Do we know WHERE life began on Earth?

[Backdrifter]

We know there are theories about HOW life began but has there ever been any attempt to work out where? So that we can say, just behind that palm tree, or under that Tesco's parking space, or next to that drain, is where the first RNA stirred into life?

Almost a spooky thought isn't it.

[sandyRoe]

Somewhere in the sea?

[DTCwordfan]

Clacton on Sea - after all, life is still primitive there.......not much has changed in 4 billion years.

[Backdrifter]

Possibly it could be said in a sea, or in a swamp, etc but I'm wondering if anyone has ever suggested exactly WHERE the sea or swamp was, which continent, country, desert, lake, street or mall.

[jake-the-peg]

No we're not sure about the how so we can hardlt speculate about the where.

It would hardly be meaningful anyway - The continents are so different.

Probably in a shallow "sea" somewhere or possibly in a volcanic ocean vent that long ago stopped and got overlaid with other rock.

RNA was probably a way down the evolutionary track too!

There wasn't even free oxygen at the time - If you went back to find it you'd be dead in seconds.

[nightmare]

It is pretty much irrelevant to ask where, because the continents have moved considerably, and new oceanic basins created, in the intervening 3. whatever billion years since life began.
Wherever it began, possibly in more than one location, that place no longer exists.

[jake-the-peg]

Now that is an interesting question Nightmare - whether it happened more than once.

Is it actually possible that what we think of as an improbably occurance could have happened more than once? Life forms have pretty much the same biochemistry - is it possible that is a coincidence.

Could viruses have a seperate genesis and have found a route to attack other life forms.

Sounds unlikely to me but I'm not a biologist - where's the prof when you need him?

[Backdrifter]

But we can identify existing places that were once elsewhere before continental drift moved them. I'm sure the actual sea bed or hollow where the puddle or swamp was is no longer physically there but may still exist as some other geological form, but we'll probably never know.

[nightmare]

j-t-p
that is why I stated possibly more than one location.
I agree we need the prof's input here - I have not seen anything from him recently.

[joggerjayne]

The first ever living organism must have been a bit lonely.

It would have been just its luck if the SECOND ever living organism came into being on the other side of the planet!

[NazNomad]

Life began in more then one place on Earth.

[NazNomad]

*than

[sandyRoe]

Asexual reproduction would soon take care of the loneliness problem.

[DTCwordfan]

jayne - basically the organism screwed itself.........to make number 2. None of this Adam and Eve using Ann Summers to help their conception stuff here......

[johne1892]

Nicely put DT...!

If life did originate in more than one place (at the same time?) then I presume basic Theory of Evolution would kick in and when they did meet the strongest would survive.

I found an old cup of coffee yesterday and I think I have created a new lifeform worth monitoring if that helps!

[Backdrifter]

Oh dear, well I suppose we are now at that stage where each response is an attempt at humour so perhaps we'll leave this one.

[jake-the-peg]

You'll be disappointed to know that sex wasn't invented for another 2.5 billion years Jayne!

[Coldicote]

How life began is one thing scientists may discover, but I somehow don't think they will ever explain the sensitivities of life - feelings, thought, love, fear etc.

[joggerjayne]

Oh ... right.

[jake-the-peg]

I think you'll find Coldicote the reverse is true

There's a lot of work done on human emotions and a lot of progress in it.

The advantage is that you have lots of data to work on - The start of life however means trying to discover the details of a microscopic even that happened (probably once) 3.5 Billion years ago

That's a tall order

[MarkRae]

> the puddle or swamp was is no longer physically there

Q took Picard back to it...