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EMERGENT PROPERTIES. "The individual building blocks of the protocell can't explain the higher-level structure and its functionalities when we put them together. They are an emergent structure. So we have to put a set of appropriate molecular aggregates together to get the first replicator." https://lnkd.in/dwADMWc View in LinkedIn

ENERGETIC PREREQUISITE. "The way we have to get to a system that can undergo evolution is, we first need self-replication. We need to put materials together in a way such that the result of their interactions is that the whole system replicates. To make that happen you need free energy to drive the whole thing. That’s why metabolism is also necessary as it can drive the replication process." https://lnkd.in/dwADMWc View in LinkedIn

FIRST STEP. "How do you get the first system to replicate? There's a process called self-assembly where you can aggregate materials and suddenly get new properties. For instance, if you have a lipid molecule in water, if you allow many, many lipid molecules to swim around in water, then they will form a membrane. Once you have a membrane, suddenly you can design an outside and an inside. You'll be able to define permeability through the membrane." https://lnkd.in/dwADMWc View in LinkedIn

REPLICATION FIRST. "Walter said the problem is not understanding survival of the fittest but understanding arrival of the fittest. How can a system acquire the ability to replicate? You cannot have evolution of a system toward its ability to replicate. Replication is necessary before you can have evolution. Something else has to come into play before you have the first system that can undergo evolution." https://lnkd.in/dwADMWc View in LinkedIn

"EVOLUTION does not just occur in biological systems." https://lnkd.in/dwADMWc View in LinkedIn

FRAGMENT FROM NATURE contemplates plant dormancy and vernalization for this and next weekend. Spring is a favorite season for all of us, and it is primarily about the growth of plants and the mating of creatures. The plants have waited in a state of reduced metabolism for cues of spring, which trigger growth and simultaneous flowering. Without synchrony, there is no successful cross-fertilization and reproduction. It is all about timing. View in LinkedIn

ENDOSPERM BARRIER. "In several species, including the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana, the endosperm has a pivotal role as a regulatory barrier. Germination and dormancy depend on the balance between the growth force of the elongating radicle and the resistance strength of the surrounding tissues." https://lnkd.in/dgHUjzK View in LinkedIn

SPONTANEOUS GENERATION. "The Ancient Greeks believed that living things could spontaneously come into being from nonliving matter, and that the goddess Gaia could make life arise spontaneously from stones – a process known as Generatio spontanea." Clearly a problematic concept. https://lnkd.in/eJXtXQy View in LinkedIn

COMPLEX TRAIT. "Dormancy is a complex trait because it is influenced by both environmental and endogenous factors. Moreover, the final level of dormancy is determined by the contributions of the different tissues that comprise a seed." https://lnkd.in/dgHUjzK View in LinkedIn

HALF-COOKED. "This continuity makes the conceptualization of life a very difficult task, since it should exist “half-living” or “quite-living” systems." https://lnkd.in/dEj5vVD View in LinkedIn