https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=i93Z7zljQ7I
I like this video and watch it from time to time. We aren’t really able to at all comprehend the size and scale of the universe, but just a simple scale video is a little bit mind blowing. Humans think we are really important and smart and that aliens are visiting us...and none of that is true.
I mean I get it, it’s fun to think about. But best case scenario is life is on planets around Alpha Centauri, which is only 4.2 light years away. We can’t get to Mars.
RFS62 (02-28-2020)
Our planet is a lonely speck in the great enveloping cosmic dark. In our obscurity, in all this vastness, there is no hint that help will come from elsewhere to save us from ourselves. -- Carl Sagan (Pale Blue Dot)
Protein discovered inside a meteorite
A team of researchers from Plex Corporation, Bruker Scientific LLC and Harvard University has found evidence of a protein inside of a meteorite. They have written a paper describing their findings and have uploaded it to the arXiv preprint server.
In prior research, scientists have found organic materials, sugars and some other molecules considered to be precursors to amino acids in both meteorites and comets—and fully formed amino acids have been found in comets and meteorites, as well. But until now, no proteins had been found inside of an extraterrestrial object. In this new effort, the researchers have discovered a protein called hemolithin inside of a meteorite that was found in Algeria back in 1990.
The hemolithin protein found by the researchers was a small one, and was made up mostly of glycine, and amino acids. It also had oxygen, lithium and iron atoms at its ends—an arrangement never seen before. The team's paper has not yet been peer reviewed, but once the findings are confirmed, their discovery will add another piece to the puzzle that surrounds the development of life on Earth. Proteins are considered to be essential building blocks for the development of living things, and finding one on a meteorite bolsters theories that suggest either life, or something very close to it, came to Earth from elsewhere in space.
Our planet is a lonely speck in the great enveloping cosmic dark. In our obscurity, in all this vastness, there is no hint that help will come from elsewhere to save us from ourselves. -- Carl Sagan (Pale Blue Dot)
BuckeyeRed27 (03-04-2020)
O brother...
Here is the header from the wiki link about hemolithin:
This article is being considered for deletion in accordance with Wikipedia's deletion policy.
Please share your thoughts on the matter at this article's entry on the Articles for deletion page
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hemolithin
Last edited by North; 03-04-2020 at 11:59 PM.
Sea Ray (03-05-2020)
WrongVerb (03-05-2020)
It means that knowledgeable folks are contacting Wiki to say that this idea of a life- giving outer space protein is nonsense.
It means that chemists (like me) look at statements like
"The researchers speculate that the iron oxide grouping formed at the end of the molecule may be able to absorb photons, thereby enabling the molecule to split water (H2O) into hydrogen and oxygen and, as a result, produce a source of energy that might be useful to the development of life.
and "state of the art" mass spectroscopy
and shake our heads.
And there is this in the article text:
Nonetheless, exobiologist and chemist Jeffrey Bada expressed concerns about the possible protein discovery commenting, "The main problem is the occurrence of hydroxyglycine, which, to my knowledge, has never before been reported in meteorites or in prebiotic experiments. Nor is it found in any proteins. ... Thus, this amino acid is a strange one to find in a meteorite, and I am highly suspicious of the results." Although some scientists seem supportive of the study, other scientists may be less so.
Note that in the link provided by the OP, the statements have not been peer reviewed. No one wants their name connected to it.
The university is full of mystery. But we need scientifically verified truths.
Last edited by North; 03-05-2020 at 05:54 PM.
Our planet is a lonely speck in the great enveloping cosmic dark. In our obscurity, in all this vastness, there is no hint that help will come from elsewhere to save us from ourselves. -- Carl Sagan (Pale Blue Dot)
North (03-06-2020)
Wut? What are you saying about contamination? The whole idea strains established chemical knowledge. A college freshman with but two semesters of introductory chemistry would question their assertions!
Lots of theories out there. Aliens, God's creations, evolution, others.
Solving existentialism is beyond our brains' ability. Best to leave people to their own lights, and not mock or belittle or go after those who have opposing thoughts.
We must never thnk that one's own voice is an utimate truth. Makes
for a more peaceful civil society.
And civil society is but a thin crust, and it is being attacked around the globe.
Last edited by North; 03-06-2020 at 03:23 AM.
Yeah that all makes sense. The article itself said the study hasn’t been peer reviewed and the authors weren’t commenting until that had taken place, so I don’t think they are doing anything nefarious, but I don’t work in the field so perhaps I’m wrong.
I wasn’t being snarky with my original post btw, just thought you were pointing out issues with Wikipedia, which obviously has to be taken with a grain of salt and I appreciate your insights.
North (03-06-2020)
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