Scientific Errors in the Quran: Difference between revisions

Renamed and revised night and day as veils. This one is hard to prove, but a bit stronger now. Not sure whether strong enough to be worth keeping, especially the daylight part. Added another verse for backbone and ribs vers
[checked revision][checked revision]
(Added better image (hope that's ok). Removed location of stars as Encyclopedia of the Quran says mawaqi means setting places on the horizon & Lane's lexicon defines as "places of falling". Also the consensus meaning on the academic quran reddit. See edit to the Geocentrism page. Removed moonlight additions;Need to keep to important/compelling points; already a lengthy section. Not enough that there was a missed opportunity to introduce some science when verse is answering question about purpose.)
(Renamed and revised night and day as veils. This one is hard to prove, but a bit stronger now. Not sure whether strong enough to be worth keeping, especially the daylight part. Added another verse for backbone and ribs vers)
 
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{{Main|Geocentrism and the Quran|l1=Geocentrism and the Qur'an}}
{{Main|Geocentrism and the Quran|l1=Geocentrism and the Qur'an}}


The Qur'an mentions a few times that the sun and the moon travel in an orbit or sphere/hemisphere (fee falakin فِى فَلَكٍ<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000227.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2443 فَلَكٍ] and [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000228.pdf p. 2444]</ref>), but does not mention once that the Earth does too. This is consistent with an Earth-centered (geocentric) view of the cosmos that places a motionless Earth at the center of the universe and all "heavenly bodies" travel around the Earth. This was the prevailing understanding of the universe prior to the 16<sup>th</sup> century when Copernicus helped explain and popularize a sun-centered (heliocentric) view of the universe. Tellingly, the sun's movement is almost always mentioned in the context of night and day (seven times; {{Quran|13|2}} is the sole exception) and is always mentioned with that of the moon (which does in fact orbit the Earth each month, and likewise appears, to the unaided eye, to traverse the sky each night when it is visible).
The Qur'an mentions a few times that the sun and the moon travel in an orbit or sphere/hemisphere (fee falakin فِى فَلَكٍ<ref name="LLFalak">[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000227.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 2443 فَلَكٍ] and [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume6/00000228.pdf p. 2444]</ref>), but does not mention once that the Earth does too. This is consistent with an Earth-centered (geocentric) view of the cosmos that places a motionless Earth at the center of the universe and all "heavenly bodies" travel around the Earth. This was the prevailing understanding of the universe prior to the 16<sup>th</sup> century when Copernicus helped explain and popularize a sun-centered (heliocentric) view of the universe. Tellingly, the sun's movement is almost always mentioned in the context of night and day (seven times; {{Quran|13|2}} is the sole exception) and is always mentioned with that of the moon (which does in fact orbit the Earth each month, and likewise appears, to the unaided eye, to traverse the sky each night when it is visible).
{{Quote|{{cite quran|36|37|end=40|style=ref}}|
{{Quote|{{cite quran|36|37|end=40|style=ref}}|
A token unto them is night. We strip it of the day, and lo! they are in darkness. And the sun runneth on unto a resting-place for him. That is the measuring of the Mighty, the Wise. And for the moon We have appointed mansions till she return like an old shrivelled palm-leaf. It is not for the sun to overtake the moon, nor doth the night outstrip the day. They float each in an orbit.}}
A token unto them is night. We strip it of the day, and lo! they are in darkness. And the sun runneth on unto a resting-place for him. That is the measuring of the Mighty, the Wise. And for the moon We have appointed mansions till she return like an old shrivelled palm-leaf. It is not for the sun to overtake the moon, nor doth the night outstrip the day. They float each in an orbit.}}
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This is particularly problematic for apologists that claim the closest sky/heaven is the visible universe (based off those verses that it is adorned with stars).
This is particularly problematic for apologists that claim the closest sky/heaven is the visible universe (based off those verses that it is adorned with stars).


==== Day and night as veils pulled across the heavens, not from the Sun or the Earths movement ====
====Night and day as moving entities====
As the above states, night and day are a property of the sky/heavens rather than a specific phenomena only occurring almost entirely on the surface of the Earth; as one side of it moves (both via rotation on it's own axis and via the movement as it orbits the sun) to face away from the sun. The Qur'ans description extends to the night covering/veiling the day ({{Quran|7|54}}) which then follows the night. And god 'strips' the night of the day ({{Quran|36|37}}).  
As the above section explains, night and day in the Quran are a property of the entire heaven rather than a specific phenomena only occurring almost entirely on the surface of the Earth as it rotates and orbits the sun. The Qur'anic description extends to the night covering/veiling the day, chasing it rapidly ({{Quran|7|54}}). And god 'strips' the night of the day ({{Quran|36|37}}). The day and night are also said to successively overlap ({{Quran|39|5}}) or enter into each other ({{Quran|35|13}}, {{Quran|3|27}}, {{Quran|22|61}}, and {{Quran|57|6}}), which some Muslim scholars take as a reference to Earth's rotation though the earth is not mentioned in this process.


In Q6:96 and Q10:5, we are told that the sun and moon are lights created for timekeeping, with both being mentioned in the same way - but not once is the main function of the sun for humans listed; i.e. as the actual source of daylight.
In addition, not only the sun and moon, but the day and night too are each (Kullun, which means "all"<ref>[https://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume8/00000256.pdf Lane's Lexicon supplement p. 3002 كُلّ]</ref>) floating/swimming in an orbit/sphere/hemisphere (fee falakin<ref name="LLfalak" />) in Q. 21:33 and Q. 36:40.
{{Quote|{{Quran|6|96}}|[He is] the cleaver of daybreak and has made the night for rest and the sun and moon for calculation. That is the determination of the Exalted in Might, the Knowing.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|10|5}}|It is He who made the sun a radiance and the moon a light, and ordained its phases that you might know the number of years and the calculation [of time]. Allah did not create all that except with justice. He elaborates the signs for a people who have knowledge.}}
{{Quote|{{Quran|21|33}}|And He it is Who created the night and the day, and the sun and the moon. They float, each in an orbit.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|36|40}}|And He it is Who created the night and the day, and the sun and the moon. They float, each in an orbit.}}
On top of this the day and night are swimming in orbit themselves, along with the sun and the moon in Q21:33 and Q36:40, where they are mentioned as distinct entities.
 
{{Quote|{{Quran|21|33}}|It is He who created the night and the day, the sun and the moon, each swimming in an orbit.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|36|40}}|Neither can the sun overtake the moon, nor the night outpace the day: Each of them keeps coursing in its orbit.}}
Some critics doubt that the author even understood the sun to be the source of daylight, or that the night is dark due to the lack of light therefrom. In {{Quran|6|96}} and {{Quran|10|5}}, we are just told that the sun and moon are lights and created for timekeeping, with both being mentioned in the same way. {{Quran-range|91|1|4}}, however, swears by the day when it 'reveals' the sun, and by the night when it 'covers' it. Some modern Muslim scholars take this as a reference to the Earth's rotation, though critics also point to a similar passage, {{Quran-range|92|1|2}}, which in a general sense states that the day reveals and the night covers (using the same Arabic verbs as the first passage), with no particular object to those verbs. In addition, {{Quran|10|27}} says the faces of evil doers will be dark, as though covered by pieces of the night.
And finally that the daylight actually 'reveals' the sun, and the night 'enshrouds' it, which makes no sense as daylight is solely from the sun, and night is simply a result of it's absence on one side of the Earths surface.
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|91|1-4}}|By the sun and its brightness,  
{{Quote|{{Quran|91|1-4}}|By the sun and its brightness,  
And [by] the moon when it follows it,  
And [by] the moon when it follows it, by the day when it reveals it,
And [by] the day when it reveals it,
And [by] the night when it covers it
And [by] the night when it covers it}}
Which the day reveals the sun, and the night enshrouds it}}
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|92|1|2}}|By the night when it covers And [by] the day when it appears}}
This clear separation of the sun (and moon) as a light for timekeeping that is separate from the 'veils/covers' of day and night 'swimming in orbit' has lead to some classical commentators to believe that the day is not caused by the sun at all, but is rather a totally separate event in the sky.<ref>For example, the famous tafsir '''al-Tafsir al-Kabi''r ' of Fakhr al-Din al-Razi (d. 1209) (often referred to as Al-Razi), he explains on his [https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=4&tSoraNo=7&tAyahNo=54&tDisplay=yes&Page=22&Size=1&LanguageId=1 ''commentary on Verse 7:54''], that the sun has two types of movements; one in a day, and one in a year. ''He says that night and day, however, are not due to the movement of the sun, but rather to the movement of the great orb/sky which is also Allah's throne''. Angels are said to separately move the heavenly bodies.</ref>  
This apparent separation of the sun (and moon) as a light for timekeeping that is distinct from the swimming and overlapping day and 'cover/veil' of night led some classical commentators to believe that the day is not caused by the sun at all, but is rather a totally separate event in the sky.<ref>For example, the famous tafsir ''al-Tafsir al-Kabi'r'' of Fakhr al-Din al-Razi (d. 1209) (often referred to as Al-Razi), he explains on his [https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=4&tSoraNo=7&tAyahNo=54&tDisplay=yes&Page=22&Size=1&LanguageId=1 ''commentary on Verse 7:54''], that the sun has two types of movements; one in a day, and one in a year. ''He says that night and day, however, are not due to the movement of the sun, but rather to the movement of the great orb/sky which is also Allah's throne''. Angels are then said to separately move the sun, moon and other heavenly bodies.</ref>  


===The sky/heaven as a ceiling===
===The sky/heaven as a ceiling===
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{{Quote|{{Quran|81|2}}|And when the stars fall}}
{{Quote|{{Quran|81|2}}|And when the stars fall}}


The structure of space-time is such that nothing, not even stars, can move faster than the velocity of light. That is, even if the stars were to move close to light speed across the sky, their apparent motion would be so slight relative to their distance that it would nonetheless be imperceptible to the naked eye. Moreover, as many visible stars are hundreds of light years away (the nearest star is more than four light years away), the light from such events would take years to reach our eyes. Indeed, many stars still visible in the sky ceased to exist centuries ago and it is only their light which is just now reaching the Earth.
The structure of space-time is such that nothing, not even stars, can move faster than the velocity of light. Even if the stars were to move close to light speed across the sky, their apparent motion would be so slight relative to their distance that it would nonetheless be imperceptible to the naked eye. Moreover, as many visible stars are hundreds of light years away (the nearest star is more than four light years away), the light from such events would take years to reach our eyes. Indeed, many stars still visible in the sky ceased to exist centuries ago and it is only their light which is just now reaching the Earth.


Similarly the stars are said to disperse/scatter (intatharat انْتَثَرَتْ) on judgement day, which classical commentaries have also linked to dispersing/falling on Earth,<ref>''[https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Abbas/82.2 Tanwîr al-Miqbâs min Tafsîr Ibn ‘Abbâs Verse 82.2]''. Ibn Abbas. Unknown date.</ref> <ref>''[https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/82.2 Tafsir Al-Jalalayn Verse 82.2.]'' Jalal al-Din al-Mahalli (d. 864 ah / 1459 ce) and his pupil Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti (d. 911 ah / 1505 ce).
Similarly the stars are said to disperse/scatter (intatharat انْتَثَرَتْ) on judgement day, which classical commentaries have also linked to dispersing/falling on Earth,<ref>''[https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Abbas/82.2 Tanwîr al-Miqbâs min Tafsîr Ibn ‘Abbâs Verse 82.2]''. Ibn Abbas. Unknown date.</ref> <ref>''[https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Jalal/82.2 Tafsir Al-Jalalayn Verse 82.2.]'' Jalal al-Din al-Mahalli (d. 864 ah / 1459 ce) and his pupil Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti (d. 911 ah / 1505 ce).
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When reading this verse one may also wonder in what sense day and night each have an orbit (See [[Geocentrism and the Quran]]).
When reading this verse one may also wonder in what sense day and night each have an orbit (See [[Geocentrism and the Quran]]).


See also the [https://wikiislam.net/index.php?title=Scientific_Errors_in_the_Quran&stable=0#Fasting_and_Prayer_Requirements_Near_the_Poles Fasting and Prayer Requirements Near the Poles] section below.
See also the [[Scientific_Errors_in_the_Quran#Fasting_and_prayer_requirements_near_the_Poles|Fasting and prayer requirements near the Poles]] section below.


==Biology==
==Biology==


===Evolution===
===Evolution===
{{Main|Evolution and Islam}}


The Qur'an takes what is perhaps best described as the creationist view of the origins and history of life on earth. This diverges sharply from the overwhelming scientific evidence that humans have evolved from prior life forms, over the course of millions of years and through natural selection.<ref>https://humanorigins.si.edu/evidence</ref> Consequently, while some Muslim scholars reinterpret the Quran in order that they may accept the theory of evolution, most reject it in favor of a creationist world view. Opinion polls show that the majority of Muslims agree Islam and evolution are not compatible.  
The Qur'an takes what is perhaps best described as the creationist view of the origins and history of life on earth. This diverges sharply from the overwhelming scientific evidence that humans have evolved from prior life forms, over the course of millions of years and through natural selection.<ref>https://humanorigins.si.edu/evidence</ref> Consequently, while some Muslim scholars reinterpret the Quran in order that they may accept the theory of evolution, most reject it in favor of a creationist world view. Opinion polls show that the majority of Muslims agree Islam and evolution are not compatible.  


====First humans created from clay====
====First humans created from clay====
{{Main|Creation of Humans from Clay}}
{{Main|Creation of Humans from Clay|Evolution and Islam}}


The Qur’an states that the first man was created instantaneously from clay (''salsalin'' صَلْصَٰلٍ) / ''mud'' (hamain حَمَإٍ). There is no indication that the author is aware of the evolution of human life over millions of years or our common ancestry with apes and primates. While some scientists argue over the detailed mechanisms driving evolution, they agree that common descent is an overwhelmingly proven fact.
The Qur’an states that the first man was created instantaneously from clay (''salsalin'' صَلْصَٰلٍ) / ''mud'' (hamain حَمَإٍ). There is no indication that the author is aware of the evolution of human life over millions of years or our common ancestry with apes and primates. While some scientists argue over the detailed mechanisms driving evolution, they agree that common descent is an overwhelmingly proven fact.
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He created man from clay like [that of] pottery.}}
He created man from clay like [that of] pottery.}}


The Quran also states, in a similar vein, that the first man was created from dust (''turabin'' تُرَابٍ).
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|38|71|75}}|[So mention] when your Lord said to the angels, "'''Indeed, I am going to create a human being from clay. So when I have proportioned him and breathed into him of My [created] soul, then fall down to him in prostration.'''" So the angels prostrated - all of them entirely. Except Iblees; he was arrogant and became among the disbelievers. [Allah] said, "O Iblees, what prevented you from prostrating to '''that which I created with My hands?''' Were you arrogant [then], or were you [already] among the haughty?" He said, "I am better than him. '''You created me from fire and created him from clay.'''"}}


{{Quote|{{Quran|3|59}}|
====Descent from Adam and Eve====
Lo! the likeness of Jesus with Allah is as the likeness of Adam. He created him of dust, then He said unto him: Be! and he is.}}
{{Main|Evolution and Islam|Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Creation}}
 
====Adam and Eve====
{{Main|Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Creation|Evolution and Islam}}


The Qur’an contains stories concerning the 'first humans' which detail, among other matters, how all people are descended from Adam and Eve (called ''Hawa'' in Arabic), the two earliest ancestors. These humans were created in a garden (the word for paradise in Arabic is ''jannah'', which literally means 'garden') and then brought to Earth fully formed (Sahih Hadiths say Adam was 60 cubits - or 90 feet - tall). This view of the origins of human life is directly challenged by overwhelming DNA evidence and the numerous fossils of pre-Homo sapiens species that lived on earth for millions of years prior to the evolution modern humans.<ref>http://humanorigins.si.edu/evidence</ref> Powerful DNA evidence that humans have common ancestry with other primate families includes endogenous retroviruses in the exact same genetic locations of our respective genomes<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oXfDF5Ew3Gc DNA Evidence That Humans & Chimps Share A Common Ancestor: Endogenous Retroviruses] - Youtube.com</ref> and the fusion of two primate chromosomes to become chromosome 2 in humans<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dK3O6KYPmEw Professor Ken Miller on DNA fusion events] - Youtube.com</ref> (for more detail see the main article).
The Qur’an contains stories concerning the 'first humans' which detail, among other matters, how all people are descended from Adam and Eve (called ''Hawa'' in Arabic), the two earliest ancestors. These humans were created in a garden (the word for paradise in Arabic is ''jannah'', which literally means 'garden') and then brought to Earth fully formed (Sahih Hadiths say Adam was 60 cubits - or 90 feet - tall). This view of the origins of human life is directly challenged by overwhelming DNA evidence and the numerous fossils of pre-Homo sapiens species that lived on earth for millions of years prior to the evolution modern humans.<ref>http://humanorigins.si.edu/evidence</ref> Powerful DNA evidence that humans have common ancestry with other primate families includes endogenous retroviruses in the exact same genetic locations of our respective genomes<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oXfDF5Ew3Gc DNA Evidence That Humans & Chimps Share A Common Ancestor: Endogenous Retroviruses] - Youtube.com</ref> and the fusion of two primate chromosomes to become chromosome 2 in humans<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dK3O6KYPmEw Professor Ken Miller on DNA fusion events] - Youtube.com</ref> (for more detail see the main article).
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{{Quote|{{Quran-range|32|7|8}}|Who made all things good which He created, and He began the creation of man from clay; Then He made his seed from a draught of despised fluid;}}
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|32|7|8}}|Who made all things good which He created, and He began the creation of man from clay; Then He made his seed from a draught of despised fluid;}}
The word translated “seed” in the Pickthall translation is nasl نسل, which means progeny (i.e. descendants).<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume8/00000286.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 3032 نسل]</ref>
The word translated “seed” in the Pickthall translation is nasl نسل, which means progeny (i.e. descendants).<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume8/00000286.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 3032 نسل]</ref>
Other verses address humanity as banī ādama ("children of Adam"), including {{Quran|7|27}} which describe the first couple as "your parents". See also {{Quran|17|70}} and {{Quran|4|1}}.


Some modern Muslim scholars argue that the notion of two ancestral “parents” is consistent with recent scientific findings that show a common female and male ancestor of all modern humans. This results, however, from a confusion with the nicknames (Mitochondrial Eve and Y-chromosomal Adam) by which scientists have referred to human's earliest genetic ancestors. These two individuals, however, are distinct from the Quranic characters as they are simply the last common male and female ancestors of everyone alive today and not of all humans in history. More importantly, whereas the Qur'an describes Eve as Adam's wife (who, notably, was created ''after'' him), Mitochondrial Eve lived some 50,000 to 80,000 years earlier than Y-chromosomal Adam.<ref>[http://biologos.org/blog/does-genetics-point-to-a-single-primal-couple Adam, Eve, and Human Population Genetics: Responses to Popular Arguments] - Biologos website</ref> Genetic evidence also overwhelmingly indicates that humans diverged from earlier species as a population rather than as a single couple.<ref>[http://whyevolutionistrue.wordpress.com/2011/09/18/how-big-was-the-human-population-bottleneck-not-anything-close-to-2/ How big was the human population bottleneck? Another staple of theology refuted.] - Why Evolution is True website by Professor Jerry Coyne</ref>
Some modern Muslim scholars argue that the notion of two ancestral “parents” is consistent with recent scientific findings that show a common female and male ancestor of all modern humans. This results, however, from a confusion with the nicknames (Mitochondrial Eve and Y-chromosomal Adam) by which scientists have referred to human's earliest genetic ancestors. These two individuals, however, are distinct from the Quranic characters as they are simply the last common male and female ancestors of everyone alive today and not of all humans in history. More importantly, whereas the Qur'an describes Eve as Adam's wife (who, notably, was created ''after'' him), Mitochondrial Eve lived some 50,000 to 80,000 years earlier than Y-chromosomal Adam.<ref>[http://biologos.org/blog/does-genetics-point-to-a-single-primal-couple Adam, Eve, and Human Population Genetics: Responses to Popular Arguments] - Biologos website</ref> Genetic evidence also overwhelmingly indicates that humans diverged from earlier species as a population rather than as a single couple.<ref>[http://whyevolutionistrue.wordpress.com/2011/09/18/how-big-was-the-human-population-bottleneck-not-anything-close-to-2/ How big was the human population bottleneck? Another staple of theology refuted.] - Why Evolution is True website by Professor Jerry Coyne</ref>


===Genetics===
===Genetics===
====Noah's ark human population bottleneck====
====Noah's ark human population bottleneck====
''Main Article: [[Historical Errors in the Quran#Noah's%20worldwide%20flood|Historical errors in the Qur'an - Noah's worldwide flood]]''
''Main Article: [[Historical Errors in the Quran#Noah's%20worldwide%20flood|Historical errors in the Qur'an - Noah's worldwide flood]]''
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{{Main|Quran and Semen Production|l1=Qur'an and Semen Production}}
{{Main|Quran and Semen Production|l1=Qur'an and Semen Production}}


The Qur'an states that semen originates from somewhere between the backbone and ribs. Other verses and hadiths too suggest a reproductive function for the backbone. While this aligns with the views of the physicians of antiquity, modern science has shown that sperm comes from the [[w:testicle|testicles]] and semen from various glands behind and below the bladder, which is not between the backbone and ribs.
The Qur'an states that semen originates from somewhere between the backbone and ribs, though Muslim scholars have proposed a wide range of alternative interpretations. The word for backbone here is ''sulb'' (صلب), meaning the back, particularly the lumbar / loins portion of it.<ref>
[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume4/00000436.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 1712 - صلب]</ref>. Other verses and hadiths too suggest a reproductive function for the backbone. While this aligns with the views of the physicians of antiquity, modern science has shown that sperm comes from the [[w:testicle|testicles]] and semen from various glands behind and below the bladder, which are not between the backbone and ribs.


{{Quote|{{Quran-range|86|6|7}}|
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|86|6|7}}|
He is created from a drop emitted- Proceeding from '''between the backbone and the ribs''' }}
He is created from a drop emitted- Proceeding from '''between the backbone and the ribs''' }}
We see this concept also in another verse using another Arabic word for a man's back, ''thahr'' (ظهر, translated below as loins<ref>[http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume5/00000212.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 197 - ظهر]</ref>) whereby a man's future progeny are somehow in his back before conception, a notion also found in hadiths discussed in the main article.
{{Quote|{{Quran|7|172}}|And [mention] when your Lord took from the children of Adam - from their loins - their descendants and made them testify of themselves, [saying to them], "Am I not your Lord?" They said, "Yes, we have testified." [This] - lest you should say on the day of Resurrection, "Indeed, we were of this unaware."}}


====Embryo formed from semen====
====Embryo formed from semen====
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