Biochemist Nick Lane, an expert at UCL and author of several acclaimed books, dives into the intricacies of life's origins and evolution. He discusses how hydrothermal vents may have sparked early life and challenges traditional views of cellular emergence. Lane elaborates on the concept of 'hopeful monsters' in evolution and the evolution of photosynthesis, revealing the complexities of consciousness. He also speculates on the existence of alien life, considering historical environmental shifts that shaped life on Earth. His insights blend science with philosophy, asking profound questions about existence.

In this engaging discussion, Mike Murphy, a Professor at the University of Cambridge, sheds light on how mitochondria are vital for energy production in complex life forms. Florencia Camus from UCL delves into the genetics and evolutionary history of these powerhouses, while Nick Lane explores their integral role in health and aging. The trio discusses mitochondrial DNA’s unique maternal inheritance and its implications for tracing human ancestry. They also touch on cutting-edge topics like mitochondrial replacement therapy and its potential to revolutionize medicine.

Yoshua Bengio, a Turing Award-winning AI expert, shares insights alongside philosopher Hilary Lawson, physicist Sabine Hossenfelder, and evolutionary biochemist Nick Lane. They tackle the intriguing question of machine consciousness. The conversation critiques the Turing test and explores the complexities of replicating human thought in AI. They delve into the evolutionary significance of consciousness, the limitations of materialist views, and the moral implications of potentially conscious machines, ultimately questioning what it means to truly understand consciousness.

The origin of life here on Earth was an important and fascinating event, but it was also a long time ago and hasn’t left many pieces of direct evidence concerning what actually happened. One set of clues we have comes from processes in current living organisms, especially those processes that seem extremely common. The Krebs cycle, the sequence of reactions that functions as a pathway for energy distribution in aerobic organisms, is such an example. I talk with biochemist about the importance of the Krebs cycle to contemporary biology, as well as its possible significance in understanding the origin of life.Support Mindscape on Patreon.Nick Lane received his PhD from the Royal Free Hospital Medical School. He is currently a professor of Evolutionary Biochemistry at University College London. He was a founding member of the UCL Consortium for Mitochondrial Research, and is Co-Director of the UCL Centre for Life’s Origin and Evolution. He was awarded the 2009 UCL Provost’s Venture Research Prize, the 2011 BMC Research Award for Genetics, Genomics, Bioinformatics and Evolution, the 2015 Biochemical Society Award, and the 2016 Royal Society Michael Faraday Prize and Lecture. His new book is Transformer: The Deep Chemistry of Life and Death.Web siteUCL web pageGoogle Scholar publicationsAmazon author pageWikipediaSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Renowned guests Lisa Miller, Nick Lane, and Paul Bickley explore consciousness, life after death, and the limitations of the physical body in this thought-provoking podcast. They discuss scientific evidence for life after death, the concept of afterlife in a secular world, and the significance of love and connection in spiritual life. The speakers also debate the possibility of an afterlife in a secular society and the need for better frameworks to understand and process death.

Delving into the origin of life, the podcast explores abiogenesis theories and experiments like Miller-Urey. References to Darwin's warm pond letter and Haldane's work add depth. The RNA world hypothesis and hydrothermal vent theories are discussed, shedding light on the complexities of life's beginnings.

In this episode, evolutionary biochemist, professor and writer Nick Lane joins us to talk about how life evolves from an energy flow perspective. Nick Lane’s research is on the way that energy flow has shaped evolution over 4 billion years, using a mixture of theoretical and experimental work to address the origin of life, the evolution of complex cells and downright peculiar behaviour such as sex. We dive deep into the origin of life and early evolution: hydrothermal vents, the krebs cycle which is a cycle of reactions that uses energy to transform inorganic molecules into the building blocks of life and the reverse, and the importance of vents having an electrical charge, co2, hydrogen, and a system that converts gasses. Additionally we talk about the eukaryotic cell and multicellularity in the origin of animals. Dive in! And learn how life evolves from an amazing biochemist perspective! SUPPORT US ON PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/rhyslindmark JOIN OUR DISCORD: https://discord.gg/PDAPkhNxrC Who is Nick Lane? Nick Lane is Professor of Evolutionary Biochemistry in the Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment at University College London. He was a founding member of the UCL Consortium for Mitochondrial Research, and is Co-Director of the UCL Centre for Life’s Origin and Evolution (CLOE). Lane is the author of five acclaimed books on evolutionary biochemistry. His most recent book is Transformer: The Deep Chemistry of Life and Death. Topics: Welcome Nick Lane to The Rhys Show!: (00:00:00) Goal for listeners: (00:02:14) How Nick thinks about the world before life: (00:02:58) Thoughts about the big bang period between 14 billion and 4 billion years ago from a biochemist lens: (00:07:44) How did life start?: (00:10:39) More about energy is first, krebs cycle is first and metabolism is first: (00:17:56) Biology overtime: how Nick thinks about those 4 billion years to us and how energy plays a role in it: (00:38:10) Wrap-up & about aging and how these electrical charges on membrane rundown: (00:55:26) Nick Lane’s books: Oxygen: The molecule that made the world: https://nick-lane.net/books/oxygen-the-molecule-that-made-the-world/ Power, sex, suicide: Mitochondria and the meaning of life: https://nick-lane.net/books/power-sex-suicide-mitochondria-meaning-life/ Life ascending: The ten great inventions of evolution: https://nick-lane.net/books/life-ascending-the-ten-great-inventions-of-evolution/ The vital question. Why is life the way it is?: https://nick-lane.net/books/the-vital-question-why-is-life-the-way-it-is/ Transformer: The deep chemistry of life and death: https://nick-lane.net/books/transformer-the-deep-chemistry-of-life-and-death/ Connect with Nick Lane: Personal Web: https://nick-lane.net/

YouTube link: https://youtu.be/4vqYJIyBis0This episode has been released early in an ad-free audio version for TOE members at http://theoriesofeverything.org/. Nick Lane is a British biochemist, writer, and professor in evolutionary biochemistry at University College London.Sponsors: -Brilliant: https://brilliant.org/TOE for 20% off-Get Exclusive NordVPN deal here ↣ https://nordvpn.com/theories It’s risk- free with Nord’s 30-day money back guarantee!-Get 20% Off and Free Shipping with the code [EVERYTHING20] at Manscaped.com. That’s 20% off with free shipping at manscaped.com and use code [EVERYTHING20]. -Sign up through wren.co/theories to make a difference in the climate crisis, and Wren willplant 10 extra trees in your name!-Trade Coffee is offering our listeners a total of $30 off your first order plus free shipping at drinktrade.com/everything.-Sign up today at butcherbox.com/THEORIES to get two, 10 oz New York strip steaks and 8 oz of lobster claw and knuckle meat FREE in your first order.New TOE Website (early access to episodes): https://theoriesofeverything.org/Patreon: https://patreon.com/curtjaimungalCrypto: https://tinyurl.com/cryptoTOEPayPal: https://tinyurl.com/paypalTOETwitter: https://twitter.com/TOEwithCurtDiscord Invite: https://discord.com/invite/kBcnfNVwqsiTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast...Pandora: https://pdora.co/33b9lfPSpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4gL14b9...Subreddit r/TheoriesOfEverything: https://reddit.com/r/theoriesofeveryt...LINKS MENTIONED:- Physics Contest: https://youtu.be/V93GQaDtv8w- Nick Lane's current book (Transformer): https://amzn.to/3QJ7ZyG- Nick Lane's former book (The Vital Question): https://amzn.to/3RDoihU- John Vervaeke: https://youtu.be/3p8o3-7mvQcTIMESTAMPS:00:00:00 Introduction00:04:45 Genes don't create life00:07:34 Is the origins of life a physics question or biology question?00:10:23 Synthetic chemistry00:14:37 What is a "Pathway"00:18:27 Life is about energy -- NOT information00:22:04 The definition of life. Life is a spectrum.00:27:54 TOE takes a biological turn (why biology is difficult)00:31:35 21st century biology will be the study of "fields"00:42:01 Mitochondria are vital for consciousness00:45:23 Multiple overlapping consciousnesses00:56:40 Turin and quantum consciousness00:59:04 Mechanisms for ESP (extra sensory perception)01:05:48 Problems with Occam's Razor and God01:25:06 Are cities alive? Is the world alive?01:32:28 Life on other planets (alien life)01:37:46 The size of bacteria indicate limitations on life in the universe01:44:34 Speciation (how species develop) and Mother's Curse01:58:07 The cell imitates the planet02:04:04 Scientists don't like to ask "why"... Why?02:06:41 Groundbreaking research is difficult to do in the Academy02:20:46 [Karl Friston] Explanation for phenotypic diversity?02:31:22 [RH0D3Z] Respirasomes and Supercomplexes02:37:50 Ending poem by Richard Howard02:39:21 Ending announcements Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nick Lane, author of 'Transformer: The Deep Chemistry of Life and Death', discusses the significance of the Krebs cycle in understanding the origin of life and energy production, the Cambrian explosion and the evolution of predation, the dream of cells and cancer, health issues related to aging, and the surprising discovery of the influence of Zenon on respiration and its connection to general anesthetics and consciousness.

Nick Lane, a British biochemist & professor in evolutionary biochemistry at University College London, explores the origins of cellular life and the connections between biochemistry and evolutionary biology. Topics include the role of energy in shaping life, the challenges of studying life's origins, organ failure and cryopreservation, the concept of consciousness, the intersection of AI and biochemistry, addressing global problems, debunking myths of the origin of life, and teaching science as a process of exploration and debate.