Nuclear geyser model of the origin of life:Driving force to promote the synthesis of building blocks of life

We propose the nuclear geyser model to elucidate an optimal site to bear the first life.Our model overcomes the difficulties that previously proposed models have encountered.Nuclear geyser is a geyser driven by a natural nuclear reactor,which was likely common in the Hadean Earth,because of a much higher abundance of 235U as nuclear fuel.The nuclear geyser supplies the following：（1）high-density ionizing radiation to promote chemical chain reactions that even tar can be used for intermediate material to restart chemical reactions,（2）a system to maintain the circulation of material and energy,which includes cyclic environmental conditions（warm/cool,dry/wet,etc.）to enable to produce complex organic compounds,（3）a lower temperature than 100℃ as not to break down macromolecular organic compounds,（4）a locally reductive environment depending on rock types exposed along the geyser wall,and（5）a container to confine and accumulate volatile chemicals.These five factors are the necessary conditions that the birth place of life must satisfy.Only the nuclear geyser can meet all five,in contrast to the previously proposed birth sites,such as tidal flat,submarine hydrothermal vent,and outer space.The nuclear reactor and associated geyser,which maintain the circulations of material and energy with its surrounding environment,are regarded as the nuclear geyser system that enables numerous kinds of chemical reactions to synthesize complex organic compounds,and where the most primitive metabolism could be generated.

What Life Is and How It Originated

This paper refutes the mechanistic interpretation of cellular dynamics and contends that the life-giving principle is sustained growth a biological system and is uninterrupted growth balanced in a dynamic state by synthesis and dissolution. The process began by an oxidation/reduction reaction on the surface of pyrite energized photovoltaically by sunlight. Hydrogen sulfide was oxidized, carbon dioxide was reduced, and phosphate on the surface of the pyrite was a reactant. The first organic compounds were sulfides and phosphoglycerates. These organophosphates were at the center of the energy cycle of all life where the dehydration of a relatively unreactive ＂low-energy＂ two-phosphoglycerate transforms it into the ＂high-energy＂ phosphoenolpyruvate. Life began as a growth process and continues to grow ceaselessly out of necessity. It cannot discontinue the life-giving energy flow without irreparable loss of the process. All forms of life past and present were and are stabilized systems in which the growth process is contained in metabolic turnover.

Magnetic Isotope Theory of the Origin of Life on Earth

The authors have proposed a new of magnetic isotope theory of life on Earth. According to this theory the initial impetus for the beginning of the synthesis of organic compounds is the impact of electromagnetic radiation from the sun and energy radioactive isotopes.

Discharge plasma for prebiotic chemistry: Pathways to life’s building blocks

Discharge plasmas, recognized as unique platforms for investigating the origins of chemical life, have garnered extensive interest for their potential to simulate prebiotic conditions. This paper embarks on a comprehensive overview of recent advancements in the plasma-enabled synthesis of life’s building blocks, charting the complex environmental parameters believed to have surrounded life’s inception. This discussion elaborates on the fundamental mechanisms of discharge plasmas and their likely role in fostering conditions necessary for the origin of life on early Earth. We consider a variety of chemical reactions facilitated by plasma, specifically the synthesis of vital organic molecules - amino acids, nucleobases, sugars, and lipids. Further, we delve into the impact of plasmas on prebiotic chemical evolution. We expect this review to open new horizons for future investigations in plasma-related prebiotic chemistry that could offer valuable insights for unraveling the mysteries of life's origin.

Nine requirements for the origin of Earth’s life:Not at the hydrothermal vent, but in a nuclear geyser system

The origin of life on Earth remains enigmatic with diverse models and debates.Here we discuss essential requirements for the first emergence of life on our planet and propose the following nine requirements:(1)an energy source(ionizing radiation and thermal energy);(2)a supply of nutrients(P.K.REE.etc.);(3)a supply of life-constituting major elements;(4)a high concentration of reduced gases such as CH4,HCN and NH3;(5)dry-wet cycles to create membranes and polymerize RNA;(6)a non-toxic aqueous environment;(7)Na-poor water;(8)highly diversified environments,and(9)cyclic conditions,such as dayto-night,hot-to-cold etc.Based on these nine requirements,we evaluate previously proposed locations for the origin of Earth’s life,including:(1)Darwin’s"warm little pond",leading to a"prebiotic soup"for life;(2)panspermia or Neo-panspermia(succession model of panspermia);(3)transportation from/through Mars;(4)a deepsea hydrothermal system;(5)an on-land subduct ion-zone hot spring,and(6)a geyser systems driven by a natural nuclear reactor.We conclude that location(6)is the most ideal candidate for the o rigin point for Earth’s life because of its efficiency in continuously supplying both the energy and the necessary materials for life,thereby maintaining the essential"cradle"for its initial development.We also emphasize that falsifiable working hypothesis provides an important tool to evaluate one of the biggest mysteries of the universe-the origin of life.

Entropy Production and the Origin of Life

All irreversible processes arise and persist to produce entropy. Entropy production is not incidental to such processes, but rather the very reason for their origin and persistence. Here we take such a thermodynamic perspective on the origin of life, recognizing that entropy production is not only the vital force of life, but the fundamental link between life in the biosphere today and its origin in the Archean. Today the greatest en-tropy production in the biosphere is due to visible photon absorption and dissipation into heat by organic material in liquid water and the subsequent degradation of the established heat gradient through the water cycle. Following this link back in time to the Archean environment leads to a suggestion for a mechanism for the origin of life based on UV photon absorption and dissipation by RNA and DNA.

Extraterrestrial Life in the Thermosphere: Plasmas, UAP, Pre-Life, Fourth State of Matter

“Plasmas” up to a kilometer in size and behaving similarly to multicellular organisms have been filmed on 10 separate NASA space shuttle missions, over 200 miles above Earth within the thermosphere. These self-illuminated “plasmas” are attracted to and may “feed on” electromagnetic radiation. They have different morphologies: 1) cone, 2) cloud, 3) donut, 4) spherical-cylindrical;and have been filmed flying towards and descending from the thermosphere into thunderstorms;congregating by the hundreds and interacting with satellites generating electromagnetic activity;approaching the Space Shuttles. Computerized analysis of flight path trajectories documents these plasmas travel at different velocities from different directions and change their angle of trajectory making 45°, 90°, and 180° shifts and follow each other. They’ve been filmed accelerating, slowing down, stopping, congregating, engaging in “hunter-predatory” behavior and intersecting plasmas leaving a plasma dust trail in their wake. Similar life-like behaviors have been demonstrated by plasmas created experimentally. “Plasmas” may have been photographed in the 1940s by WWII pilots (identified as “Foo fighters”);repeatedly observed and filmed by astronauts and military pilots and classified as Unidentified Aerial—Anomalous Phenomenon. Plasmas are not biological but may represent a form of pre-life that via the incorporation of elements common in space, could result in the synthesis of RNA. Plasmas constitute a fourth state of matter, are attracted to electromagnetic activity, and when observed in the lower atmosphere likely account for many of the UFO-UAP sightings over the centuries.

Origin and Evolution of Life Constraints on the Solar Model

Life arose as a non-equilibrium thermodynamic process to dissipate the photon potential generated by the hot Sun and cold outer space. Evidence from the geochemical record of the evolutionary history of life on Earth suggests that life originated in a hot aqueous environment dissipating UV light and evolved later to dissipate visible light. This evidence places constraints on models of solar origin and evolution. The standard solar model seems less compatible with the data than does the pulsar centered solar model.

A possible anorthositic continent of early Mars and the role of planetary size for the inception of Earth-like life

The Moon has an anorthositic primordial continental crust. Recently anorthosite has also been discovered on the Martian surface. Although the occurrence of anorthosite is observed to be very limited in Earth＇s extant geological record,both lunar and Martian surface geology suggest that anorthosite may have comprised a primordial continent on the early Earth during the first 600 million years after its formation. We hypothesized that differences in the presence of an anorthositic continent on an Earthlike planet are due to planetary size. Earth likely lost its primordial anorthositic continent by tectonic erosion through subduction associated with a kind of proto-plate tectonics（PPT）. In contrast, Mars and the Moon, as much smaller planetary bodies, did not lose much of their anorthositic continental crust because mantle convection had weakened and/or largely stopped, and with time, they had appropriately cooled down. Applying this same reasoning to a super-Earth exoplanet suggests that, while a primordial anorthositic continent may briefly form on its surface, such a continent will be likely transported into the deep mantle due to intense mantle convection immediately following its formation. The presence of a primordial continent on an Earth-like planet seems to be essential to whether the planet will be habitable to Earth-like life. The key role of the primordial continent is to provide the necessary and sufficient nutrients for the emergence and evolution of life. With the appearance of a ＂trinity＂ consisting of（1） an atmosphere,（2） an ocean, and（3） the primordial continental landmass, material circulation can be maintained to enable a ＂Habitable Trinity＂ environment that will permit the emergence of Earth-like life. Thus, with little likelihood of a persistent primordial continent, a super-Earth affords very little chance for Earth-like life to emerge.

Origin of the Earth:A proposal of new model called ABEL

The Earth was born as a dry planet without atmosphere and ocean components at 4.56 Ga,with subsequent secondary accretion of bio-elements,such as carbon（C）,hydrogen（H）,oxygen（O）,and nitrogen（N） which peaked at 4.37-4.20 Ga.This two-step formation model of the Earth we refer to as the advent of bio-elements model（ABEL Model） and the event of the advent of bio-elements（water component） as ABEL Bombardment.It is clear that the solid Earth originated from enstatite chondrite-like dry material based on the similarity in oxygen isotopic composition and among other isotopes.On the other hand,Earth＇s water derives primarily from carbonaceous chondrite material based on the hydrogen isotopic ratio.We present our ABEL model to explain this enigma between solid Earth and water,as well as secondary accretion of oxidizing bio-elements,which became a precursor to initiate metabolism to emerge life on a highly reductive planet.If ABEL Bombardment had not occurred,life never would have emerged on the Earth.Therefore,ABEL Bombardment is one of the most important events for this planet to evolve into a habitable planet.The chronology of ABEL Bombardment is informed through previous researches of the late heavy bombardment and the late veneer model.ABEL Bombardment is considered to have occurred during 4.37-4.20 Ga,which is the concept to redefine the standard late heavy bombardment and the late veneer models.Also,ABEL Bombardment is the trigger of the transition from stagnant lid tectonics to plate tectonics on this planet because of the injection of volatiles into the initial dry Earth.

A Fractal Space-Time Structure of Nonequilibrium Living Systems Is Essential Property and Fractal Property of Dynamics Systems on Cosmic Scales Is Foundation for the Origin of the Living Systems

The experimental data represented in the bibliography are theoretically analyzed to construct an adequate model for dynamics of an open nonequilibrium living system. It is shown that the viable microorganisms are capable of forming the fractal structure, whose dimensionality is certainly non-integral. In addition, we have attempted to provide a generalized description of the properties of living and nonliving matter (in the addition to that described in work [1]). Relevant published data were used to demonstrate a fractal structure of the space in the vicinity of centrally gravitating bodies with satellites revolving around them along closed trajectories and serving as a kind of testers of the neighboring space. A local violation of its discontinuity is likely to be a necessary (yet not sufficient!) dynamic characteristic of the spatiotemporal continuum for self-organization of molecules into a living, i.e., self-replicating, system.

From the Beginning of the World to the Beginning of Life on Earth

Hypersphere World-Universe Model (WUM) is, in fact, a Paradigm Shift in Cosmology [1]. In this paper, we provide seven Pillars of WUM: Medium of the World;Inter-Connectivity of Primary Cosmological Parameters;Creation of Matter;Multicomponent Dark Matter;Macroobjects;Volcanic Rotational Fission;Dark Matter Reactors. We describe the evolution of the World from the Beginning up to the birth of the Solar System and discuss the condition of the Early Earth before the beginning of life on it.

Is Highly Organized Life Present on Recently Discovered Planets in Our Galaxy?

The question arises whether organized life (as it exists on the Earth) exists on newly-found planets or not, such as Kepler 186f, in our Galaxy. The Earth’s evolution is defined by three critical factors: 1) Solar luminosity, 2) The distance between the Earth and Sun and 3) The Earth’s mass and chemical compositions. All these variables were favorable for the emergence and development of highly-organized life on our Earth.

明代三边总督喻时生平著述考

喻时(1507—1571),明嘉靖十七年(1538)进士,历官嘉靖、隆庆两朝,前后三十余年间,曾任吴江县令、监察御史、山西巡抚、三边总督等职,官至兵部右侍郎。嘉靖后期,喻时临危受命,总督三边军务,功绩卓然,有力地维护了西北边地和平。其宦迹遍及南北,政绩斐然,声名远播,时有“喻青天”之美誉。喻时一生勤于著述,今有《吴皋先生文集》《海上老人别集》及其它散著存世。

“人与自然生命共同体”概念的渊源考释与原创性贡献

概念是理论的结晶,原创性概念是原创性理论的集中表现。“人与自然生命共同体”概念是习近平生态文明思想的原创性核心概念之一。这一概念既蕴含着深刻的马克思主义生态思想,也彰显着博大精深的中华文化的生态智慧,是“两个结合”的典范。“结合”依托中国生态文明建设实践,中国共产党人充分运用马克思主义生态思想,吸收中华优秀传统文化中的生态智慧,解决生态环境问题、建设生态文明。“人与自然生命共同体”概念是对马克思主义生态思想的守正创新,对中华优秀传统文化生态智慧的当代运用,是生态实践的升华与提炼。“人与自然生命共同体”概念的原创性贡献在于,它从思维方式上超越了当代资本主义文明,是人类文明新形态的表现;是对马克思主义生态思想和中华文化生态智慧的综合创新;是对人与自然关系的科学解决。

古之道术:黄老生命哲学的思想渊源

黄老生命哲学的渊源可谓纷繁复杂,其最初源头要追溯到前诸子时期的三代文化,其中“敬德”思想的确立及其相关概念的演变,为中国传统哲学尤其是生命哲学的产生和发展奠定了基础。《老子》是黄老道家生命哲学的最直接源头,为黄老生命哲学的本原论、人性论、价值论的形成奠定了理论基础。在从老子哲学走向黄老之学的过程中,范蠡对道家哲学的创造性阐释至关重要,黄老生命哲学的阴阳气化论、“因人情”的人性论、刚柔相济的人生观等内容都离不开范蠡哲学的深远影响。黄帝神话传说中已经具备了比较朴素且明晰的生命哲学意识。

汉字“生”“活”“存”“在”本义的存在论意义--存在论的“汉语哲学”诠释

汉语“本体论”与“存在论”应当严格地区别开来,前者对应传统的“ontology”,后者对应的则应当是“Being theory”,因为后者思考的并非形而上的存在者,而是前存在者的存在。尽管前者可以汉译为“存有论”,但后者却不能,因为汉语“有”的本义是一种存在者化的观念,在哲学上所指的正是作为形而上存在者的本体。所谓“汉语哲学”,其中心任务应当是揭示中国哲学关键词的存在论意义。汉字“生”“在”“存”的本义,即人与草木浑然不分的共在,都是中国远古先民对存在的感悟,从而具有存在论意义;而“活”的本义作为“水流声”,则表征着人是由于倾听“天命”而得以存在的,从而具有当代诠释学的意义。

生命早期肠道菌群异常参与发育源性骨质疏松症发生的研究进展

骨质疏松症(osteoporosis,OP)的发生与生命早期骨发育密切相关,是一种发育起源疾病。本文总结了OP发育起源相关的文献报道,提出其发生机制可能与生命早期肠道菌群异常有关。同时,简要阐明了生命早期肠道菌群的组成特征及其影响因素,并系统阐述了生命早期肠道菌群异常参与发育源性OP相关的临床与实验室研究。最后,鉴于生命早期肠道菌群在骨骼发育中的重要作用,从益生菌/益生元两方面总结生命早期干预肠道菌群策略对宿主生长发育及骨量的影响,为防治发育源性OP提供新思路与新策略。

空间生命学科发展战略研究

空间生命学科是一门致力于研究在空间环境条件下生命起源、演化及其分布,生命现象及其规律的学科.该学科从理论和实验两个层面深入探讨生命起源和早期演化机制,同时也探索地外天体生命的宜居性、存在形式等基本科学问题.随着中国空间站、嫦娥工程和天问系列等大科学计划的实施,中国空间生命科学研究进入了一个高速发展阶段.本文对空间生命领域的发展态势进行了梳理,提炼出了中国未来空间生命学科的重点发展领域,并针对学科布局进行优化,旨在推动空间生命科学研究的高质量发展.

纳米酶与生命起源

纳米酶是中国科学家发现的纳米材料的全新特性,其不仅具有类似天然酶的高催化活性,还呈现稳定性高、活性可调以及低温催化等特点。纳米酶的发现首次揭示了无机纳米材料的生物催化活性。而无机矿物也被认为是生命起源重要催化剂,参与早期生物分子的合成。无机矿物不仅能够通过氧化还原反应促进无机小分子向有机小分子的转化,还能够利用其表面结构实现手性选择、生物大分子合成以及发挥辐射保护功能。最新研究表明,无机纳米材料不仅可以温和催化生物分子合成,也能够参与生物大分子的聚合和辐射保护。不仅如此,纳米矿物也被发现广泛存在于地球和地外空间中。因此,本文将基于无机矿物在生命起源中的不同作用,结合纳米酶的特性,探讨纳米酶作为生命起源过程催化剂的可能,为生命起源研究提供新的方向。