Re: Life: Turn it upside down!

On 09/04/2024 14:17, JTEM wrote:

 Try this. Seriously, *This!* Try this:
 What is the most complex non-life?
 Probably a virus. Yes a virus. Viruses do not
technically meet the definition of life.
 Technically.
 So step down from there:  What is the most
complex non-living material/compound, other
than viruses?
 Prions? Crystals?
 What?
 The point is, if and when you identify the
most complex example of non living things,
you just identified the gap that must be
bridged in order to produce life.
 Right?
 People tend to think of life as a starting
point when in all seriousness it's part of
a spectrum.
 For real.
 Life if part of a spectrum.
 There's lots & lots of amazingly complex
structures out there that aren't alive. And
if you look at the most complex of them all,
and compare them to the least complex life
forms, THEN you start seeing where the
missing pieces have to fit.
 What am I saying?
 I'm saying that if you want to understand the
origins of life, stop looking at life. Start
looking at non living forms.
 

It's been done, the gap was identified, and it's an unbelievably huge gulf that's the reason the field struggled for decades to make any headway. Turns out evolution is pretty powerful for generating complexity!
I think the alkaline hydrothermal vent theory is making good headway now but "what's the most complex non-living system" wasn't really the foundational insight there. More like "is there a non-living system that could generate energy like modern cells do".