That's a great response, especially the bit about "lipid bubbles". I still however disagree with the part about pre-cellular and pre-RNA evolution. This is because although you are correct in that a chemical compound best suited to it's environment (in the sense of having the best chances of surviving harmful reactions/disintegration) may "pass on" to the next "generation" more than the others, this is STILL a one-step procedure. Unless the chemical compounds inside these "enclosures" change over time to something that is encoded genetically by nucleic acid , and which replicate not by the physical activity of the environment but according to that genetic representation, then it's still a far call. It is this transition that interests me, not the presence of dividing chemicals.
We can produce all the chemicals and lipid structures you mentioned quite easily today in a lab. In fact, RNA for a certain bacterium was produced not too far back from scratch..but despite being able to manipulate things at molecular levels, and having almost complete control over a small-scale lab environment(temperature, radiation..etc) human beings still cannot produce a single "living" eukaryotic cell. This means it's pretty hard, especially when the equipment is a randomly moving greasy soup stirred by the random winds on a wet planet.
Thanks, this is indeed interesting. From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prions
This was initially controversial as it contradicts the so-called "central dogma of modern biology," which describes nucleic acid as the central form of replicative information. But even if these "prions" propagate in this "non-living" manner, I fail to see how this is relevant to our discussion (the formation of nucleic cellular organisms from independent compounds).
OK, but how does DNA or any other "feature" evolve from the "soup" over time? What is this incremental process based on? How do these non-living compounds replicate? Serious question, IANAB and have never read anything about sugars replicating before.
My girlfriend pointed out that we've been analyzing for hydrogen based signals, because it's the easiest to produce, and we've found nothing. You have a girlfriend, and she points out insightful things about space exploration stories on slashdot and knows what a hydrogen-based signal is? Your existence is less probable than that of the aliens:)
Re:Have some patience, we'll run across them... ev
on
The Fermi Paradox is Back
·
· Score: 2, Interesting
Really the best answer to the Fermi paradox is that Earth-like conditions are rare. That is not true. It's not that the conditions and chemical constitution of the environment need to be the same, it's the fact that their needs to be a very low probability event (or set of events) occur for the first "living" cell to result from some arbitrary water-based reaction somewhere in the planet, giving us a cell that has at least basic reproduction and respiratory (energy converting) capabilities. Evolution cannot aid this first cell: there are none before it. It has to come as a result of a single "miracle moment" where the necessary compounds for a connected cell wall, nucleus, DNA..etc all form at the same time AND at the same small point in space, albeit at a much smaller degree of complexity compared to living cells today.
Your GP does not understand how small the possibility of something like this happening is, even in a vast universe. The living cell is a structure, and the first one is not built by incremental trial&error as in evolution..you have to have a functional formation who's constituents (DNA or similar) happen to represent the very structure that was arbitrarily formed itself, and are able to replicate themselves into another clone of the original (mitosis or similar).
We are the ultimate result of a very low probability event, and we are alone.
You would have to be at the edge of the spacetime coordinates (WRT the center of the "universe") to have electromagnetic radiation travel in a rough sphere from your postition around the other extremes and back, and it will probably be diffracted into countless directions before then because the passage is far from perfect geometrically. As for the time it would take, that would be 2*PI*R/c where R is the distance from the centre of the universe in light years since inflation began. Or something.
The key symptoms of schizophrenia are hallucinations, delusions and disorganized speech. I really don't see how they modeled this in mice. When mice run into traps with no cheese in them, attempt to hump themselves, and put rings on their paws while whispering preciousssssss in a hideous voice, you know that something's obviously wrong.
And when/if he gets arrested he will definitely be made to ride on a very big truck at last. I hope he sends his incriminating documents down a internet tube before they get there...etc..etc
Publishing bomb-making instructions has been considered wrong (and often illegal) for ages -- even if the general principles (nor even actual designs) aren't particularly secret. Bomb making instructions (and secrets that are exclusively military in nature) were never put into public domain by the military. If your enemy are learning from space program and scientific documents you have already released to your own public for viewing, I assure you that is not an enemy you should fear - that is an enemy you should wish all other enemies are like. There is nothing that has changed in the world from the cold war till now to warrant the removal of scientific information from public viewing; I will not accept your fear of everything and everyone as a means of ridding me of my freedoms; go live in a bunker. I will stay out here to live my life and enjoy human knowledge and fight my enemies when they come.
but at what point did they give their ISP permission to remove SpamBotFoo from their computer? The point when they started being a hazard to the network. If you want spambots on your computer, disconnect the cable. Otherwise, feel free to sodomize yourself.
That is not correct, because the only kind of country Bush will allow to remain "in order" will be one that sides completely with his view of what a "free country" should be like. Bush does not benefit from the thousands of Iraqi civilians and American soldiers dying..it is embarrassing; a failure. Leaders do not like to fail, especially in war. What Bush ultimately wants (beyond the Haliburton deals) is hard to achieve even if insurgency and extremism are rooted out, and that is why I hate this administration - if you can't see far enough to judge the consequences of your actions you should not be in charge of the Greatest Nation on Earth(TM).
Or maybe we should accept the fact that people will eat crappy food and drink and smoke and not exercise, they will drive cars and climb mountains and walk through bad neighborhoods, and they will have sex whether anyone approves of it or not. And then deal with the results on that basis. The problem is not in accepting that fact, but in who exactly you want to "deal with the results" once they happen. The GP was correctly modded down for playing down the importance of finding a cure for this terrible thing, but as you noted, the majority of people afflicted with AIDS have contracted the HIV virus through needles(usually illegal drugs) and sexual intercourse. Just because god doesn't exist doesn't mean that keeping sexual contact with one healthy partner and avoiding dangerous practices is not a fantastic way to stay healthy.
Let's find a cure and get it to as many people as possible, but let's not forget that prevention is better than any cure, and that only you are responsible for your own actions.
Customizing your myspace and/or writing in a blog can help one practice essential computer savvy and writing skills Customizing your myspace makes you computer savvy? Dude, if you have a myspace account that you're serious about, you're probably not computer savvy at all. Or something. And here I was, thinking that finding heap overflows in OS libraries and rooting the occasional federal government web-server was a good way to stay "computer savvy".
Because if you do that once or twice you will get tracked down via the money lead. If I were MS or any other customer I would require some identification, preferably through the financial institution that I'll be sending the money to.
Slashdot Mirror
That's a great response, especially the bit about "lipid bubbles". I still however disagree with the part about pre-cellular and pre-RNA evolution. This is because although you are correct in that a chemical compound best suited to it's environment (in the sense of having the best chances of surviving harmful reactions/disintegration) may "pass on" to the next "generation" more than the others, this is STILL a one-step procedure. Unless the chemical compounds inside these "enclosures" change over time to something that is encoded genetically by nucleic acid , and which replicate not by the physical activity of the environment but according to that genetic representation, then it's still a far call. It is this transition that interests me, not the presence of dividing chemicals.
We can produce all the chemicals and lipid structures you mentioned quite easily today in a lab. In fact, RNA for a certain bacterium was produced not too far back from scratch..but despite being able to manipulate things at molecular levels, and having almost complete control over a small-scale lab environment(temperature, radiation..etc) human beings still cannot produce a single "living" eukaryotic cell. This means it's pretty hard, especially when the equipment is a randomly moving greasy soup stirred by the random winds on a wet planet.
I have no answer to that question, but people who believe in God think that they do.
OK, but how does DNA or any other "feature" evolve from the "soup" over time? What is this incremental process based on? How do these non-living compounds replicate? Serious question, IANAB and have never read anything about sugars replicating before.
Your GP does not understand how small the possibility of something like this happening is, even in a vast universe. The living cell is a structure, and the first one is not built by incremental trial&error as in evolution..you have to have a functional formation who's constituents (DNA or similar) happen to represent the very structure that was arbitrarily formed itself, and are able to replicate themselves into another clone of the original (mitosis or similar).
We are the ultimate result of a very low probability event, and we are alone.
You would have to be at the edge of the spacetime coordinates (WRT the center of the "universe") to have electromagnetic radiation travel in a rough sphere from your postition around the other extremes and back, and it will probably be diffracted into countless directions before then because the passage is far from perfect geometrically. As for the time it would take, that would be 2*PI*R/c where R is the distance from the centre of the universe in light years since inflation began. Or something.
And when/if he gets arrested he will definitely be made to ride on a very big truck at last. I hope he sends his incriminating documents down a internet tube before they get there. ..etc..etc
[To dude masturbating during bus ride]: "Stop it son, stop it..you hittin ma ELBOWS, man.."
That is not correct, because the only kind of country Bush will allow to remain "in order" will be one that sides completely with his view of what a "free country" should be like. Bush does not benefit from the thousands of Iraqi civilians and American soldiers dying..it is embarrassing; a failure. Leaders do not like to fail, especially in war. What Bush ultimately wants (beyond the Haliburton deals) is hard to achieve even if insurgency and extremism are rooted out, and that is why I hate this administration - if you can't see far enough to judge the consequences of your actions you should not be in charge of the Greatest Nation on Earth(TM).
Let's find a cure and get it to as many people as possible, but let's not forget that prevention is better than any cure, and that only you are responsible for your own actions.
*sits on bed and cries*
It's probably:
A) Bad because you can't see all the hotties go to the toilet and back
Although it might still be good if
B) You have peep cameras installed in the toilets.
PS: People who surrender are never favored by fate.
It's hard to think about what you're posting to slashdot when you're watching pr0n, I guess.
*tilts face at GP author*
Cancel or Allow?
Your sarcasm is undetectable. You *were* being sarcastic, right?
Because if you do that once or twice you will get tracked down via the money lead. If I were MS or any other customer I would require some identification, preferably through the financial institution that I'll be sending the money to.
You're German aren't you?
I long for the day when processes will no longer be judged by the digits of their pid, but by the niceness of their cycles!
Also, in Soviet Russia, nice tasks preempt YOU!
I'm not about to RTFA, so do you know if he mentions porn? He's a fool if he didn't!