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Scientific Miracles in the Quran: Difference between revisions
→Chest-tightening in hypoxic environments: Provided citations and further evidence against the altitude miracle claim.
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===Chest-tightening in hypoxic environments=== | ===Chest-tightening in hypoxic environments=== | ||
Many modern Muslims scholars have argued that {{Quran|6|125}} contains a scientifically accurate description of Hypoxia, altitude sickness, or the general phenomenon of lower oxygen levels in the air (thus called 'hypoxic air') at higher altitudes. Critics have pointed out that any Arab living in the general vicinity of Muhammad would have been familiar with the difficulty involved in breathing at higher altitudes, and that Muhammad particularly would have been aware of this phenomenon if accounts of his regularly climbing mountains just prior to proclaiming himself a prophet are to be trusted. Critics have also argued that if one takes the verse literally, the description provided is inaccurate, as the difficulty breathing at higher altitudes is not due to the constriction of one's chest, although this is what one may think based on the sensation of shortened breath which is experienced in hypoxic environments. Indeed, in the lower air pressure of higher altitudes, gasses and air actually expand, and it is also the case that one's chest would expand a very small amount in this environment as there is less atmospheric compression being applied to your body (as opposed to someone, say, at the bottom of the sea, who would instantly be crushed). Persons born and raised in higher altitudes have actually been recorded to have enlarged chests which compensate for the hypoxic environment by allowing the individual to breath in larger quantities of air in order to acquire the necessary quantity of oxygen.{{Quote|{{quran|6|125}}|'''Corpus:''' So whoever wants Allah that He guides him - He expands his breast to Islam; and whoever He wants that He lets him go astray He makes his breast tight and constricted as though he (were) climbing into the sky. Thus places Allah the filth on those who (do) not believe.<br>'''Daryabadi:''' So whomsoever Allah willeth that he shall guide, He expoundeth his breast for Islam; and whomsoever He willeth that he shall send astray, He maketh his breast strait, narrow, as if he were mounting up into the sky, thus Allah layeth the abomination on those who believe not.}} | Many modern Muslims scholars have argued that {{Quran|6|125}} contains a scientifically accurate description of Hypoxia, altitude sickness, or the general phenomenon of lower oxygen levels in the air (thus called 'hypoxic air') at higher altitudes. Critics have pointed out that any Arab living in the general vicinity of Muhammad would have been familiar with the difficulty involved in breathing at higher altitudes, and that Muhammad particularly would have been aware of this phenomenon if accounts of his regularly climbing mountains just prior to proclaiming himself a prophet are to be trusted. In fact writings attributed to the famous Greek philosopher and scientist Aristotle (384-322 BC) describing travel on Mount Olympus in Macedonia discuss this phenomena ''<nowiki/>'..because the rarity of the air which was there did not fill them with breath, they were not able to survive there unless they applied moist sponges to their noses''<nowiki/>'.<ref>Davis, P & Pattinson, K & Mason, N & Richards, Paul & Hillebrandt, D. (2011). ''[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/51018812_High_Altitude_Illness#:~:text=Writings%20attributable%20to%20Aristotle%20(384,their%20noses'%20(1). High Altitude Illness.]'' Journal of the Royal Army Medical Corps. 157. 12-7. 10.1136/jramc-151-04-05.</ref> | ||
Critics have also argued that if one takes the verse literally, the description provided is inaccurate, as the difficulty breathing at higher altitudes is not due to the constriction of one's chest, although this is what one may think based on the sensation of shortened breath which is experienced in hypoxic environments. Indeed, in the lower air pressure of higher altitudes, gasses and air actually expand, and it is also the case that one's chest would expand a very small amount in this environment as there is less atmospheric compression being applied to your body (as opposed to someone, say, at the bottom of the sea, who would instantly be crushed). Persons born and raised in higher altitudes have actually been recorded to have enlarged chests which compensate for the hypoxic environment by allowing the individual to breath in larger quantities of air in order to acquire the necessary quantity of oxygen.<ref>Callison, W.É., Kiyamu, M., Villafuerte, F.C. et al. ''[https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-022-13263-5#:~:text=Individuals%20living%20in%20a%20hypoxic,partially%20a%20population%2Dlevel%20adaptation. Comparing high versus low-altitude populations to test human adaptations for increased ventilation during sustained aerobic activity.]'' Sc''i'' Rep ''1''2, 11148 (2022). <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-13263-5</nowiki></ref>{{Quote|{{quran|6|125}}|'''Corpus:''' So whoever wants Allah that He guides him - He expands his breast to Islam; and whoever He wants that He lets him go astray He makes his breast tight and constricted as though he (were) climbing into the sky. Thus places Allah the filth on those who (do) not believe.<br>'''Daryabadi:''' So whomsoever Allah willeth that he shall guide, He expoundeth his breast for Islam; and whomsoever He willeth that he shall send astray, He maketh his breast strait, narrow, as if he were mounting up into the sky, thus Allah layeth the abomination on those who believe not.}} | |||
===Mountains as pegs, cast down to stabilize the Earth=== | ===Mountains as pegs, cast down to stabilize the Earth=== | ||