The Origin and Early Evolution of Life

The Origin and Early Evolution of Life PDF Author: Tom Fenchel
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780198525332
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 200

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Book Description
Origin and Early Evolution of Life draws on evidence from molecular genetics, the structure and function of extant organisms, and geology. It covers the period from about 4 billion years ago, when life is thought to have originated, to about 600 million years ago when multicellular organisms first arose. There are significant gaps in our understanding of the earliest evolution of life forms, but an insight into the topic leads to a more profound understanding of life itself. Particular emphasis is placed on the fact that although life arose very soon after the origin of the Earth, it was represented only by simple microbial life forms for approximately 85% of this time. Increase in complexity beyond the microbial level took place only very late in the history of life.

The Origin and Early Evolution of Life

The Origin and Early Evolution of Life PDF Author: Tom Fenchel
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780198525332
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 200

Get Book

Book Description
Origin and Early Evolution of Life draws on evidence from molecular genetics, the structure and function of extant organisms, and geology. It covers the period from about 4 billion years ago, when life is thought to have originated, to about 600 million years ago when multicellular organisms first arose. There are significant gaps in our understanding of the earliest evolution of life forms, but an insight into the topic leads to a more profound understanding of life itself. Particular emphasis is placed on the fact that although life arose very soon after the origin of the Earth, it was represented only by simple microbial life forms for approximately 85% of this time. Increase in complexity beyond the microbial level took place only very late in the history of life.

The Origin and Early Evolution of Life: Prebiotic Chemistry of Biomolecules

The Origin and Early Evolution of Life: Prebiotic Chemistry of Biomolecules PDF Author: Michele Fiore
Publisher: MDPI
ISBN: 3039216066
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 288

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Book Description
Studying the origin of life is one of man’s greatest achievements over the last sixty years. The fields of interest encompassed by this quest are multiple and interdisciplinary: chemistry, physics, biology, biochemistry, mathematics, geology but also statistics, atmospheric science, meteorology, oceanography, and astrophysics. Recent scientific discoveries, such as water on Mars and the existence of super-Earths with atmospheres similar to primordial Earth, have pushed researchers to simulate prebiotic conditions in explaining the abiotic formation of molecules essential to life. This collection of articles offers an overview of recent discoveries in the field of prebiotic chemistry of biomolecules, their formation and selection, and the evolution of complex chemical systems.

The Origin and Early Evolution of Life

The Origin and Early Evolution of Life PDF Author: Tom Fenchel
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
ISBN: 9780198526353
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 196

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Book Description
Origin and Early Evolution of Life draws on evidence from molecular genetics, the structure and function of extant organisms, and geology. It covers the period from about 4 billion years ago, when life is thought to have originated, to about 600 million years ago when multicellular organisms first arose. There are significant gaps in our understanding of the earliest evolution of life forms, but an insight into the topic leads to a more profound understanding of life itself. Particular emphasis is placed on the fact that although life arose very soon after the origin of the Earth, it was represented only by simple microbial life forms for approximately 85% of this time. Increase in complexity beyond the microbial level took place only very late in the history of life.

Prebiotic Chemistry

Prebiotic Chemistry PDF Author: Peter Walde
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 9783540277590
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 248

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Book Description


Life's Origin

Life's Origin PDF Author: J. William Schopf
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 0520928709
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 216

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Book Description
Always a controversial and compelling topic, the origin of life on Earth was considered taboo as an area of inquiry for science as recently as the 1950s. Since then, however, scientists working in this area have made remarkable progress, and an overall picture of how life emerged is coming more clearly into focus. We now know, for example, that the story of life's origin begins not on Earth, but in the interiors of distant stars. This book brings a summary of current research and ideas on life's origin to a wide audience. The contributors, all of whom received the Oparin/Urey Gold Medal of the International Society for the Study of the Origin of Life, are luminaries in the fields of chemistry, paleobiology, and astrobiology, and in these chapters they discuss their life's work: understanding the what, when, and how of the early evolution of life on Earth. Presented in nontechnical language and including a useful glossary of scientific terms, Life's Origin gives a state-of-the-art encapsulation of the fascinating work now being done by scientists as they begin to characterize life as a natural outcome of the evolution of cosmic matter.

The Search for Life's Origins

The Search for Life's Origins PDF Author: National Research Council
Publisher: National Academies Press
ISBN: 0309042461
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 161

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Book Description
The field of planetary biology and chemical evolution draws together experts in astronomy, paleobiology, biochemistry, and space science who work together to understand the evolution of living systems. This field has made exciting discoveries that shed light on how organic compounds came together to form self-replicating molecules-the origin of life. This volume updates that progress and offers recommendations on research programs-including an ambitious effort centered on Mars-to advance the field over the next 10 to 15 years. The book presents a wide range of data and research results on these and other issues: The biogenic elements and their interaction in the interstellar clouds and in solar nebulae. Early planetary environments and the conditions that lead to the origin of life. The evolution of cellular and multicellular life. The search for life outside the solar system. This volume will become required reading for anyone involved in the search for life's beginnings-including exobiologists, geoscientists, planetary scientists, and U.S. space and science policymakers.

Origins and Evolution of Life

Origins and Evolution of Life PDF Author: Muriel Gargaud
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521761314
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 546

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Book Description
Devoted to exploring questions about the origin and evolution of life in our Universe, this highly interdisciplinary book brings together a broad array of scientists. Thirty chapters assembled in eight major sections convey the knowledge accumulated and the richness of the debates generated by this challenging theme. The text explores the latest research on the conditions and processes that led to the emergence of life on Earth and, by extension, perhaps on other planetary bodies. Diverse sources of knowledge are integrated, from astronomical and geophysical data, to the role of water, the origin of minimal life properties and the oldest traces of biological activity on our planet. This text will not only appeal to graduate students but to the large body of scientists interested in the challenges presented by the origin of life, its evolution, and its possible existence beyond Earth.

Life Ascending

Life Ascending PDF Author: Nick Lane
Publisher: Profile Books
ISBN: 1847652220
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 469

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Book Description
Winner of the 2010 Royal Society Prize for science books Powerful new research methods are providing fresh and vivid insights into the makeup of life. Comparing gene sequences, examining the atomic structure of proteins and looking into the geochemistry of rocks have all helped to explain creation and evolution in more detail than ever before. Nick Lane uses the full extent of this new knowledge to describe the ten greatest inventions of life, based on their historical impact, role in living organisms today and relevance to current controversies. DNA, sex, sight and consciousnesses are just four examples. Lane also explains how these findings have come about, and the extent to which they can be relied upon. The result is a gripping and lucid account of the ingenuity of nature, and a book which is essential reading for anyone who has ever questioned the science behind the glories of everyday life.

Evolution of Early Earth's Atmosphere, Hydrosphere, and Biosphere

Evolution of Early Earth's Atmosphere, Hydrosphere, and Biosphere PDF Author: Stephen E. Kesler
Publisher: Geological Society of America
ISBN: 0813711983
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 350

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Book Description
"The history of Earth's early atmosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere, from Hadean through Proterozoic time, is one of geology's enduring puzzles. Ore deposits provide important insights into this history because they contain elements and minerals that are highly sensitive to the geochemical environment in which they form. Just what these minerals tell us remains a matter of considerable debate, however. When and how did life develop, an oxygen-rich atmosphere form, and sulfate dominate the ocean? This volume contains reports on these questions from both sides of the aisle for iron and manganese formations, uranium paleoplacers and hydrothermal deposits, and exhalative sulfides and oxides."--Publisher's website.

Information and the Origin of Life

Information and the Origin of Life PDF Author: Bernd-Olaf Küppers
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 9780262111423
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 252

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Book Description
The relationship between law and chance in the early evolution of life is the guidingtheme of this provocative study. The author explores modern ideas about the origin of life from thestandpoint of philosophy of science, emphasizing the contribution made by information theory.Küppersasserts that all life phenomena are steered by information and that this information is alreadydefined materially in a universal form at the level of the biological macromolecule. The question ofthe origin of life turns out to be the question of the origin of biological informationInformationand the Origin of Life takes up the fundamental problems of whether and, if so, to what extent theorigin of semantic information during evolution can be explained as a general phenomenon within theframework of physics and chemistry. The results could have far-reaching consequences for such fieldsas the philosophy of mind and artificial intelligence.Bernd-Olaf Küppers has long focused hisattention on basic questions of natural science and the philosophy of science at the borders ofphysics, chemistry, and biology. He has been engaged since 1971 in research at the Max PlanckInstitute for Biophysical Chemistry, and from 1979 to 1984 he held lecture courses in philosophy atthe University of Göttingen