According to the Bible, a guy called Daniel angered a King and was placed in a lion’s den for the night. The King told him: “Thy God who thou servest continually, he will deliver thee”. The next morning, Daniel was taken out of the den unharmed.

The general conclusion at the time was that Daniel was saved by his God.

Problem

To me, this seems like an unscientific conclusion – it fails to be objective and is probably not repeatable. It also uses a very small sample size. So, how could this experiment be run more scientifically?

Hypothysis

The next thing we need to do is create a hypothesis for testing. The hypothesis must be able to be proved or disproved. How about: “Christians will survive (ie not be eaten or mauled) when placed in a den with a lion, over a 12 hour period”. We will then test this hypothesis.

Variables

However, before testing, we have to look at all the variables:

1. The lion’s temperament

• aggressive to humans?
• non-agressive?
• tame?

2. The lion’s health level

• good/poor eye sight?
• good/poor hearing?
• good/poor sense of smell?

3. The lion’s hunger level

• hungry?
• non-hungry?

4. The environment

• where there trees that Daniel may have climbed?
• where there shrubs that Daniel may have hidden behind?
• where there any branches that Daniel may uses as a club?

5. Daniel’s clothing

Did Daniel wear cloths that were:

• brightly coloured and made him highly visible?
• camouflaged him?

6. Daniel’s smell

• Was he freshly bathed or smelly?

7. Daniel’s behaviour

• Was he calm?
• Was he non-aggressive?
• Was he aggressive?

8. Did Daniel have hidden skills

• Was Daniel a lion tamer?

9. Was Daniel’s gender relevant?

• What if he had been female? (After all, his God appeared to be male)

10. Was Daniel’s age a factor?

• Would a younger or older person be more likely to be eaten?

I’m sure there are all sorts of other variables I’m forgetting here, but let’s move on.

Removing variables

How could we remove some of these variables?

1. Collect some lions

• make sure all lions are native (ie not tame or have interacted with humans)
• make sure all lions are healthy (sight, smell, hearing)

2. Collect a range of humans, 50% christian, 50% non-christian

• make sure all are in good health
• make sure all are clean (and washed with same process so smell is similar)
• make sure all wear the same clothing
• make sure all are instructed to behave in the same way (this may not be properly replicable as some may scream, and others many not).

3. Use an environment that is

• free of obstacles of any kind
• has a consistent temperature across all tests

Testing process

For all tests, a single person is placed in a den overnight (over a 12 hour period) with a single lion and observed. If the person is uneaten by next morning, this is considered a pass. If the person has been eaten or mauled, this is considered a failure.

Test 1

• 10 lions on an empty stomach
• 10 male humans, 50% Christian, 50% non-christian

Test 2

• 10 lions on an empty stomach
• 10 females, 50% Christian, 50% non-christian

Test 3

• 10 lions on full stomach
• 10 male humans, 50% Christian, 50% non-christian

Test 4

• 10 lions on full stomach
• 10 female humans, 50% Christian, 50% non-christian

Control groups

We will also need to conduct the experiment with people and NO lions, in case the den itself is factor – as a control group.

Test 5 – Control group 1

• No lions
• 10 male humans, 50% Christian, 50% non-christian

Test 6 – Control group 2

• No lions
• 10 female humans, 50% Christian, 50% non-christian

Double blind

As part of the testing process, we also need to make sure the test are Double blind – where neither the test subjects of the “testers” themselves know who is the control groups and who is the experimental group. The aim is to create an unbiased test.

Conclusion?

At the end of the process, we could determine, to some degree, the validity of the statement: “Christians will survive (ie not be eaten or mauled) when placed in a den with a lion, over a 12 hour period”.

Isn’t science wonderful? Now, I need some volunteers…