2 "Generations of scientists may yet have to come and go before the question of the origin of life is finally solved. That it will be solved eventually is as certain as anything can ever be amid the uncertainties that surround us." 1. Introduction How, where and when did life appear on Earth? Although Charles Darwin was reluctant to address these issues in his books, in a letter sent on Februar...

this is particularly true of the chapter on Comparative Physiology. The general nature of the subject matter and the broadness of scope employed make this text particularly adapted to the needs of those students whose chief aim is to obtain a year's work in Zoology from a cultural standpoint. A review of this text without reference to its mechanical features, would do it an injustice. The bindi...

WHEN DARWIN PRESENTED a rational approach to explain the origin and evolution of the diverse species of animals, a question naturally arose: Where is the beginning of this process? If life begets life, and organisms evolve through the process of natural selection, then how did the first organism come into being? The problem is, no doubt, difficult. There is no witness; neither is there any foss...

Understanding the thermodynamic function of life may shed light on its origin. Life, as are all irreversible processes, is contingent on entropy production. Entropy production is a measure of the rate of the tendency of Nature to explore available microstates. The most important irreversible process generating entropy in the biosphere and, thus, facilitating this exploration, is the absorption ...

-helix A polypeptide structure in which amino acids spiral around a central axis. There are 3.6 amino acids per turn. -strand A polypeptide structure in which the backbone zigzags and the side groups of the individual amino acids stick out on opposite sides. exon The portion of an RNA molecule that is retained in final product and usually codes for a protein. intron The portion of an RNA molecu...