By Dr Matt AB Baker and Dr Nicholas J Matzke

Nature abounds with wonders — and the quest to explain them has driven some epic human advances.

But scientific discoveries are often resisted when they contradict powerful religious traditions.

Galileo famously argued in the early 17th century that the Earth was not the centre of the universe, and was instead moving at great speed around the Sun.

As a result, the Roman Catholic Inquisition banned Galileo's books and sentenced him to house arrest until his death.

In the 21st century, one natural wonder that has attracted controversy is the tiny rotating wheel that powers the swimming movement of bacteria.

Followers of a modern form of creationism known as "intelligent design" argue that this motor is too complex, too incredible, and too efficient to have possibly arisen naturally.