Origins of Life

[mdlsfreak]

Hi all.

I have a paper due soon in my Zoology class.

I want to write it on the origins of life.

Can anyone direct me to some good online sources or discuss the matter with me in this thread? Feel free to say as much as you like.

Much appreciation.

[MrMistery]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abiogenesis

[AstusAleator]

There are hundreds of pages of discussion about this very subject (although sadly most of them turn into creation/ID debates) in the Evolution and Darwinism portion of the forum.

[smellor]

it seems to me the origin of life, assuming you are speaking of the genesis of primitive forms of life like prokaryotes, is a much contested subject with very little real proof. which is why discussions usually end up in creationism debate, in the end it really just comes down to what you believe.
There are theories but how can we ever really prove anything?

[mith]

Self assembling structures is probably what you would need to investigate.

[woolleyy]

Yup, have you read George Church's paper about pushing self assembly of a cell?

[smellor]

what journal/year/volume etc? sounds like an interesting read.

[Lucanus cervus]

I could recommend this one:

Life Evolving: Molecules, Mind, and Meaning by Christian De Duve(2002) ISBN 0195156056

Christian De Duve is Beglian internationally acclaimed cytologist and biochemist, he discovered peroxisomes and lysosomes, cell organelles. He was awarded the shared Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine.

His later years have been mostly devoted to origin of life studies: His work has contributed to the emerging consensus that the endosymbiotic theory is correct.