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Earth May Harbor a Shadow Biosphere of Alien Life
An anonymous reader sends us to Cosmos Magazine for a speculative article arguing that a 'shadow biosphere' may exist on Earth, unrelated to life as we know it. If such non-carbon-based life were found here at home, it would alter the odds for how common life is elsewhere in the universe, astrobiologists say. "The tools and experiments researchers use to look for new forms of life — such as those on missions to Mars — would not detect biochemistries different from our own, making it easy for scientists to miss alien life, even if [it] was under their noses. ... Scientists are looking in places where life isn't expected — for example, in areas of extreme heat, cold, salt, radiation, dryness, or contaminated streams and rivers. [One researcher] is particularly interested in places that are heavily contaminated with arsenic, which, he suggests, might support forms of life that use arsenic the way life as we know it uses phosphorus."
It's life, Jim. But not as we know it.
Or the researcher is secretly needing arsenic to do his more brilliant colleague in the old Victorian-era way, having learnt from too many Agatha Christie novels.
Or Red Dwarf, "The End".
Captain Hollister: Just one thing before the disco. Holly tells me that he has sensed a non-human life form aboard.
Lister: Sir, it's Rimmer
After a lengthy, one-sided dialogue with the nearest rock, I conclude that your theory is false.
Always going forward, 'cause we can't find reverse.
After many zen practitioners' lengthy, two-way dialogues with rocks near and far, your test criteria seem to be flawed.
As the Zen practicioners are indistinguishable from day-dreamers such as my 9 year old son, your refutiation is meaningless.
Always going forward, 'cause we can't find reverse.
It could've possibly gone another way, if we hadn't gotten there first?
We would have just given the non-carbon lifeforms some blankets and hoped that they hadn't discovered gunpowder yet ;)
*ba-dum pssssh*
I want peace on earth and goodwill toward man.
We are the United States Government! We don't do that sort of thing.
Oh yeah...
I'm pretty sure Spock talked to rocks - and Kirk may have made love to one
"For animals, the entire universe has been neatly divided into things to (a) mate with, (b) eat, (c) run away from, and (d) rocks."
Terry Pratchett, Equal Rites
I have to question the standards of a Wikipedia article entitled "Life" that ends with a section on life insurance that makes up 1/8th of the article.
You can advertise in this sig from as little as £99.99 a month!
dark basements below older human habitation? im sure theyll find a new asexual species resembling man...
I am very sucseptible to "let's have another drink"