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NUCLEAR POWERED LIFE. “Such an organism can potentially thrive in subsurface environments on Mars, Moon, Europa or other planetary systems in the presence of radioactive substances.A comprehensive analysis on the availability of nuclear power for deep surface microbes has also been done.” https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsif.2016.0459 View in LinkedIn

MAGNETIC LITERATURE. “The literature describing the effects of weak MFs on living systems contains a plethora of contradictory reports, few successful independent replication studies and a dearth of plausible biophysical interaction mechanisms. Most such investigations have been unsystematic, devoid of testable theoretical predictions and, ultimately, unconvincing.” https://lnkd.in/dCeCN2g View in LinkedIn

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PLANTS AND MAGNETISM. “Plants react in a multitude of ways to geomagnetic fields—strong continuous fields as well as alternating magnetic fields. In the past, physiological investigations were pursued in a somewhat unsystematic manner and no biological advantage of any magnetoresponse is immediately obvious. As a result, most studies remain largely on a phenomenological level and are in general characterised by a lack of mechanistic insight, despite the fact that physics provides several theories that serve as paradigms for magnetoreception.” https://lnkd.in/e8iVbps View in LinkedIn

RADIOLYTIC BACTERIUM. “Candidatus Desulforudis audaxviator is such an example, which thrives in a radiolysis-powered ecosystem. Radiation from radioactive rock dissociates H2O into a number of radicals, useful for biological reactions. It is able to extract carbon from dissolved CO2 and nitrogen in the form of ammonia from the rock, and utilize them to synthesize amino acids.” https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsif.2016.0459 View in LinkedIn

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SECONDARY PARTICLES. “Radioactive materials present deep underground produce secondary particles such as alpha, beta and gamma radiation. Secondary particles interact with the environment and provide energy for chemical change. Organisms can use these particles indirectly for metabolic purposes.” https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsif.2016.0459 View in LinkedIn

SO ENDS this first of two weekends on an interesting paper suggesting that some planets may support life driven by galactic cosmic ray metabolism as a surrogate for photosynthesis. Biology has been too fixated on “life as we know it”. Different thinking is required to search for life as we do not know it. The extraordinary forces of the turbulent cosmos mean that both physics and chemistry will be quite different, and the types of molecules produced will not resemble Earth chemistry. In turn, this direction will inevitably lead to a better working definition of what life is, required if we are serious about searching for it in the cosmos. View in LinkedIn

FREE RADICAL QUENCHING. “The authors concluded that melanin played a major role in protecting the organism against ionizing radiation and these radioprotective properties arise due to its chemical composition, free radical quenching and spherical spatial arrangement.” https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsif.2016.0459 View in LinkedIn

MELANIN PROTECTION MECHANISM. “Ionizing radiation changed the electron spin resonance signal of melanin, making it more efficient in acting as an ionizing radiation transducer. Experiments have shown increased metabolic activity in melanized Cryptococcus neoformans relative to non-melanized ones, indicating the enhancement of the electron transfer properties of melanin.” https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsif.2016.0459 View in LinkedIn