The Origins Of Life And The Universe

The Origins of Life and the Universe is the culmination of a university science professor's search for understanding and is based on his experiences teaching the fundamental issues of physics, chemistry, and biology in the classroom. What is life? Where did it come from? How can understanding the origins of life on Earth help us understand the origins of the universe, and vice versa? These are questions that have occupied us all. This is a book, then, about the beginning of things—of the universe, matter, stars, and planetary systems, and finally, of life itself—topics of profound interest that are rarely considered together. After surveying prescientific accounts of the origins of life, the book examines the concepts of modern physics and cosmology, in particular the two pillars of modern physics, relativity and quantum theory, and how they can be applied to the Big Bang model of the creation of the universe. The author then considers molecular genetics and DNA, the famed building block of life. In addition to assessing various hypotheses concerning the appearance of the first bacterial cells and their evolution into more complex eukaryotic cells, this section explains how "protocells" may have started a kind of integrated metabolism and how horizontal gene transfer may have speeded up evolution. Finally, the book discusses the possibility that life did not originate on planet Earth but first appeared on other solar planets, or perhaps in other star systems. How would such a possibility affect our understanding of the meaning of life, or of its ultimate fate in the universe? The book ends as it begins, with profound questions and penetrating answers, a state-of-the-art guide to unlocking the scientific mysteries of life and matter.

The most fascinating questions on the history of the Universe are answered in this text.

Origins of Life on the Earth and in the Cosmos, Second Edition, suggests answers to the age-old questions of how life arose in the universe and how it might arise elsewhere. This thorough revision of a very successful text describes key events in the evolution of living systems, starting with the creation of an environment suitable for the origins of life. Whereas one may never be able to reconstruct the precise pathway that led to the origin of life on earth, one can certainly make some plausible reconstructions of it. Such discussions have greatly expanded our understanding of the principles of chemical evolution and how they compare and contrast with the principles of biological evolution. The text is strong on biochemistry and its recent applications to origins' research. Provides an excellent review of basic biochemistry an evolution Written in a clear, concise style for scientists, students, and readers interested in a scientific inquiry into the origins of life Written by an authority in the field, and brought fully up-to-date in light of new research Pulls together valuable information not found in a single source Organized and presented in a manner conductive for use in a college course Heavily illustrated to make difficult concepts concrete

Life appears ungraspable, yet its understanding lies at the heart of current preoccupations. In our attempt to understand life through its origins, the ambition of the present collection is to unravel the network of the origin of the various spheres of sense that carry it onwards. The primogenital matrix of generation (Tymieniecka), elaborated as the fulcrum of this collection, elucidates the main riddles of the scientific / philosophical controversies concerning the status of various spheres that seek to make sense of life.

This introductory text describes key events in the evolution of life, starting from the origin of the universe. The emphasis is on experimentation, with a discussion of past and current scientific research and experiments used to explain the origins of life. The text is designed to attract a wide variety of students, and is appropriate for use in a number of different disciplines as it requires little knowledge of biology or geology in the reader.

The origins of life remains one of the great unsolved mysteries of science. Growing evidence suggests that the first organisms lived deep underground, in environments previously thought to be uninhabitable, and that microbes carried inside rocks have travelled between Earth and Mars. But the question remains: how can life spring into being from non-living chemicals? THE FIFTH MIRACLE reveals the remarkable new theories and discoveries that seem set to transform our understanding of life's role in the unfolding drama of the cosmos.

Conflicting Models for the Origin of Life Conflicting Models for the Origin of Life provides a forum to compare and contrast the many hypotheses that have been put forward to explain the origin of life. There is a revolution brewing in the field of Origin of Life: in the process of trying to figure out how Life started, many researchers believe there is an impending second creation of life, not necessarily biological. Up-to-date understanding is needed to prepare us for the technological, and societal changes it would bring. Schrodinger’s 1944 “What is life?” included the insight of an information carrier, which inspired the discovery of the structure of DNA. In “Conflicting Models of the Origin of Life” a selection of the world’s experts are brought together to cover different aspects of the research: from progress towards synthetic life – artificial cells and sub-cellular components, to new definitions of life and the unexpected places life could (have) emerge(d). Chapters also cover fundamental questions of how memory could emerge from memoryless processes, and how we can tell if a molecule may have emerged from life. Similarly, cutting-edge research discusses plausible reactions for the emergence of life both on Earth and on exoplanets. Additional perspectives from geologists, philosophers and even roboticists thinking about the origin of life round out this volume. The text is a state-of-the-art snapshot of the latest developments on the emergence of life, to be used both in graduate classes and by citizen scientists. Audience Researchers in any area of astrobiology, as well as others interested in the origins of life, will find a modern and current review of the field and the current debates and obstacles. This book will clearly illustrate the current state-of-the-art and engage the imagination and creativity of experts across many disciplines.

‘Fascinating’ – Brian Cox, Mail on Sunday Books of the Year Where are we? Who are we? Do our beliefs, hopes and dreams hold any significance out there in the void? Can human purpose and meaning ever fit into a scientific worldview? Award-winning author Sean Carroll brings his extraordinary intellect to bear on the realms of knowledge, the laws of nature and the most profound questions about life, death and our place in it all. From Darwin and Einstein to the origins of life, consciousness and the universe itself, Carroll combines cosmos-sprawling science and profound thought in a quest to explain our world. Destined to sit alongside the works of our greatest thinkers, The Big Picture demonstrates that while our lives may be forever dwarfed by the immensity of the universe, they can be redeemed by our capacity to comprehend it and give it meaning.

This publication, in two volumes, includes most of the scientific papers presented at the first meeting of the International Society for the Study of the Origin of Life (lSSOL), held on June 25-28, 1973 in Barcelona, Spain. The first volume contains the invited articles and the second volume the contributed papers, which also appear in the 1974 and 1975 issues, respectively, of the new journal Origins of Life, published by D. Reidel. A relatively large number of meetings on the subject of the origin of life have been held in different places since 1957. In terms of its organization, scope, and number and nationality of participants, the Conference celebrated last year in Barcelona closely followed the three international conferences held earlier in Moscow, U.S.S.R., 1957, Wakulla Springs, U.S.A., 1963, and Pont-a-Mousson, France, 1970. For this reason the first ISSOL meeting was also named the 4th International Conference on the Origin of Life.

In Origins of Existence astrophysicist Fred Adams takes a radically different approach from the long tradition of biologists and spiritual leaders who have tried to explain how the universe supports the development of life. He argues that life followed naturally from the laws of physics -- which were established as the universe burst into existence at the big bang. Those elegant laws drove the formation of galaxies, stars, and planets -- including some like our Earth. That chain of creation produced all the tiny chemical structures and vast celestial landscapes required for life. Ultimately, physical laws and the complexity they generate define the kind of biospheres that are possible -- from an Amazon rain forest to a frigid ocean beneath an ice sheet on a Jovian moon. Adams suggests that life was not merely some lucky break, but rather a natural outcome of the ascending ladder of complexity supported by our universe. Since our galaxy seems to harbor millions of planets with the same basic elements of habitability as Earth, the emergence of life is probably not a rare event. If life emerges deep inside planets and moons, as new research suggests happened on our planet, the number of viable habitats is truly enormous. Seven chronological chapters take the reader from the laws of physics and birth of the universe to the origins of life on Earth -- showing how energy flowed, exploded, and was repeatedly harnessed in replicating structures and organisms. In his groundbreaking first book, Fred Adams established the five eras of the universe with a focus on its long-term future. It is perhaps not surprising that he now turns his attention to the mystery of our astronomical origins. Here is a stunning new perspective, a book of genesis for our time, revealing how the laws of physics created galaxies, stars, planets, and even life in the universe.

The primary purpose of this book is to prepare the ground for coordinated efforts aiming to answer the question: where and when life originated. The appearance of life involves three successive stages: i) the formation of chemical elements and their combination to simple molecules, which is the concern of physicists; ii) the evolution of organized complexity in biomolecules and their reactions, which falls within the field of chemistry; iii) the onset of Darwinian evolution after the appearance of the first cell-like structure, which is studied by biologists. This book focuses on the first two steps of this process with chapters exploring topics such as chemical element abundances; galaxies, galactic magnetic fields and cosmic rays; galactic chemical evolution. Key Features: Contains extensive lists of reference and additional reading. Includes new hypotheses concerning the origin of life. Combines consideration from nuclear physics, astrophysics, astro- and geochemistry. Despite its interdisciplinary nature, this book remains accessible to nonexperts, and would be a valuable companion for both experts and laypeople.

Astrobiology is a very broad interdisciplinary field covering the origin, evolution, distribution, and destiny of life in the universe, as well as the design and implementation of missions for solar system exploration. A review covering its complete spectrum has been missing at a level accessible even to the non-specialist. The last section of the book consists of a supplement, including a glossary, notes, and tables, which represent highly condensed `windows' into research ranging from basic sciences to earth and life sciences, as well as the humanities. These additions should make The New Science of Astrobiology accessible to a wide readership: scientists, humanists, and the general reader will have an opportunity to participate in one of the most rewarding activities of contemporary culture.

Proceedings of the Sixth Trieste Conference on Chemical Evolution, Trieste, Italy, 18-22 September 2000

The year 2003 was the 50th anniversary of the seminal experiment of Stanley Miller. This was a unique opportunity for highlighting the current interest in this most interdisciplinary subject. The leading space agencies: the European Space Agency (ESA) as well as NASA, the American Space Agency, have planned missions that will elucidate some of the still unknown questions underlying research in the origin of life. New results are surpassing our ability to keep well informed: the reviews that we were presented at the Trieste meeting will bring the readers of this well-documented and timely book up to date in this fast-moving area. An important component of the conference was the review of the Cassini-Huygens mission due to arrive in the Saturn system just one year after the conference convened in Trieste. There was particular interest in the status of the experiments that will take place inside the atmosphere of Titan, the large satellite, which is a testing ground for the theories and experiments in the field of chemical evolution. The Jovian system is currently under study with the view of investigating the possibility of life underneath the frozen surface of the Galilean moon Europa; the ESA mission "Mars Express" and Mars Odyssey received special attention. Some of the world leaders in the field gathered in Trieste in September 2003 - that was a most timely date for reviewing recent data and discussing the prospects of future research.

The relationship between science and theology has been a crisis for humanity since Darwin's publication of Origin of Species that affects the very core of scientific and Biblical truths with serious consequences. In this detailed and absorbing book Dr. Cherian provides astounding facts of science that were deciphered in the last 500 years, each of which is recorded in the Biblical Scriptures. Heeding back to the Biblical account of creation, Dr. Cherian takes the readers from the erroneous notion of the origin of the universe without a cause and abiogenesis as the source of life to the latest scientific discoveries that corroborate the Biblical evidence for divine creation of the universe, life and species that dispel Darwinian evolution. The Origins of the Universe, Life and Species sheds much light for a better understanding of the Scriptures that were hidden to many scientists, researchers and students to relate the scientific discoveries that reveal the Biblical truths for a better appreciation of the unknown God who reveals himself through the many scientists and their discoveries. Dr. Cherian, uses all branches of science from astronomy to zoology connecting the dots between science and theology that stretches from the highest of heavens (outer space) to the deepest of ocean floor revealing the unknown God to be the KNOWN GOD.

This book examines the origins, development and fate of intelligent species in the observable part of our universe. It scrutinizes what kind of information about extraterrestrial intelligent life can be inferred from our own biological, cultural and scientific evolution and the likely future of mankind. There is emphasis on the geological conditions and consequences of life's conquest of land as the pre-condition for the emergence of life with our type of technical intelligence.

These are exciting times for exobiology. The ubiquity of organic molecules in interstellar clouds, comets and asteroids strongly supports a cosmic perspective on the origin of life. Data from both ground-based telescopes and the recently launched Infrared Space Observatory are providing new insight into the complexity of carbon-based chemistry beyond the Earth. Meteorites give us solid evidence for extraterrestrial amino acids, and putative fossil evidence for life in a 3.6 billion-year-old Martian meteorite hints that life in our system might not be the sole prerogative of the Earth. Giant planets have now been discovered orbiting other stars, and although such planets seem unlikely to be habitable themselves, their existence strongly suggests what many astronomers have long believed - that planetary systems are commonplace. All these topics are reviewed in this volume by active researchers. The level is appropriate for graduate students in astronomy, biology, chemistry, earth sciences, physics, and related disciplines. It will also provide a valuable source of reference for active researchers in these fields.

- How did the Sun come into existence? - How was the Earth formed? - How long has Earth been the way it is now, with its combination of oceans and continents? - How do you define “life”? - How did the first life forms emerge? - What conditions made it possible for living things to evolve? All these questions are answered in this colourful textbook addressing undergraduate students in "Origins of Life" courses and the scientifically interested public. The authors take the reader on an amazing voyage through time, beginning five thousand million years ago in a cloud of interstellar dust and ending five hundred million years ago, when the living world that we see today was finally formed. A chapter on exoplanets provides an overview of the search for planets outside the solar system, especially for habitable ones. The appendix closes the book with a glossary, a bibliography of further readings and a summary of the Origins of the Earth and life in fourteen boxes.

The popular belief that a scientific understanding of reality is incompatible with a Christian one is simply wrong. Some Christian understandings of reality do conflict with some scientific understandings. But a thoroughly rational Christian understanding of the origin and history of the universe will be informed by the best scientific theories and the "facts" founded on them. This book weaves a narrative of the origin and history of the universe from the perspective of contemporary science with a Christian understanding of God and of God's role in the origin and history of the universe. At the center of this integrated narrative is the view that God, who is pure, unbounded Love, is Creator: the zest for life in the universe comes from God, and God is the source of Truth, Beauty, and Goodness in the universe. God is amazed and delighted at what God-and-the-world has created; God is saddened by ways creatures have fallen short of pure, unbounded Love, Truth, Beauty, and Goodness; and God's pure, unbounded Love keeps on trying to persuade all creatures toward Truth, Beauty, and Goodness.

On Creation and the Origins of Life is an in-depth exploration of the various possibilities and theories on the start of life on our planet. Bob Yari presents a logical discussion of the possible origins of life and its subsequent growth into complex lifeforms based on our most recent technological and scientific knowledge. The author takes the evolutionary mechanism built into our cells as a fact, yet also contemplates that intelligent design may have created the intricacies of carbon-based life while designing an evolutionary mechanism into its blueprint to enhance survival. The book serves as a step-by-step rationalization of how the most fundamental version of a lifeform could have formed and how it then could have evolved into complex animals and plants living in perfect balance on planet Earth. Get ready to think, debate, and make meaningful conclusions by arming yourself with the facts, insights, and analysis in this important work.