swallowtherabbit: Scientist creates lifelike cells out of metal. This article is fascinating for man
swallowtherabbit: Scientist creates lifelike cells out of metal. This article is fascinating for many reasons and I don’t understand why it didn’t top headlines back in September. Lee Cronin, a British researcher, created lifelike cells from a variety of metal atoms, like tungsten. He makes a compelling argument for the cells being alive and says that they are even evolving. Why is this a big deal? Because it was previously believed that all organic material had to be carbon-based. This opens the door to the possibility that there is life in the universe that isn’t made of carbon like us. If Cronin is creating life from metals, life that could be evolving just like we did, what are the possibilities? If we are able to create life in a laboratory, what are the ethics involved? Does an organism made from metal, solely created for experimentation, have the right to life? Could there be a race of metallic “robot” aliens out there? If there are, in the future will carbon and metal life forms be considered equal? If they don’t replicate via DNA, will our genetics be viewed as “more real” since they came (to us) first? I’m imagining a world of metal people fighting for equality. I’m in love. This is ground-breaking, folks. -- source link