The Chemistry Of Life's Origin
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The now recognized extensive existence of life on earth very shortly after the destructive bombardment of the earth's surface by early solar system debris has stimulated inquiry into possible exogenous sources of prebiotic molecules from space as well as intensified studies of the early earth's atmosphere. The chapters in this book cover the possible sources of prebiotic molecules and avenues by which life could have evolved, starting from the birth and evolution of the solar system. The relevance of the classic experiments by Stanley Miller on the formation of life's building blocks on an early earth is reexamined. The role of chemistry in space is covered by chapters on interstellar dust, and meteorites to which experimental as well as theoretical investigations have been directed. In various chapters the existence of amino acids as well as other prebiotic molecules in meteorites is clearly established and inferred for interstellar dust and comets. Theories of molecular synthesis in the solar nebula are considered. Extensive coverage is given to the physical conditions and to prebiotic systems on the early earth. Possible pathways to life on an early Mars and the possible messages to be obtained by space exploration are discussed. Questions of effects of clays and of chirality on early chemical evolution are discussed. Recent ideas on the RNA world as the precursor to life are reviewed. The open-endedness of the study of life's origins and the need to investigate whether the prebiotic building blocks formed in outer space or on the earth is emphasized. A good deal of the book is suitable to graduate students. Booknews Proceedings of the NATO Advanced Study Institute and 2nd International School of Space Chemistry, held in Erice, Sicily, October 1991. The lectures address the methodology and the hypotheses which are being applied to identify the possible sources of prebiotic molecules, from interstellar space to the protosolar nebula, to meteorites, and from the earth itself. Some consider the early atmospheres of the Earth and Mars; others consider the present atmosphere of Titan as a useful global laboratory for the study of basic chemical processes in a primitive prebiotic atmosphere; and some discuss the amino acids found in meteorites. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
PrefaceInterstellar Dust Evolution: A Reservoir of Prebiotic Molecules1Laboratory Simulations of Grain Icy Mantles Processing by Cosmic Rays33Physics and Chemistry of Protoplanetary Accretion Disks55Chemistry of the Solar Nebula75Early Evolution of the Atmosphere and Ocean149Origin and Evolution of Martian Atmosphere and Climate and Possible Exobiological Experiments177The Possible Pathways of the Synthesis of Precursors on the Early Earth185Physical and Chemical Composition of Comets - From Interstellar Space to the Earth195Organic Matter in Meteorites: Molecular and Isotopic Analyses of the Murchison Meteorite209Prebiotic Synthesis in Planetary Environments259Prebiotic Synthesis on Minerals: RNA Oligomer Formation301Biology and Theory: RNA and the Origin of Life323Chirality and the Origins of Life345Early Proteins357The Beginnings of Life on Earth: Evidence from the Geological Record389Index415Index of Chemical Species423
