Testing the universality of biology: a review

2007 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 241-248 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Chela-Flores
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Conditions ◽  
Common Ancestor ◽  
Seminal Contribution ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Molecular Events ◽  
The Origin Of Life ◽  
The Right ◽  
Life On Earth ◽  
Cosmic Convergence ◽  
The Universe

AbstractWe discuss whether it is possible to test the universality of biology, a quest that is of paramount relevance for one of its most recent branches, namely astrobiology. We review this topic in terms of the relative roles played on the Earth biota by contingency and evolutionary convergence. Following the seminal contribution of Darwin, it is reasonable to assume that all forms of life known to us so far are not only terrestrial, but are descendants of a common ancestor that evolved on this planet at the end of a process of chemical evolution. We also raise the related question of whether the molecular events that were precursors to the origin of life on Earth are bound to occur elsewhere in the Universe, wherever the environmental conditions are similar to the terrestrial ones. We refer to ‘cosmic convergence’ as the possible occurrence elsewhere in the Universe of Earth-like environmental conditions. We argue that cosmic convergence is already suggested by observational data. The set of hypotheses for addressing the question of the universality of biology can be tested by future experiments that are feasible with current technology. We focus on landing on Europa and the broader implications of selecting the specific example of the right landing location. We have previously discussed the corresponding miniaturized equipment that is already in existence. The significance of these crucial points needs to be put into a wider scientific perspective, which is one of the main objectives of this review.

scholarly journals Biological Implications of Organic Compounds in Comets

1989 ◽  
Vol 116 (1) ◽  
pp. 439-462
Author(s):  
Joseph N. Marcus ◽  
Margaret A. Olsen
Keyword(s):  
Origin Of Life ◽  
Catalytic Rna ◽  
Organic Chemicals ◽  
Substantial Fraction ◽  
Volatile Elements ◽  
The Earth ◽  
The Origin Of Life ◽  
Cometary Panspermia ◽  
Life On Earth ◽  
The Universe

AbstractOrganic chemicals — compounds that contain carbon — are the substance of life and pervade the universe. Is there a connection between comets, which are rich in prebiotic organics, and the origin of life? Current concepts of biomolecular evolution are first reviewed, including the important paradigm of catalytic RNA. At the very least, impacting comets appear to have supplied a substantial fraction of the volatile elements required for life shortly after the Earth formed. Some impacting material may even have survived chemically intact to directly provide necessary complex prebiotic organic chemicals. For life to originate and evolve in comets themselves, liquid H2O would be absolutely required: arguments for and against 26Al radiogenic melting of cometary cores are presented. Cometary panspermia, if theoretically possible, is not necessary to explain the origin of life on Earth. The Halley spacecraft provide evidence against Earth-type microorganisms in this comet’s dust.

The Origin of Life on Earth and in the Universe

2006 ◽  
pp. 147-198
Author(s):  
Jordi Llorca ◽  
Malcolm E. Schrader ◽  
Pasquale Stano ◽  
Francesca Ferri ◽  
Pier Luigi Luisi
Keyword(s):  
Origin Of Life ◽  
The Origin Of Life ◽  
Life On Earth ◽  
The Universe

scholarly journals The origin of life from primordial planets

2010 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 83-98 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carl H. Gibson ◽  
Rudolph E. Schild ◽  
N. Chandra Wickramasinghe
Keyword(s):  
Origin Of Life ◽  
Big Bang ◽  
Space Telescopes ◽  
The Origin Of Life ◽  
Primordial Planets ◽  
Life On Earth ◽  
The Big Bang ◽  
Primordial Soup ◽  
The Universe ◽  
Origin Of The Universe

AbstractThe origin of life and the origin of the Universe are among the most important problems of science and they might be inextricably linked. Hydro-gravitational-dynamics cosmology predicts hydrogen–helium gas planets in clumps as the dark matter of galaxies, with millions of planets per star. This unexpected prediction is supported by quasar microlensing of a galaxy and a flood of new data from space telescopes. Supernovae from stellar over-accretion of planets produce the chemicals (C, N, O, P, etc.) and abundant liquid-water domains required for first life and the means for wide scattering of life prototypes. Life originated following the plasma-to-gas transition between 2 and 20 Myr after the big bang, while planetary core oceans were between critical and freezing temperatures, and interchanges of material between planets constituted essentially a cosmological primordial soup. Images from optical, radio and infrared space telescopes suggest life on Earth was neither first nor inevitable.

History and future of life on Earth - a synthesis of natural science and theology

DIALOGO ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 233-251
Author(s):  
Andreas May
Keyword(s):  
Natural Sciences ◽  
Christian Faith ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Modern Natural ◽  
History Of ◽  
Science And Theology ◽  
Life On Earth ◽  
Different Cultures ◽  
The Universe ◽  
Intelligent Life

"A synthesis of research results of modern natural sciences and fundamental statements of the Christian faith is attempted. The creation of the universe is addressed. Four important events in the history of the Earth as well as the diversity of living beings are shortly discussed. There are good reasons to believe that the universe was created by a transcendent superior being, which we call God, and that this superior being intervened in evolution and Earth history to promote the development of intelligent life. Furthermore, it can be concluded that intelligent life is very rare in the universe. This is the explanation for the “Fermi paradox”. Intelligent life on planet Earth has cosmic significance. The overabundance of this universe inspires the hope for participating in the fulfilled eternity of the Creator in transcendence. Prehistoric humans had long had hope for life after biological death. While scientific speculation about the end of the universe prophesies scenarios of destruction, the Christian faith says that humanity is destined to be united with Jesus Christ. Furthermore, all evolution will be completed with the Creator in transcendence. Then the whole of creation will “obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God”. From the first primitive living cell, an abundance of the most diverse living beings has evolved. Comparably, humanity has differentiated into a plethora of different cultures. This entire abundance will find its unification and fulfilment in transcendence with the Creator of the universe, without its diversity being erased."

scholarly journals Search for water and life's building blocks in the universe: A summary

2015 ◽  
Vol 11 (A29B) ◽  
pp. 436-440
Author(s):  
Edwin A. Bergin
Keyword(s):  
Origin Of Life ◽  
Radioactive Decay ◽  
Building Blocks ◽  
The Origin Of Life ◽  
The Right ◽  
The Universe

AbstractWater and organics need to be supplied to terrestrial worlds like our own to provide the essential compounds required for the origin of life. These molecules form initially during the earliest stages of stellar birth, are supplied by collapse to the planet-forming disk predominantly as ice, and may undergo significant processing during this collapse and within large planetesimals that are heated via radioactive decay. Water and organic carriers can be quite volatile, thus their survival as ices within rocks is not preordained. In this focus meeting our goal is to bring together astronomers, cosmochemists, planetary scientists, chemical physicists, and spectroscopists who each explore individual aspects of this problem. In this summary we discuss some of the main themes that appeared in the meeting. Ultimately, cross-field collaboration is needed to provide greater understanding of the likelihood that terrestrial worlds form with these key compounds readily available on their surfaces – and are hence habitable if present at the right distance from the star.

Directionality in the history of life: Diffusion from the left wall or repeated scaling of the right?

Paleobiology ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 26 (S4) ◽  
pp. 1-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew H. Knoll ◽  
Richard K. Bambach
Keyword(s):  
Common Ancestor ◽  
Directional Pattern ◽  
Last Common Ancestor ◽  
Left Wall ◽  
Ecological Complexity ◽  
History Of ◽  
Sequential Addition ◽  
The Origin Of Life ◽  
The Right ◽  
Logical Rules

Issues of directionality in the history of life can be framed in terms of six major evolutionary steps, or megatrajectories (cf. Maynard Smith and Szathmáry 1995): (1) evolution from the origin of life to the last common ancestor of extant organisms, (2) the metabolic diversification of bacteria and archaea, (3) evolution of eukaryotic cells, (4) multicellularity, (5) the invasion of the land and (6) technological intelligence. Within each megatrajectory, overall diversification conforms to a pattern of increasing variance bounded by a right wall as well as one on the left. However, the expanding envelope of forms and physiologies also reflects—at least in part—directional evolution within clades. Each megatrajectory has introduced fundamentally new evolutionary entities that garner resources in new ways, resulting in an unambiguously directional pattern of increasing ecological complexity marked by expanding ecospace utilization. The sequential addition of megatrajectories adheres to logical rules of ecosystem function, providing a blueprint for evolution that may have been followed to varying degrees wherever life has arisen.

scholarly journals Defining Lyfe in the Universe: From Three Privileged Functions to Four Pillars

Life ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stuart Bartlett ◽  
Michael L. Wong
Keyword(s):  
Origin Of Life ◽  
Classification System ◽  
Historical Narrative ◽  
New Classification ◽  
General Picture ◽  
Living State ◽  
The Origin Of Life ◽  
Life On Earth ◽  
The Universe ◽  
Dynamical Order

Motivated by the need to paint a more general picture of what life is—and could be—with respect to the rest of the phenomena of the universe, we propose a new vocabulary for astrobiological research. Lyfe is defined as any system that fulfills all four processes of the living state, namely: dissipation, autocatalysis, homeostasis, and learning. Life is defined as the instance of lyfe that we are familiar with on Earth, one that uses a specific organometallic molecular toolbox to record information about its environment and achieve dynamical order by dissipating certain planetary disequilibria. This new classification system allows the astrobiological community to more clearly define the questions that propel their research—e.g., whether they are developing a historical narrative to explain the origin of life (on Earth), or a universal narrative for the emergence of lyfe, or whether they are seeking signs of life specifically, or lyfe at large across the universe. While the concept of “life as we don’t know it” is not new, the four pillars of lyfe offer a novel perspective on the living state that is indifferent to the particular components that might produce it.

On panspermia and the survivability of micrometre-sized meteoroids within the Earth's atmosphere

2004 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 151-156 ◽  
Author(s):  
S.G. Coulson
Keyword(s):  
Theoretical Models ◽  
Lower Atmosphere ◽  
Small Particles ◽  
Key Indicator ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Common Criticism ◽  
Temperature Regimes ◽  
Life On Earth ◽  
Rapid Deceleration ◽  
The Universe

A prediction of panspermia is that organic material should be abundant throughout the universe. The recovery of micrometre-sized biotic particles at altitudes of around 40 km above the Earth is a key indicator of the validity of panspermia. A common criticism of experiments to capture atmospheric particles is that the particles could have originated from the Earth. Theoretical models of the variation of temperature with altitude above the Earth show that 10 μm diameter particles can withstand rapid deceleration without significant ablation. Experimental evidence shows that small particles containing bacteria can survive the temperature regimes imposed by entry into the Earth's lower atmosphere. This is an important step in demonstrating that life on Earth did not evolve in isolation from the remainder of the universe.

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