I can't be the only one around here who works in the biosciences and finds this interesting. Abstract: NYTimes (for the layman): http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/03/science/03arsenic.html?partner=rss&emc=rss Science paper (for the truly serious): Science Magazine: Sign In | Science/AAAS
That is cool it shows the adaptability of life and just how flexible it is, although the description of throwing electronic parts into a room of humans with no other food source and then morphing into cyborgs is a bit daft.
i haven't read the paper yet. but for now i gotta wonder what mutations are required for that to work out. active sites of which enzymes that had to have a couple amino acid mutations, enough to recognize arsenate in place of phosphate...
Oh Oh. This is the start of earth's new metallic life forms. (Thought I was kidding, but nature may not be.) Ought to be resistant to heavy metal poisoning.
As I understood from the press conference, this microbe can use either Phosphorus or Arsenic. I believe it should be considered a phosphorus-arsenic hybrid!
My understanding is that the DNA molecule has a different component than all of the other life we have recorded on this planet that has 4 specific molecules in the DNA chain... That IS very very significant... It means life isn't a specific "base 4" Which of course means... Predator is real... We are doomed.
I gather that DNA transcription/replication with an arsenic backbone has yet to be demonstrated. THAT would be a new evolutionary pathway; at the moment we just have a very flexible bug that has adapted to its environment. Who wudda thunk ? As for the question of the day -- how do you scan for extra-terrestial life -- I think the answer is know what the common local building blocks are. Life will use them. Bob -- No change in the base 4 genetic code.
I don't remember reading anything about mutations. I guess they only let you visit the story once because for whatever reason I can't go back to either story now.
From what I understood reading the report yesterday, arsenic can straight up replace phosphorus without any mutations really required to make things work - it's located immediately below phosphorus on the periodic table, which means its outer ring of electrons is pretty much identical. The problem comes with water... for some reason I don't really understand, arsenic breaks down in water much more easily than phosphorus, which is what makes it so deadly to us (we're something like 60% water). The arsenic comes in and replaces phosphorus in our cells... but then it starts to break down due to the water in our bodies, breaking the DNA chains and other things, making the cells unable to function, leading to death. As a result, the microbes the worked with ended up having a water-impermeable barrier to protect themselves. I think the big question is what chemical processes would be required to support arsenic-based life on a large scale? How does photosynthesis work without water? Is there some other compound that can take its place?
Well, Randal generally doesn't make the comics until the night before, so he had a solid 8 hours to come up with this one (given that the announcement was at 2pm yesterday, and allowing for the time taken to draw the comic).
I was flipping through the channels whilst on a cruise a few days ago, and I came across this on Fox News, the news caster was waiting for the announcement and then when the researcher began to explain it, the newscaster went on a rant about how she couldn't understand what the girl was saying despite it being not at all that complicated. They cut away from the press conference and I just changed the channel disgusted as I was truly intrigued...
I thought you were being factitious, then I searched YouTube and found the real story to be even more depressing and hilarious:
Intelligence isn't an important criteria when Faux News hires their female newsreaders. The bimbo isn't actually stupid, but she is definitely ignorant and proud of it.
Interesting bit of video... The anchor women's tele-prompter was apparently broken and with nothing to read she had to wing it... and reveled that she is a boob. We rarely get such a clear demonstration that commercial telivision does in fact deserve to be called the "boob tube..." Or is it just Fox?
The NASA study of arsenic-based life was fatally flawed, say scientists. - By Carl Zimmer - Slate Magazine "I was outraged at how bad the science was,"
