Sean Carroll's Mindscape: Science, Society, Philosophy, Culture, Arts, and Ideas 56 | Kate Adamala on Creating Synthetic Life
Jul 22, 2019
Kate Adamala, an assistant professor at the University of Minnesota, dives into the fascinating world of synthetic life. She discusses the ambitious efforts to create living cells from non-living materials and the significant ethical implications that arise. The conversation explores how these advancements could lead to biological robots and personalized medicine. Adamala also speculates on extraterrestrial life, addressing the challenges of contamination and the characteristics that may define life beyond Earth.
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Defining Life
- NASA defines life as a chemical system capable of Darwinian evolution.
- Kate Adamala dislikes this definition because it lacks practical experimental verification, especially for analyzing extraterrestrial samples.
The Need for a Working Definition of Life
- A functional definition of life is crucial for evaluating extraterrestrial samples, especially as organic matter exists throughout the universe.
- Finding familiar organic molecules on Mars might indicate contamination rather than native Martian life.
Hallmarks of Life
- Defining life may be less critical than identifying key lifelike characteristics.
- Homeostasis, maintaining a distinct internal environment, stands out as a major hallmark of living systems.