamese, and catching fireflies at night on my porch. My childhood was bright and sunny and I had no idea at that time how different life would have been if it had not been for the heroic but excruciatingly difficult choice of one man out at sea nearly 30 years before: Captain Bell.

Captain Bell was a U.S. Navy captain aboard the USS Morton DD 948, an anti-submarine weapons destroyer ship deployed during the Vietnam War. His life intersected with mine on a warm day 100 miles into the South China Sea on June 9, 1982- the day he decided to defy the Navy’s orders not to pick up Vietnamese refugees. The orders he received to not pick up Vietnamese boat people made perfect sense: such practices would encourage people to continue risking their lives at sea to escape Vietnam. Yet, Captain Bell chose to defy these orders that day and through his single decision, I was born. After Captain Bell brought my family along with the other seventy other boat people to a Filipino refugee camp, my parents spent 8-9 months awaiting relocation to the United States. In the meantime, I must have been conceived because just days after leaving the refugee camp and arriving in the United States, I was born in Chicago without a single glimpse of this stormy chapter in my family’s history.

For as long as I can remember, mom went door-to-door in the freezing Chicago snow to clean homes and dad fixed bikes. Despite growing up in what later became a single parent household of four children with barely enough funds to rent someone’s basement to live in, I had always felt lucky to inherit all of the anecdotal stories my mother recounted of her life back in Vietnam. But just like many first-generation kids from an immigrant family, I struggled to figure out how to truly live up to my family’s expectations. Was I supposed to grow up and open a nail salon as 99% of the Vietnamese did in the United States? Was I supposed to do something more interesting with my life, something that would make my mother’s tumultuous journey here worth it? Should I spend my life fulfilling my filial duties to my family or go off on my own, become a self-made [wo]man and pull myself up by my own bootstraps? The burden of the past weighed heavily on my shoulders and I was desperate to find answers to my questions.

I searched far and near for answers, insight, and clues to unravel the past that I barely understood as a child. At 15 years old, I traveled and lived in Beijing hiking up the Great Wall of China and back down to the Yangtze River in search of any clues that would solve the mysteries of my past. In college, I lived in South Korea and stood at the edge of the demilitarized zone peering into North Korea to catch a glimpse of Communism at its best. Throughout my adventures, my family’s story motivated me to overcome poverty and racial discrimination in Chicago’s inner city, graduate cum laude from Northwestern University, and become the first in my family to attend law school. The stark contrast between my privileged life and that of my relatives left behind in Vietnam motivated me to later work with Vietnamese sex trafficking victims in Taiwan and to attend law school to continuing helping the most vulnerable segments of our society. From conception in a Filipino refugee tent to becoming the first attorney in my entire family lineage, I realize now that I would not be here at all had it not been for Captain Bell’s decision, a decision which altered the trajectory of many lives out at sea that day.

Most recently, this investigative process of piecing together my family history has helped me uncover the most valuable treasure I ever expected to find: Captain Bell himself. A casual internet search led me to discover that Captain Bell is still alive and living in sunny California. I recently emailed him to introduce myself as the product of his heroic decision in 1982. Nearly 28 years later through finding Captain Bell and uncovering more facts about what happened that day out at sea, I am discovering how much of a difference one person can make with even just one decision. My mother took a leap of faith by risking her life and fleeing Vietnam so that she would not have to live in a society without choices. Captain Bell defied orders to save a group of complete strangers in need. Suddenly, I realized that Captain Bell’s rescue story was not just another one of my mother’s Vietnam War stories of the past. Captain Bell was alive and by taking my own leap of faith, I could meet this man who caused my life be possible and now make his story a part of my own.

With only 72 hours left to live, the only conceivable way to spend my time would be with the two superheroes who literally and figuratively opened me the doors of life: my mom and Captain Bell. As a single mother of four-children and a hard-working nurse now in her fifties, my mom spends all day and night taking care of sick people. She deserves the world and has dreamed of visiting the hometown she left behind in North Vietnam in the 1970s. I would book First-class tickets to Vietnam to tour the town she left more than 40 years ago and has not had the time nor funds to return. The best part of this trip would be that it could allow me to spend meaningful time with my mom, writing down the tremendous war stories she’s lived through, using my art skills to draw a life-size portrait of the survivors aboard the USS Morton DD 948 on that day of their rescue, and passing my family history down to the next generation of Vietnamese-Americans. Next, I would give Captain Bell a ring and invite him to travel with me to see Vietnam, which has changed completely from the dark memories he likely remembers from fighting the Viet Cong during the war. I would organize a worldwide reunion for all of the ship-mates, refugees, and families connected to the USS Morton. The seventy Vietnamese boat people Captain Bell saved in 1982 and their children, grandchildren, maybe even great-grandchildren would all be in attendance. Aboard a beautiful ship docked near Vietnam, we would share our war stories, our sea stories, and our dreams for the future as Captain Bell’s rescue story is really simply a variation of the same stories many Americans have been telling for the past two hundred years. Yes, despite all the extraordinary details, my story is simply ordinary. And through my 72-hour trip to Vietnam with my mom and Captain Bell, it would all end the same way it began: complete strangers out at sea connected together by the fragile threads of history.

The waves were in such a rush, like all the bustling people in the city.

Maybe if you rush you will get more done: that is their theory.

Ours is: how much we comprehend life.

Life is a gift given to you only once. Peacefully, take your time.

Maybe there is a norm.

Life should be rushed at some points and slowed at other times.

I guess it depends on your perspective of things,

Kind of like a movie “On Demand” when you think about it…

Some people like to watch the whole thing through once.

Others fast forward at some sections.

Some speed up at the scary parts, or the kissing scene.

Sometimes they rewind and analyze what the actor was trying to articulate.

It all depends on your perspective.

Life is one thing for sure though: too precious to waste.

If one wants to accomplish anything in life, he or she first must think.

You may think about why you are here, what the things around you represent, how you got here. You may question life. It’s one of the habitual things we should do.

You sit there, watch the waves rolling in, moving the sand at the beach, look over the horizon, and think…

God it is Who has made the sea to be of service to you by making it subservient (to His command), so that the ships may run through it by His command, and that you may seek of His bounty, and that (in return) you may be thankful. He has also made of service to you whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on the earth; all is from Him (a gift of His Grace). Surely in this there are (clear) signs for a people who think deeply.

(Qur’an 45:12–13)

Ceyda Sablak is a high school senior who has yet many dreams to pursue in the life that waits for her…