Any other space geeks?

[roomthreeseventeen]

Who else is super excited for the NASA press conference at 2pm?

 

[UrsulasShadow]

who else is super excited for the nasa press conference at 2pm?

me!

 

[safetymom]

Add me to the list.

 

[lugnut33]

I'll give you the heads up:

Hours before their special news conference today, the cat is out of the bag: NASA has discovered a completely new life form that doesn't share the biological building blocks of anything currently living in planet Earth. This changes everything.

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.

But not this one. This one is completely different. Discovered in the poisonous Mono Lake, California, this bacteria is made of arsenic, something that was thought to be completely impossible. The implications of this discovery are enormous to our understanding of life itself and the possibility of finding beings in other planets that don't have to be like planet Earth.

We will know more today at 2pm EST but, while this life hasn't been found in another planet, this discovery does indeed change everything we know about biology.

 

[roomthreeseventeen]

I had heard that rumor, too. It sounds pretty damn interesting. What I want to know is WHERE they found it.

 

[lugnut33]

I had heard that rumor, too. It sounds pretty damn interesting. What I want to know is WHERE they found it.

Mono Lake California.

 

[lorax123]

Incredible! Scientist have speculated about this, I just never thought we would see something like this so soon!

This will give us a great glimpse on what alien life could be and what to look for.

 

[sayhello]

Oooo... This is very cool, even if the surprise is ruined!

Sayhello

 

[jcb]

But does the bacteria talk?
And if so, what is its position on reusing refillable mugs or pool hopping?
The universe wants to know.

 

[mikelan6]

This news makes me want to watch one of my favorite DVDs ... "Contact."

 

[roomthreeseventeen]

This news makes me want to watch one of my favorite DVDs ... "Contact."

They should have sent a poet.

 

[UrsulasShadow]

I'll give you the heads up:

Hours before their special news conference today, the cat is out of the bag: NASA has discovered a completely new life form that doesn't share the biological building blocks of anything currently living in planet Earth. This changes everything.

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.

But not this one. This one is completely different. Discovered in the poisonous Mono Lake, California, this bacteria is made of arsenic, something that was thought to be completely impossible. The implications of this discovery are enormous to our understanding of life itself and the possibility of finding beings in other planets that don't have to be like planet Earth.

We will know more today at 2pm EST but, while this life hasn't been found in another planet, this discovery does indeed change everything we know about biology.

This isn't exactly true. The bacterium discovered can use BOTH phosphorous AND arsenic. And while amazing, does not have the same implications that have been touted in more spectacular media. This is from Discover magazine...http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/n...-using-arsenic-and-no-this-isnt-about-aliens/ :

The discovery is amazing, but it’s easy to go overboard with it. For example, this... suggests that finding such bacteria would be “one of the most significant scientific discoveries of all time”. It would imply that “Mono Lake was home to a form of life biologically distinct from all other known life on Earth” and “strongly suggest that life got started on our planet not once, but at least twice”.

The results do nothing of the sort. For a start, the bacteria – a strain known as GFAJ-1 – don’t depend on arsenic. They still contain detectable levels of phosphorus in their molecules and they actually grow better on phosphorus if given the chance. It’s just that they might be able to do without this typically essential element – an extreme and impressive ability in itself.

 

[UrsulasShadow]

And sure enough...

Darn. Really looking forward to little green men on Titan.

 

[topolino]

I'm going to preface this comment by openly admitting that I know nothing about science and biology. I'm more of a language, history and humanities guy. So with that disclosure behind me, can someone please tell me what an amoeba found in a lake in California has to do with outer space?

 

[UrsulasShadow]

I'm going to preface this comment by openly admitting that I know nothing about science and biology. I'm more of a language, history and humanities guy. So with that disclosure behind me, can someone please tell me what an amoeba found in a lake in California has to do with outer space?

It has a lot to do with trying to broaden the understanding of what conditions might be conducive to harboring life...including life on other planets.

It has even more to do with trying to get funding for studies of new planetary systems (being discovered all the time) and even moons and planets within our own solar system, even if the conditions on these moons and planets may not meet our current criteria for being able to support life.

 

[Justin Jett]

But does the bacteria talk?
And if so, what is its position on reusing refillable mugs or pool hopping?
The universe wants to know.

Jack,

I love ya, man!

 

[irishdadx4]

I'm going to preface this comment by openly admitting that I know nothing about science and biology. I'm more of a language, history and humanities guy. So with that disclosure behind me, can someone please tell me what an amoeba found in a lake in California has to do with outer space?

We, meaning the scientific community, has spent an enormous amount of time and money, trying to discover, classify and explore other planets that exhibit earth like conditions on the believe that these conditions and environmental factors are necessary for the creation and fruition of life. By finding life that does not need the same elements and conditions that we have observed on Earth, it allows, even compels us to broaden our investigation into other environments, perhaps leading us to discover life where we didn't think it was possible before.

Mike

 

[topolino]

Thanks to Ursula's Shadow and IrishDadx4 for answering my question.

 

[UrsulasShadow]

We, meaning the scientific community, has spent an enormous amount of time and money, trying to discover, classify and explore other planets that exhibit earth like conditions on the believe that these conditions and environmental factors are necessary for the creation and fruition of life. By finding life that does not need the same elements and conditions that we have observed on Earth, it allows, even compels us to broaden our investigation into other environments, perhaps leading us to discover life where we didn't think it was possible before.

Mike

The problem with the arsenic/phosphorus swap is that it is extremely likely that this does not indicate that live could develop with a completely different set of chemical elements. What it does indicate that the microbe most likely developed as all other microbes on Earth, with the same basic chemicals (CHNOPS). Exposure to arsenic may have made some of the microbes more tolerant to that chemical, and since it is somewhat similar to phosphorus, some of the microbes evolved to be able to use the arsenic. When the arsenic in the environment increased and the phosphorus decreased, the arsenic-tolerant microbes were selected for. The most amazing part of this is that when grown in a laboratory, and all phosphorus removed and replaced with arsenic, the microbes were able to grow (albeit slowly, and differently), and used arsenate instead of phosphate in their DNA.

This does not indicate that a planet lacking in any of the elements we currently know as essential in the formation of life could develop life independent of these elements. So, kind of a silly brouhaha for NASA to call a press conference.

Still think it's cool, from a microbiological standpoint.