In other news, the earth is flat, and the sun revolves around it. And thunder means g-d is angry.
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You idiot.

Good question! That was also a popular hypothesis, but they tested the effects of rain and found that it didn’t produce the same effect. From the press release:

“But the more definitive test of rain was to construct a large outdoor bin, fill it with 300 worms, and wait for thunderstorms. Even in very heavy downpours, only 1-2 worms came out in an hour. That seemed to rule out the hypothesis that worm grunting mimics the sound of rainfall.”

By “ancient pagan religious belief,” you mean having a creation story, right? Why don’t you think of 3 religions and tell me if any of them exclude a creation story. Remember Genesis 1 and 2?

So what’s your point? (And yes, that’s a rhetorical question.)