NASA astrobiology conference

[Aimless]

http://www.nasa.gov/centers/ames/new...0/M10-110.html

Dammit I wanna know now!

[agamemnus]

Meh. We've known for some time about the little green men in Area 51. No shocker there.

Also, the Stargate Program.

What we haven't known about is tiny outlines on asteroids that might possibly resemble some sort of potential for alien life...maybe. That's what the conference will be about.

[Dreadnaught]

That they are flying people out from elsewhere to Moffett certainly makes it seem like a legitimately cool announcement, but it just seems too understated of a way to announce a truly "major" finding.

[Aimless]

NASA scientists discover existence of life on earth, get crunked.

[EyeKhan]

I wonder what they could be announcing? They found liquid water at the Phoenix landing site.... That's pretty awesome shit, there. But they've announced that already and whether life was/ is there is anyone's guess. But if this was a HUGE announcement, (LIFE ON MARS!) it would have been leaked already. So what's it all about?

[Rtoups]

I'm hoping for something uber awesome, but its probably just gonna be another boring but important scientific revelation.

Although it's cool to know that this is happening like...a dozen blocks away from my dorm.

[EyeKhan]

go to it

[Ominous Gamer]

http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/20...inds-new-life/

At their conference today, NASA scientist Felisa Wolfe Simon will announce that they have found a bacteria whose DNA is completely alien to what we know today. Instead of using phosphorus, the bacteria uses arsenic. All life on Earth is made of six components: carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, phosphorus and sulfur. Every being, from the smallest amoeba to the largest whale, share the same life stream. Our DNA blocks are all the same.

[Crowheart]

Meaning they'll have to redefine their definition of conditions capable of sustaining life?

Guess that is kinda big.

[EyeKhan]

This is pretty cool. A completely different kind of biology..... right here on Earth. Sweet. Did anyone go to the link about the red dwarf stars? There's likely 3x as many stars in the universe than we thought. WTF?

[Aimless]

http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/index.html

[agamemnus]

Arsenic. Well, it's a major discovery! 20, maybe 10 years ago all the textbooks (and almost everyone) were saying arsenic as any part or process of an organism was completely impossible.

I think I would still have to see silicon-based lifeforms to believe in evolution, though...

[Dreadnaught]

Okay, redefining the key elements of life is reasonably significant. Maybe liquor is alove.

[Lebanese Dragon]

I wonder about the chemical similarities between arsenic and sulphur, including similarities and differences when interacting with the other aforementioned elements. What do you think the evolution potential of this species will be, is there a cap, a complete twist in what could possible develop, interesting.

[EyeKhan]

Arsenic. Well, it's a major discovery! 20, maybe 10 years ago all the textbooks (and almost everyone) were saying arsenic as any part or process of an organism was completely impossible.

And nobody guessed for a second the universe's expansion was accelerating. Or that the majority of matter in the universe was invisible, unreactive, and literally flows through us all the time. I love science. <sigh>

I think I would still have to see silicon-based lifeforms to believe in evolution, though...