Alright guys, I had to write a paper for school so this is what I wrote:
The Great Flood
The bible states that the world was flooded. The entire world. For 40 days and 40 nights did the rain pour from the sky, the earth being washed clean of evil and sinners. However, just before this magnificent deluge, god spoke to Noah, and he bequeathed a task to the pious man: build an ark, and in that ark carry two of every species of animal, so that life may continue. So Noah gathered his family, and set off to find two of every species. Once the animals had been gathered, Noah led all into the great ark. He sat with his family and his sons’ families, waiting for the end of the Flood. Then, there stood Mount Ararat, and the ark was beached on its sides. The occupants of the ark emerged, and spread across the land, repopulating the earth.
Now, this is the story of the Great Flood, retold by me in an accurate fashion. The project assigned for this was to examine an ancient myth and explain how science has proven the myth false. This myth needed less of a disproving and more of a pointing at obvious flaws in its structure.
First, this myth clearly states that the entire world was flooded and that the only land visible was mountainous peaks. Now, how much water would that take? Quite a lot. Not to mention where it would go or where it would come from. Some give a possible explanation that this is how the icecaps were created; all of the extra water went into them. Now, this would work except if all of the ice melted, the water would only rise a grand total of 230 feet*. Denver is roughly a mile above sea level, or 5280 feet. What is more, the “New” world was not even discovered yet. Also, such a great change in salinity would kill off almost every sea creature.
Noah quested to gather two of every species on the planet (of land animals). This would take a lifetime. Scientists today still do not know every species alive, and more are being discovered every day. The sheer amount of food required to sustain the millions of species on the planet for just 40 days is immense. Parasites and viruses need hosts to survive, so Noah family would all have to have diseases such as Small Pox, Influenza, Leprosy, and Malaria, not to mention the countless other deadly afflictions only humans contract.
The size of the ark, as recorded in the bible and translated into feet, is 450 feet long, 75 feet wide, and 45 feet high. According to ship architects, this exceeds by 150 feet the maximum length of a wooden ship. If the length exceeds 300 feet, unavoidable warping and stresses will cause the hull to leak so much that the vessel will sink**. Also, a ship of such size could not hold all of the species of animal on board; there is not enough room for all of the food and materials needed.
Lastly, Noah landed on Mount Ararat and was saved. A very large piece of evidence that the Great Flood story is true would be the actual ark on Mount Ararat. However, it has not been found. There is no piece of physical evidence that suggests that the ark was ever on the Mountain***.
Modern reasoning and doubt have proven that the Great Flood is impossible, and that another myth of an ancient age has come to a close.
*
http://science.howstuffworks.com/question473.htm
**
http://www.nap.edu/openbook/030907309X/html/130.html
***
http://www.noahsarksearch.com/ararat.htm
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