!

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MARC H 2015

IS THERE A GOD?
WHAT DIFFERENCE DOES IT MAKE?

!"#$
I N THI S I S S UE
3

COVER SUBJECT

s MORE ONLINE
TEENAGERS

Is There a God?What
Dierence Does It Make?
7

WHAT YOUR PEERS SAY

Sexual Harassment
In this video, hear what young people
say about sexual harassment and how
to prevent it.

WATCHING THE WORLD

Spotlight on Africa

(Look under BIBLE TEACHINGS TEENAGERS)

HELP FOR THE FAMILY

Dealing With In-Laws

10

PORTRAITS FROM THE PAST

Decrees That Divided

Continents

CHILDREN
BECOME JEHOVAHS FRIEND

12 Fresh Air and Sunshine

Natural Antibiotics?
14
16

Be Neat and Clean

THE BIBLES VIEWPOINT

Have your children watch exciting

and practical videos, such as
Be Neat and Clean.

Gambling

(Look under BIBLE TEACHINGS CHILDREN)

WAS IT DESIGNED?

The Remarkable Hearing

of the Greater Wax Moth

Vol. 96, No. 3 / Monthly / ENGLISH

Printing Each Issue: 51,788,000 in 101 Languages
This publication is not for sale. It is provided as part of a worldwide Bible educational work supported by
voluntary donations. Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are from the modern-language New World
Translation of the Holy Scriptures.
Awake! (ISSN 0005-237X) is published monthly by Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of New York, Inc.;
L. Weaver, Jr., President; G. F. Simonis, Secretary-Treasurer; 25 Columbia Heights, Brooklyn, NY 11201-2483, and
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5 2015 Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania. Printed in Canada.

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Visit www.jw.org or send your request
to one of the addresses below.
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COVER SUBJECT

Is There a God?
WHAT DIFFERENCE DOES IT MAKE?
The question of whether God exists
seems to be either unanswerable or
irrelevant to many. Herv, who grew up
in France, says: Although I dont dene
myself as atheist or agnostic, I am not a
believer. For me, the best way to live is to
use common sense. That doesnt require
belief in a deity.
Others may feel as did John, in the United States. He said: I was raised by parents who did not believe in God. As a
young man, I had no position on whether
God exists. Still, at times I would wonder
about it.
Have you ever wondered if there is
a God and, if there is, whether there is

a larger purpose to life? Perhaps you

have encountered facts that are dicult
to explain without the existence of a
Creator, such as scientic data on the
nely tuned balance in nature that makes
life on our planet possible and evidence
that life does not come from lifeless matter.See the box Examine the Evidence.
Consider the signicance of the facts
mentioned above. They are like signposts pointing to a treasure. If you nd
convincing evidence that God exists,
along with trustworthy information about
him, you will have much to gain. Here
are four examples.

Awake! March 2015 3

1. THE MEANING OF LIFE

2. PEACE OF MIND

If there is a larger meaning to life, we

want to know what it is and to understand our place in it. After all, if God exists
and we are unaware of it, then we are living without knowing the most fundamental truth in the universe.
The Bible says that God is the Source
of all life. (Revelation 4:11) How can
knowing this give our lives meaning?
Consider what the Bible teaches on
the matter.

For example, some nd it dicult to believe in God because of the suering they
see worldwide. They ask, Why would an
all-powerful Creator permit suering and
evil?
The Bibles comforting answer is that
God never intended for humans to suer.
At the time of mans creation, human
life was free from suering. Even death
was not part of Gods original purpose
for mankind. (Genesis 2:7-9, 15-17)
Is this hard to believe? A fantasy? No.
If there is an all-powerful Creator and if
love is indeed his foremost quality, then
this is exactly the kind of life that we
would expect him to purpose for
humans to have.
What brought about mankinds current situation? The Bible explains that
God created humans with the ability to exercise free will. We are not robots, forced
to obey God. The rst human couple,
from whom all others have descended,
chose to reject Gods guidance. Instead,
they selshly pursued their own will. (Genesis 3:1-6, 22-24) We now experience the
painful results.
We can gain great peace of mind from
knowing that human suering is not part
of Gods purpose. But, naturally, we also
want relief. We need hope for the future.

If God exists and we are unaware of it,

then we are living without knowing the
most fundamental truth in the universe
Among all of earths creatures, humans
are unique. According to the Bible, we
were created by God to be like him, to
reect his personality. (Genesis 1:27) Furthermore, the Bible teaches that humans
can become Gods friends. (James 2:23)
Nothing can give our life more meaning
than to have such a relationship with our
Creator.
What does it mean to be Gods friend?
Friends of God can express themselves
directly to him. And he promises that he
will listen to them and act in their behalf.
(Psalm 91:15) As friends of God, we can
come to know his thoughts on many matters. This can give us reliable insight into
the deepest questions about our lives.

Find more answers to Bible questions at www.jw.org

3. HOPE
Immediately after mankind rebelled,
God promised that he would in time fulll
his original purpose for the earth. Because he is almighty, nothing can prevent
him from doing so. (Isaiah 55:11) Soon,
God will undo all the consequences of the
rebellion against him, and the earth and
mankind will be brought in line with his
original purpose.
What can this mean for you? Consider
just two of the many promises God has
made for our future, as found in the Bible.
PEACE EARTH WIDE AND WICKEDNESS
REMOVED. Just a little while longer, and
the wicked will be no more; you will look
at where they were, and they will not be
there. But the meek will possess the
earth, and they will nd exquisite delight
in the abundance of peace.Psalm 37:
10, 11.
SICKNESS AND DEATH ELIMINATED.
No resident will say: I am sick. (Isaiah
33:24) He will swallow up death forever,
and the Sovereign Lord Jehovah will
wipe away the tears from all faces.
Isaiah 25:8.
Why can we trust the promises of God
found in the Bible? Because numerous
prophecies recorded there have already
been veriably fullled. Yet, the hope of
future relief from suering does not remove the diculties of life now. What additional help does God provide?

4. HELP WITH PROBLEMS

AND DECISIONS
God provides guidance to help us cope
with problems and make good decisions.
Many decisions are small, but others have
lifelong consequences. No human can
oer us wisdom as eective as the wisdom that our Creator can provide. He has
a timeless perspective and is the very
Source of human life. So he knows what
is best for us.
The Bible contains the thoughts of Jehovah God, as he inspired various human
writers to record them. In the Bible, we
nd this statement: I, Jehovah, am your
God, the One teaching you to benet yourself, the One guiding you in the way you
should walk.Isaiah 48:17, 18.
God has unlimited power, and he is willing to use his power in our behalf. The Bible describes God as a loving father who
wants to help us. It says: The Father in
heaven [will] give holy spirit to those asking him! (Luke 11:13) This power from
God can guide and strengthen us.
How can you obtain such help from
God? The Bible answers: Whoever
approaches God must believe that he is
and that he becomes the rewarder of
those earnestly seeking him. (Hebrews
11:6) To become convinced that God
exists, you need to examine the
evidence for yourself.

Awake! March 2015 5

WILL YOU
INVESTIGATE?

What Does the Bible Say

About God?

It takes time to seek out the truth

about God, but clearly you can
benet from doing so. Consider
the experience of Xiujin Xiao, who
was born in China and now lives
in the United States. He says: Although I believed the theory of
evolution, I was curious about
the Bible. So I began to study the
Bible with Jehovahs Witnesses.
In my last year of college, I got so
busy that I had little time for what
I was learning from the Bible. But
I was less happy. When I again
made my Bible study a priority,
I found inner joy.
Would you like to learn more
about our Creator, Jehovah God?
Why not take time to investigate
for yourself?

The Bibles message about God is simple yet thought-provokingand to some

it is surprising.
Our Creator is not an impersonal
force. God has a personality and a
name, Jehovah.1Isaiah 42:8.
Jehovah Gods existence has no
beginning and will have no end.Psalm
93:2; Isaiah 40:28.
God is not a stern judge, as he is
portrayed by some religions. Rather, his
foremost quality is love.1 John 4:8.
God is interested in humans and has
communicated his purpose for our lives.
Ecclesiastes 12:13; Micah 6:8.
Does the Bible reveal everything about
God? Of course not. The Bible itself says
that we know just the fringes of his
ways.Job 26:14.
1 Many Bibles use the title LORD to represent the
Hebrew transliteration YHWH, which is commonly translated in English as Jehovah or Yahweh.

Examine the Evidence

The following publications present evidence that an intelligent Creator exists.
You can obtain them on jw.org or from one of Jehovahs Witnesses.
THE ORIGIN OF LIFEFIVE QUESTIONS
WORTH ASKING
Available in 47 languages

THE ORIGIN OF LIFE

FIVE QUESTIONS WORTH ASKING

From page 12: The theory of evolution tries

to account for the origin of life on earth without
the necessity of divine intervention. However,
the more that scientists discover about life, the
less likely it appears that it could arise by
chance.

WAS LIFE CREATED?

Available in 80 languages
Was Life Created?

From page 24: Many people claim that

science disproves the Bibles account
of creation. However, the contradiction
is, not between science and the Bible,
but between science and the opinions
of Christian Fundamentalists.

WAT C H I N G T H E W O R L D  A F R I C A

SPOTLIGHT ON
AFRICA
Many organizations and
individuals continue to put
forth eorts to improve the
quality of life in Africa. The
region, however, is still
plagued by seemingly
insurmountable problems.

UNREPORTED BRIBERY Countries in

East Africa have some of the
highest rates of bribery in the
world, says Transparency International. Yet, some 90 percent of
the people who encounter bribery do not report it. A spokesman for the organizations Kenya
chapter says: Citizens do not
seem to trust their governments
to respond to the reports on corruption.

RHINO POACHING A total of 1,004 rhinos in South Africa were illegally

killed in 2013, compared with just 13 in 2007. Despite this increased supply of rhino horn, though, it continues to be in such high
demand that it can cost more per kilogram than gold. A single horn
can fetch up to half a million dollars.

What the Bible says: The bribe

blinds clear-sighted men.
Exodus 23:8.

AFRICANS ONLINE Almost 20 percent of Africans were expected to be

using the Internet by the end of 2014, according to the International
Telecommunication Union. The number of mobile Internet subscriptions in Africa is growing at a rate twice the global average.

To think about: Will governments ever be able to eliminate lawlessness?Jeremiah 10:23.

20%

Awake! March 2015 7

H E L P F O R T H E FA M I LY  M A R R I AG E

Dealing With
In-Laws

THE CHALLENGE
When we were going through
a dicult time, my wife told
her parents about it. Then her
father called me to give me
advice about the situation. I
wasnt very happy about that!
James.1

My mother-in-law will often

say, I miss my boy so much!
She talks about how close
they were, which makes me
feel guilty for marrying him
and causing her all this
heartache!Natasha.
Is it possible to keep an inlaw problem from becoming a
marriage problem?
1 Names in this article have been
changed.

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW

Marriage creates a new family unit. The Bible says that
a man who marries will leave his father and his mother
and will stick to his wife. The same is true of a wife
regarding her parents and husband. When she marries,
the Bible says, the two become one esh. They are a
new family unit.Matthew 19:5.

Your marriage comes before your parents. One of the

basic tasks of a marriage is to establish a sense of weness between husband and wife, writes counselor John
M. Gottman. Creating or renewing your sense of solidarity with your spouse may involve some rending and tearing away from your primary families.1
Some parents may nd it dicult to adjust. One young
husband relates: Before getting married, my wife would
always put priority on her parents wishes. After we were
married, her mother saw that someone else came rst.
That wasnt easy for her to accept.
Some newlyweds may nd it dicult too. Having
in-laws is not like having friends you chose, says James,
quoted earlier. Its as though someone said, You have
two new friends, whether you like it or not. Even if they
drive you crazy, theyre family!
1 From the book The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work.

Find more help for families at www.jw.org

KEY SCRIPTURES

WHAT YOU CAN DO

If you and your spouse are at odds over an in-law
situation, work to resolve issues in a spirit of cooperation. Follow the Bibles advice to seek peace and
pursue it.Psalm 34:14.

Let each one keep seeking, not his

own advantage, but that of the other person.1 Corinthians 10:24.

To help you do that, consider the following scenarios.

Each is presented from the perspective of either the
husband or the wife. However, the challenges really apply to either gender, and the principles discussed can
help you resolve a number of in-law issues.

Let your reasonableness become

known.Philippians 4:5.

The wife should have deep respect

for her husband.Ephesians 5:33.

Your wife says she wishes you had a better relationship with her mother. But you nd her mother dicult
to deal with.
Try this: Discuss the problem with your wife, and be
willing to make concessions. The issue is, not how you
feel about your mother-in-law, but how you feel about
your spousethe person whom you have vowed to love.
Come away from the discussion with one or two specific ways that you could improve your relationship with her
mother, and then follow through. As your wife notices
your eorts, her respect for you will undoubtedly grow.
Bible principle: 1 Corinthians 10:24.
Your husband says that you are more interested in
pleasing your parents than in pleasing him.
Try this: Discuss the problem with your husband,
and try to see it from his point of view. Of course, your
husband should not feel threatened if you are simply giving due honor to your parents. (Proverbs 23:22) Still, you
might need to reassure himby your words and actionsthat he comes before your parents in your life.
If your husband has that condence, he will be less likely to feel that he is competing with your parents for your
attention.Bible principle: Ephesians 5:33.
Your wife goes to her parents for advice rather than
to you.
Try this: Talk with your wife, and reach an agreement on
where the boundaries should be set. Strive to be reasonable. Is it always wrong to talk to a parent about a concern? When might it be appropriate? If you both agree
on reasonable boundaries, this issue does not have to
be a problem.Bible principle: Philippians 4:5.

Focus on the Positive

Having a good relationship
with your in-laws is important.
They are the ones who cared
for and raised your spouse,
and no matter what their
imperfections are, you need to
be thankful to them. You can
also learn a lot from their
experience. If you focus on
your in-laws positive qualities
and imitate those, you can
become a well-rounded
person.Jessica.

Awake! March 2015 9

P O R T R A I T S F R O M T H E PA S T  D E C R E E S T H AT D I V I D E D C O N T I N E N T S

5 Mary Evans/Epic/Tallandier

DECREES THAT
DIVIDED CONTINENTS
AFTER Christopher Columbus returned from
his rst voyage to the Americas in 1493, the
kings of Spain and Portugal disagreed on who
should control trade and colonization of the
newly discovered lands. Spain looked to the
pope, Alexander VI, to settle the dispute.

QU I CK FACT S

KINGS AND POPES SLICE UP CONTINENTS

) Successive popes urged Spain

and Portugal to Christianize any
pagans encountered on their
voyages of discovery.

Spain, Portugal, and the Papacy had already considered ownership of newfound lands. In 1455, Pope Nicholas V granted the Portuguese exclusive rights to explore
lands and islands along the Atlantic Coast of Africa and
to claim for themselves everything that they found there.
In 1479, in the Treaty of Alcovas, Afonso V of Portugal
and his son, Prince John, surrendered sovereignty over
the Canary Islands to Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain.
In exchange, Spain recognized the Portuguese monopoly over African trade and Portuguese sovereignty over
the Azores, the Cape Verde Islands, and Madeira. Two
years later, Pope Sixtus IV rearmed this treaty, specifying that any new discoveries south and east of the
Canary Islands would belong to Portugal.
However, John, now John II of Portugal, claimed that
the lands discovered by Columbus belonged to Portugal.
The Spanish monarchs were having none of it, and they
appealed to the new pope, Alexander VI, for the right
to colonize and Christianize the areas discovered by
Columbus.
Alexander initiated three formal decrees in response.
The rst, by the authority of Almighty God, awarded ex-

) In 1493, Pope Alexander VI

drew a line down the middle of
the Atlantic Ocean that granted
Spain authority over the area to
the west.
) Alexanders decree, and others
similar to it, were used by Spain
to make full claims on the newly
discovered lands.
) For centuries, European
nations fought to defend or
attack the legitimacy of territorial
claims authorized by papal
decrees.

With the stroke of a pen,

Pope Alexander VI divided
continents
clusive and perpetual possession of the new territories
to Spain. The second xed a north-south line of demarcation running about 350 miles (560 km) west of the
Cape Verde Islands. All lands discovered, or to be discovered, west of that line, said Alexander, were Spains.
By the stroke of a pen, the pope divided continents!
His third decree seemed to extend Spanish inuence
eastward as far as India. This, of course, infuriated
King John, whose subjects had only recently succeeded
in rounding the tip of Africa, thus extending the Portuguese monopoly into the Indian Ocean.
A NEW LINE ON THE MAP
Fed up with Alexander,1 John negotiated directly with
Ferdinand and Isabella. The Spanish monarchs, fearing
the ruthless Portuguese and busy enough digesting the
New World, were more than happy to seek a reasonable compromise, says author William Bernstein. So, in
1494, a treaty named after the Spanish town in which it
was stipulated was signed in Tordesillas.
The Treaty of Tordesillas maintained the north-south
line Alexander had drawn but moved it 920 miles
(1,480 km) farther west. Supposedly, all Africa and Asia
now belonged to Portugal; the New World to Spain.
This westward shift of the line, however, brought much
of the as-yet-undiscovered land later known as Brazil
into Portuguese territory.
The decrees that authorized Spain and Portugal to
take possession of and defend newly acquired lands
were used as a basis for much bloodshed. These decisions not only ignored the rights of people who lived in
those landsleading to their subjugation and exploitationbut also spawned centuries of conict among
nations over power and the freedom of the seas.

The Arrogance of the West

This notion, of a Roman ponti dividing up whole continents to the exclusive benet
of two small European kingdoms, seems incredible now,
a celebrated instance of the
arrogance of the West, says
author Barnaby Rogerson.
This papal decree can be
seen as the starting gun for
the cruelties of all subsequent colonial empires,
adds Rogerson.

1 For more information on this infamously corrupt pope, see the article
Alexander VIA Pope That Rome Does Not Forget, in The Watchtower of
June 15, 2003, pages 26-29.

Awake! March 2015 11

Fresh Air and Sunshine

NATURAL ANTIBIOTICS?
WHEN scientists rst discovered chemical antibiotics in the mid-20th century,
doctors hoped that these new medications would eliminate certain diseases.
At rst, the new medicines seemed to live
up to their promise. Yet, their widespread
use since then has resulted in the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
To nd new weapons against infection,
some scientists are taking a second look
at disease-control methods of the past.
One of these involves harnessing the
health benets of sunshine and fresh air.
A Lesson From the Past
England had several early advocates
of the curative value of sun and fresh
air. Physician John Lettsom (1744-1815)
prescribed sea air and sunshine for children who were suering from tuberculosis (TB). In 1840, surgeon George Bodington noted that those who worked in the

open airfarmers, plowmen, shepherds

were generally free of TB, while those who
spent much of their time indoors seemed
more susceptible to it.
Florence Nightingale (1820-1910)
became famous for her innovations in
nursing while caring for British soldiers injured during the Crimean War. She asked:
Do you ever go into the bed-rooms of any
persons . . . at night, or before the windows are opened in the morning, and
ever nd the air anything but unwholesomely close and foul? She recommended that the air in a patients room be
kept as fresh as the outside air, but without chilling the patient. She added: It is
the unqualied result of all my experience
with the sick, that second only to their
need of fresh air is their need of light . . .
And that it is not only light but direct sunlight they want. Many at that time also
believed that exposing bed linens and
clothing to the sun promoted health.

Natures Disinfectants

Science has progressed since the

1800s, yet modern studies have reached
similar conclusions. For instance, a 2011
study in China found that crowded college dormitories with a low rate of ventilation are associated with more respiratory
infections.
The World Health Organization (WHO)
recognizes that natural ventilation, which
includes outside air owing through a
building, is important for infection control. Indeed, WHO guidelines published in
2009 encourage use of such natural ventilation as an eective measure in reducing the risk of infection at health-care facilities.1
That is all very good, you might say.
But what is the science behind this?
How do sunshine and air prevent
infection?
1 Certain factors may make it undesirable to leave windows open. These include external air quality, noise, re
regulations, and security.

Studies conducted at a United Kingdom Ministry of Defence site provide

some answers. Scientists there were
trying to establish how long the air would
remain dangerous if a biological weapon
armed with harmful bacteria were exploded over London. To determine the viability of airborne pathogens, the researchers
anchored E. coli microorganisms to
threads of spider silk and exposed them
to the open air. The experiment was performed at night, since it was known that
sunlight kills these bacteria. What were
the results?
Some two hours later, nearly all the
bacteria were dead. Yet, when the bacteria were kept in a closed box in the
same location and at the same temperature and humidity, most of them were still
alive past the two-hour mark. Why? Evidently, something about being in the
open air kills germs. This so-called openair factor has not been clearly identied.
However, researchers point to a compound that occurs naturally in open air
and that acts as a natural disinfectant
against pathogens or germs that lurk in
the atmosphere.
Sunlight also has natural disinfecting
properties. The Journal of Hospital Infection explains that the majority of microbes that cause airborne infections cannot tolerate sunlight.
How can you take advantage of this?
You might want to go outdoors, where you
can spend a moderate amount of time in
the sunshine and breathe some fresh air.
It will likely do you good.
Awake! March 2015 13

THE BIBLES VIEWPOINT  GAMBLING

GAMBLING
Some people view gambling as an innocent diversion,
while others see it as a dangerous vice.

Is there anything wrong with gambling?

Many people view gambling as harmless fun, as long as it is
practiced legally. Some forms of legalized
gambling, such as government-sponsored
lotteries, generate revenue for programs
that benet the public.

must not desire . . . anything that belongs

to your fellow man. (Exodus 20:17) When
a gambler sets his heart on winning, he
is, in essence, hoping that others will lose
their money in order for him to prot.

WHAT PEOPLE SAY

The Bible also cautions against viewing

luck as a mystic force that might bestow
blessings. In ancient Israel, there were
some who lacked faith in God and began
setting a table for the god of Good Luck.
Was such devotion to the god of Good
Luck acceptable to God? No, he said to
them: You kept doing what was bad in
my eyes, and you chose what displeased
me.Isaiah 65:11, 12.

The Bible makes

no signicant mention of gambling. Yet, it
does oer a number of guiding principles that reveal how God feels about gambling.
WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS

The basic nature of gamblingwinning

money at the expense of othersis at
odds with the Bibles warning to guard
against every sort of greed. (Luke 12:15)
Gambling is, in fact, fueled by greed.
Gaming institutions advertise big jackpots, while downplaying the poor odds of
winning, because they know that dreams
of wealth prompt players to wager large
amounts at the casinos. Rather than
helping a person guard against greed,
gambling promotes the desire for easy
money.
Gambling is based on an inherently
selsh goal: winning money that other
players have lost. However, the Bible encourages a person to keep seeking, not
his own advantage, but that of the other
person. (1 Corinthians 10:24) And one of
the Ten Commandments states: You

True, in some parts of the world,

funds from legalized gambling are used
to pay for education, economic development, and other public programs. But
the use of those funds does not change
how they were obtainedthrough activities that openly encourage greed and selfishness and that promote the idea of getting something for nothing.

You must not desire . . . anything

that belongs to your fellow man.

Find more answers to Bible questions at www.jw.org

Exodus 20:17.

What negative eects can gambling have on

the gambler?
The Bible warns
that those who are determined to be rich
fall into temptation and a snare and
many senseless and harmful desires that
plunge men into destruction and ruin.
(1 Timothy 6:9) Gambling is rooted in
greed, and greed is so corrosive that the
Bible lists greediness among several behaviors that should be strongly avoided.
Ephesians 5:3.
WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS

With its focus on easy wealth, gambling

nurtures a love of moneysomething that
the Bible identies as a root of all sorts
of injurious things. The desire for money
can easily become an overpowering inuence in a persons life, leading to intense
anxiety and damaging ones faith in God.
Figuratively speaking, the Bible describes
those ensnared by the love of money as
having stabbed themselves all over with
many pains.1 Timothy 6:10.

Millions lured into gambling have found

themselves ensnared by a vicious gambling addiction. The problem is widespread, with millions of gambling addicts
in the United States alone, according to
estimates.
One proverb states: An inheritance obtained rst by greed will not be a blessing in the end. (Proverbs 20:21) Problem
gambling has plunged addicts into debt
or even bankruptcy and has cost many
of them jobs, marriages, and friendships.
Applying the Bibles guiding principles can
help a person avoid the negative eects
that gambling can have on life and happiness.

Those who are determined to be

rich fall into temptation and a
snare and many senseless and
Greediness breeds discontent, leaving
harmful desires that plunge
people unsatised with their nancial stamen into destruction and ruin.
tus and robbing them of their happiness.
A lover of silver will never be satised
with silver, nor a lover of wealth with income.Ecclesiastes 5:10.

1 Timothy 6:9.

Awake! March 2015 15

WAS IT DESIGNED?

The Remarkable Hearing of

the Greater Wax Moth

5 Andrew Darrington/Alamy

Consider: For years, the greater wax

moths hearing has been a subject of
study. More recently, scientists at the University of Strathclyde, Scotland, tested
the moths hearing with a wide range of
sounds. They measured the vibrations of
these tympanal membranes and recorded the activity of their auditory nerves.
The eardrums still responded when exposed to sounds at a frequency of 300 kilohertz. By comparison, bat echolocation
has been recorded at up to 212 kilohertz,
the hearing of dolphins peaks at 160 ki-

n
o

Free downloads
of this magazine
and past issues

lohertz, and humans do not hear beyond

20 kilohertz.
Researchers would like to use the superior hearing capability of the greater
wax moth as the basis for new technology. How? To help make better, and smaller, microphones, says Dr. James Windmill of the University of Strathclyde.
These could be put in a wide range of devices such as mobile phones and hearing
aids.
What do you think? Did the remarkable hearing of the greater wax moth
come about by evolution? Or was it designed?

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HE greater wax moth can hear highpitched sound better than any known
creature in the world. Yet its ears are very
simple in structure, each being about the
size of a pinhead.