

Researchers may have solved origin-of-life conundrum - milkcircle
http://news.sciencemag.org/biology/2015/03/researchers-may-have-solved-origin-life-conundrum

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fitzwatermellow
"Origin-of-cells" might be a more accurate descriptor in the title. Seems to
me a colossal gap remains between a stochastic assembly of lipids, proteins,
amino groups, enzymes, and UV light and evolving, self-replicating animated
life, no?

Recent discoveries of abundant water in the cosmos, as evidenced by the Hubble
observations of Ganymede and several exoplanets might give some weight to
extra-terrestrial origins of life. Perhaps arriving on the same comets that
carry abundant hydrogen cyanide (though, no such archaea bearing asteroids
have been observed, yet).

Maybe its just a romantic notion, but its difficult for a conscious, feeling
entity not to feel somewhat disturbed by the coldness at the heart of theories
of terrestrial abiogenesis. And perhaps we should admit that we haven't made
much conceptual progress on the subject since Urey-Miller decided to throw
some gases in a test tube and pass an electric current through it.

