Fine-Tuning of Cell Membranes and Beyond the Standard Model | Stars, Cells, and God ep16

Join Fazale “Fuz” Rana and Jeff Zweerink as they discuss new discoveries taking place at the frontiers of science that have theological and philosophical implications, as well as new discoveries that point to the reality of God’s existence.

Cell membranes are incredibly complex biochemical suprasystems composed of hundreds of different types of lipids. Is there any rhyme or reason to the compositional makeup of cell membranes or do they merely reflect the outworking of historically contingent evolution? In this episode, Fuz Rana discusses a recent study that reveals the rationale for the compositional complexity of cell membranes, highlighting that these systems display an organization and compositional fine-tuning that can be marshaled to make a case for intelligent design.

The standard model of particle physics stands as an incredibly robust model of the universe with great explanatory power. Yet scientists know it is incomplete. New measurements of the W boson mass might provide clues about how to extend the standard model. Will the new measurements hold up under further scrutiny? Will they provide ways to explain dark matter and other holes in the standard model?

In this episode Fuz and Jeff discuss these important topics.

References:
“Membrane Thickness, Lipid Phase and Sterol Type Are Determining Factors in the Permeability of Membranes to Small Solutes,” https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-022-29272-x Jacopo Frallicciardi, et al. (article)

 “High-Precision Measurement of the W Boson Mass with the CDF II Detector,” https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.abk1781 CDF Collaboration, T Aaltonen, et al. (article)

Additional Resources:
“Bringing Order to the Case for Intelligent Design, Part 1,”
https://reasons.org/explore/publications/articles/bringing-order-to-the-case-for-intelligent-design-part-1, Fazale Rana (blog)
“Biotic Borders: Cell Membranes under Scrutiny,”
https://reasons.org/explore/publications/facts-for-faith/biotic-borders-cell-membranes-under-scrutiny, Fazale Rana (blog)