Origin Of Life

Origin Of Life

View of a planet’s surface in the foreground with a red moon or planet and stars visible in the background against the dark space.
7mins
30 years ago, we didn’t know other stars had planets orbiting them. Now, we may be on the verge of finding Earth’s Twin. Sara Seager explains.
24mins
“Deep down the natural endpoint of this whole goal of looking for planets is to answer the question: are we alone?”
A petri dish containing various colorful bacterial colonies growing on agar, viewed from above against a dark background.
6mins
These microbes endured the unlivable. The NASA astrobiologist who studies them reveals what that means for us today
Stylized illustration of Frankenstein's monster with outstretched arms against a red and orange background.
3mins
How do scientists measure and define life in the natural world? Dr. Lee Cronin gives us a definition, in 4 minutes:
A hand is tossing two white dice with black dots against a dark background.
3mins
Don’t fall into the determinism trap. Everything is, in fact, random, says chemist Lee Cronin:
Microscopic close-up of a cell undergoing division, showing two forming daughter cells with visible internal structures against a purple background.
7mins
“The physics of the universe doesn't predict the emergence of biology.” Glasgow chemist Lee Cronin explains how inanimate matter becomes evolutionary:
Five round, flat objects in black, blue, gray, red, and green are arranged in a row on a grid background.
2mins
“We wouldn’t be able to talk about minerals if it weren’t for the minerals themselves.” Mineralogist Bob Hazen explains how Earth’s rocks can teach us about our planet’s technicolor history.
Illustration of a cluster of yellow crystal formations with pointed tips, drawn on a light, off-white background.
3mins
“I study the mineral kingdom — and its secrets could lead us to alien life.”
A textured, circular black center is surrounded by radiating blue patterns and lines, resembling an abstract eye or a solar eclipse.
6mins
Physicist Sean Carroll on entropy, complexity, and the origins of life:
6mins
How did complex systems emerge from chaos? Physicist Sean Carroll explains.
A digital illustration of a stereotypical alien figure, inspired by concepts of extraterrestrial life, featuring a large bald head, big dark eyes, and a small mouth on a pale yellow background.
5mins
Dr. Sara Walker is an astrobiologist and theoretical physicist, who is questioning the very nature of life and how we’re attempting to find it elsewhere.
John Templeton Foundation