The scientific consensus is that life began as a chance event in which just the right mix of organic compounds was acted upon by an energy source so that growth and reproduction could occur. The earliest life would not resemble today’s highly evolved version, but more likely was a kind of scaffold that had the essential properties of life. The scaffold was left behind when more efficient living systems evolved.

Hoyle and Wickramasinghe did not subscribe to this view. Instead, they elaborated a version of panspermia, an older idea championed in 1903 by the great Swedish chemist Svante Arrhenius. Arrhenius proposed that life exists everywhere in the universe and was delivered to the Earth when frozen extraterrestrial bacteria or spores, drifting as interstellar dust through the galaxy, happened to land here four billion years ago and found our planet to be habitable. Hoyle took it a step further when he claimed that this was still happening, that epidemics such as the flu pandemic of 1918 were actually caused by extraterrestrial organisms in the tails of comets.

I met Wickramasinghe in 1986 at the Tidbinbilla radio telescope observatory near Canberra, Australia, and asked whether he and Hoyle really thought that  interstellar space was infested with bacteria. He was quite certain of it, he said, noting that the infrared spectrum of interstellar dust closely matched that of dried, frozen bacteria. I mentioned that I was working with the astronomer Lou Allamandola at NASA Ames Research Center, who had demonstrated that the infrared spectrum could be reproduced by ordinary non-living compounds called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs for short). This seemed a much more plausible explanation than a galaxy full of bacteria. Wickramasinghe had a ready retort: “It is up to you to prove that they are not bacteria.”

This was my first experience with someone who is not swayed by Occam’s Razor and the weight of evidence. Scientists are like investors, but instead of money, the capital they have to spend is time, limited to roughly 40 years of active research. Good scientists are constantly making judgment calls to decide where to invest their time. They hope their investment will be profitable, not necessarily in monetary terms (that rarely happens) but rather in revealing significant new knowledge. But a few scientists spend their lives seeking unusual explanations that others would immediately discard as implausible. Most often the ideas turn out to be not just implausible, but wrong. However, once in awhile a wild idea is beautifully, wonderfully correct, and overturns a paradigm. George Gamow had one such idea, which Hoyle jokingly referred to as the “Big Bang”, and in a later column I will tell you about Peter Mitchell, another maverick whose implausible idea taught us how energy is made available in every living cell.

The game of life

Getting back to the main story, carbon and the other biogenic elements synthesized in stars can be delivered to planetary surfaces like the Earth and Mars during planet formation, mostly in the form of organic carbon compounds and carbon dioxide. These are chemically processed into a variety of other organic molecules which in turn assembled into the first living systems of self-reproducing molecules.  How could this possibly happen? After all, a living cell is incredibly complex.

I think the answer lies in the fact that  even though a list of life’s atomic and molecular components is relatively short, complexity can be produced by the exponentially large number of possible interactions among those components, subject to fairly straightforward laws of chemistry and physics. Think about the game of checkers. The parts are very simple, just black and red pieces on a checkerboard with 64 squares, and the rules that govern the way the pieces move about on the board are also easy to understand. However, the situations arising during an actual game of checkers are so complex that only in 2007, using the most powerful computer, was the game completely analyzed. (It turns out that if two players make perfect moves, the game always ends in a tie.)

In living organisms, as in checkers,  immense complexity arises from the way specific rules govern a few basic pieces. Instead of two colors of checker pieces, life is based on six elements abbreviated CHONPS, as described in last week’s column. Carbon ( C ) phosphorus (P) and sulfur (S) are solids at ordinary temperature, and hydrogen (H) oxygen (O) and nitrogen (N) are gases. These elements comprise over 99 percent of the water and organic matter in a living cell. One of the chemical rules of life is that the six biogenic elements combine into four basic kinds of molecules, which in turn assemble into the structures that make a cell. This is the reason that CHONPS are the biogenic elements. No other group of six elements could be assembled into a set of simple molecules that can readily be linked together into chains called proteins and nucleic acids.

Starting with elemental carbon, it is an interesting exercise to construct four basic kinds of biomolecules, adding one more biogenic element at each step to show how complexity increases.

Carbon by itself: Nada, unless you like graphite and diamonds.

Hydrogen and carbon are easy: they compose the hydrocarbon chains of fat, cholesterol and phospholipids, collectively referred to as lipids.

Carbon, hydrogen and oxygen: Another easy one — carbohydrates, or “watery carbon.”

Carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and nitrogen: Amino acids of course.

Carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen and phosphorus: A little more challenging, but there is only one biomolecule left: nucleic acids.

Oops… forgot sulfur — a couple of amino acids contain sulfur, and one class of lipids.

And there you have it, the main players in the game of life. But where did they come from for the game to begin?

Two of my scientific colleagues – Bill Irvine and Lou Allamandola – introduced me to a fundamental yet little known fact of life: We live in an organic universe. Twenty years ago, when I first heard Bill speak at a conference on the origin of life, I naively wondered why a radio astronomer would be invited. But then as he began to show his slides, the mystery was solved.

Really cold matter in molecular clouds emits radiation in the microwave region, with each chemical bond in a compound producing a specific wavelength. If the radiation is detected with a radio telescope and then analyzed, it is possible to decipher the kinds of bonds present and determine the nature of the compound. Bill presented clear evidence that dense molecular clouds, the nurseries of stars and solar systems, had nearly a hundred kinds  of organic compounds present.  Some of these are familiar, such as  cyanide, formaldehyde, methanol, ethanol, formic acid (named after formica, Latin for ants that release formic acid as a sour spray when disturbed), and acetic acid, the sour component of vinegar. Others are truly exotic, including one with a chain of nine carbon atoms and one nitrogen atom at the end. Such a weird compound could not exist on Earth, but in the cold of outer space it is stable.

The connection between radio astronomy and the origin of life became obvious as I listened to Bill. If molecular clouds give rise to stars, planets and solar systems, maybe some of the organic matter in the clouds was delivered to the early Earth four billion years ago to help life get started. Next week I will describe an experiment in which the synthesis of organic compounds on interstellar dust particles was simulated in Lou Allamandola’s lab at NASA Ames.

By Dave Deamer

We know you have other things to read, like a Top 10 list of String Theory jokes, somewhere so we’ll get right to it.

10. Tecticornia bibenda. One of two on this list that seems to have made it for no other reason than that press releases gave it a catchy nickname, in this case the “Michelin Man™” plant, and that really appeals to fame-seeking biologists who want to have mass appeal. If this actually looks like the Michelin Man™ to you, you’re just being argumentative.

Reference: Shepherd, K.A., & S.J. Van Leeuwen. 2007. Tecticornia bibenda (Chenopodiaceae: Salicornioideae) a new C4 samphire from the Little Sandy Desert, Western Australia. Nuytsia 16: 383-391.

9. Megaceras briansaltini. At ASU they note that this horned beetle looks like the one in a Disney movie – “A Bug’s Life.” We are mostly surprised anyone watched that film. There’s “Little Mermaid” and “Toy Story” and “Cars” and then a whole lot of crap in between them.

Reference: Ratcliffe, B.C. 2007. A remarkable new species of Megaceras from Peru (Scarabaeidae: Dynastinae: Oryctini). The “Dim Effect”: Nature mimicking art. The Coleopterists Bulletin 61(3): 463-467.

8. Malo kingi. It’s small consolation but American tourist Robert King had this named after him because he died after being stung by it while swimming in Australia. USA! USA!

Reference: Gershwin, L.A. 2007. Malo kingi: A new species of Irukandji jellyfish (Cnidaria: Cubozoa: Carybdeida), possibly lethal to humans, from Queensland, Australia. Zootaxa 1659: 55-68.

7. Xerocomus silwoodensis. Think there’s nothing fun to do in London? You and the rest of the planet agree. But this swank new mushroom was discovered on a campus of Imperial College. Discovering a new mushroom in 2007 on the campus of a major university in an ancient city like London tells you biologists still know jack about species.

Reference: Taylor, A.F.S., A.E. Hills, G. Simonini, J.A. Muñoz and U. Eberhardt. 2007. Xerocomus silwoodensis sp. nov., a new species within the European X. subtomentosus complex. Mycological Research 111: 403-408.

6. Styloctenium mindorensis. Seriously, is that not the cutest fruit bat you have ever seen? It’s only the second species of the genus, the other one being discovered by Alfred Russell Wallace, who co-authored a famous paper with a guy named – oh, yeah – Charles Darwin.

Reference: Esselstyn, J.A. 2007. A new species of stripe-faced fruit bat (Chiroptera: Pteropodidae: Styloctenium) from the Philippines. Journal of Mammalogy 88: 951-958.

5. Oxyuranus temporalis. Doesn’t rank higher because one of its cousins is the most venomous snake on the planet and this must settle for number two on that list. Only one has ever been found so it may have bitten itself before it could reproduce.

Reference: Doughty, P., B. Maryan, S.C. Donnellan & M.N. Hutchinson. 2007. A new species of taipan (Elapidae: Oxyuranus) from central Australia. Zootaxa 1422: 45-58.

4. Philautus maia. Identified from a single female museum specimen collected around 1860. It and a number of related frog species from Sri Lanka are almost certainly now extinct. Why do Sri Lankans hate frogs so much? We will never know.

Reference: Meegaskumbura, M., K. Manamendra-Arachchi, C.J. Schneider & R. Pethiyagoda. 2007. New species amongst Sri Lanka’s extinct shrub frogs Amphibia: Rhacophoridae: Philautus). Zootaxa 1397: 1-15.

3. Desmoxytes purpurosea. This millipede knows its shocking pink is so distasteful to predators it doesn’t even bother to hide. That’s bold, baby.

Reference: H. Enghoff, C. Sutcharit & S. Panha. 2007. The shocking pink dragon millipede, Desmoxytes purpurosea, a colourful new species from Thailand (Diplopoda: Polydesmida: Paradoxosomatidae). Zootaxa 1563: 31-36.

2. Gryposaurus monumentensis. An accredited paleontology museum on a high school campus? Indeed, and Alf Museum made this nifty gigantic discovery before lots of fancy-pants universities with fat NCAA contracts.

Reference: Gates, T.A. & S.D. Sampson. 2007. A new species of Gryposaurus (Dinosauria: Hadrosauridae) from the late Campanian Kaiparowits Formation, southern Utah, USA. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 151: 351-376.

1. Electrolux addisoni. Yes, “the name sucks” has already been taken by approximately 10,000 other sites so we’ll just say we love the newest ornate sleeper ray member of the electric ray family Narkidae. This mostly got on the list because of the name. Zoologists are soooo edgey.

Reference: Compagno, L.J.V. & P.C. Heemstra. 2007. Electrolux addisoni, a new genus and species of electric ray from the east coast of South Africa (Rajiformes: Torpedinoidei: Narkidae), with a review of torpedinoid taxonomy. Smithiana Bulletin 7: 15-49.

By News Staff

1. The record for the longest period without sleep is over 18 days. This person experienced hallucinations, blurred vision, slurred speech and memory lapses.

2. It is almost impossible to tell if someone is really awake without medical supervision. People can have naps with their eyes open and not even know it.

3. Elephants lie down during REM sleep, but sleep standing up during non-REM sleep.

4. What is commonly known as the the “natural alarm clock” which allows people to wake up when they want, is caused by the stress hormone adrenocorticotropin.

5. The tiny rays of light from a digital alarm clock can actually be enough to disrupt your sleep cycle.

6. On average humans sleep about three hours less than other primates.

7. Ducks are able to balance the need for sleep and survival by keeping one half of the brain awake and other half in sleep mode.

8. Most of what we know about sleep we’ve learned in the past 25 years.

9. It has been suggested that the availability of the internet is one of the major influences of sleep distractions.

10. Studies suggest that women need up to an hour’s extra sleep a night compared to men.

By Twiggy

Pruning synapses may be a practical necessity to keep the brain from being overwhelmed, says Paul Shaw, coauthor of the second study (also published in Science). “There are a number of reasons why the brain can’t indefinitely add synapses – including the finite spatial constraints of the skull. We were able to track the creation of new synapses in fruit flies during learning experiences – and to show that sleep pushed that number back down” [Telegraph], he says.

In the first study, Cirelli and her colleagues show that proteins found in the synapses build up in fruit fly brains while the flies are awake. Depriving flies of sleep leads to ever-greater levels of synaptic proteins, the researchers show. Levels of the proteins decrease as the flies sleep [Science News]. The researchers couldn’t directly determine synaptic strength because fruit fly brains are too small to allow them to measure electric activity between neurons; however, they say that measuring the proteins is a valid indirect gauge of synaptic strength.

Meanwhile, Shaw’s lab had previously determined that fruit flies sleep longer following social interactions, rather like a human who has been through a busy day. His team then showed that the brains of socially isolated flies contained fewer synaptic terminals than flies subjected to social enrichment, and that the number of terminals decreased in flies that were allowed to sleep. “I think our data shows the first signs of real structural changes,” he said [The Scientist].

by Eliza Strickland

Experts have pinpointed the part of the brain that guides people when they are battling with difficult moral dilemmas, according to a study.

Highly-sophisticated brain scans show that the response is linked to certain areas usually associated with primitive emotions of sex, fear and anger.

The findings, revealed by the Observer, are to be published in the Archives of General Psychiatry.

They are a significant departure into an area of expertise that has long been regarded as one of religion and philosophy.

Study author Dilip Jeste, professor of psychiatry and neuroscience at the University of California in San Diego, said: ‘Our research suggests there may be a basis in neurobiology for wisdom’s most universal traits.’

He and colleague Thomas Meeks discovered that a person weighing up an issue that just called for an altruistic response used the medial prefrontal cortext of the brain.

This is linked to intelligence and learning.

But when someone is battling with a moral dilemma, other areas of the brain are used such as the parts linked to rational thought and primitive emotions.

Mr Meeks said: ‘Several brain regions appear to be involved in different components of wisdom. It seems to involve a balance between more primitive brain regions, like the limbic system, and the newest ones, such as the prefrontal cortex.’

This type of research has only become possible in recent years due to technological advances in brain scanning, including functional magnetic resonance imaging.

This means experts can examine which parts of the brain that are used when people consider various tasks.

Such research has been made possible by the increasing sophistication of brain scanning techniques, such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI).

These allow researchers to see which parts of the brain become active when people undertake mental tasks.

Professor Jeste admitted the possibility that wisdom and free will are based on the make-up of someone’s brain rather than metaphysics is unsettling.

But he said: ‘Knowledge of the underlying mechanisms in the brain could potentially lead to developing interventions for enhancing wisdom.’

By Daily Mail Reporter