Comments on: Researchers create custom RNA catalyst http://www.foresight.org/nanodot/?p=626 examining transformative technology Wed, 03 Apr 2013 18:23:47 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.4 By: http://www.foresight.org/nanodot/?p=626#comment-838936 Thu, 30 Apr 2009 22:46:23 +0000 http://www.foresight.org/nanodot/?p=626#comment-838936 byYLNk <a href="http://napwkywywtyn.com/" rel="nofollow">napwkywywtyn</a>, [url=http://jptmuktugxyh.com/]jptmuktugxyh[/url], [link=http://ronwrpdkjwmo.com/]ronwrpdkjwmo[/link], http://zggzydvttphz.com/ byYLNk napwkywywtyn, [url=http://jptmuktugxyh.com/]jptmuktugxyh[/url], [link=http://ronwrpdkjwmo.com/]ronwrpdkjwmo[/link], http://zggzydvttphz.com/

]]> By: MQR http://www.foresight.org/nanodot/?p=626#comment-1736 MQR Sun, 24 Jun 2001 22:53:15 +0000 http://www.foresight.org/nanodot/?p=626#comment-1736 <p><strong>~2% of the way to life</strong></p> <p>Wow. Although I didn't see a length specified in the article, if you assume it's a little under a thousand units long (a <a href="http://www.aibs.org/biosciencelibrary/vol48/feb.98.ribozyme.html">plausible value for catalytic activity</a>) and it can replicate 14 units, then its about 2% of the way to a two phase self-replicating system.</p> <p>Now, <a href="http://www.arn.org/docs/odesign/od171/ribo171.htm">some people</a> have a hard time accepting this as a model of what actually happened, but if you do a little math, taking into account the size of the oceans, the amount of time involved, and the high probability of earlier, less accurate proto-catalysts (molecules which favour the conditions, however slightly--remember that "catalyst" is a fuzzy category), it seems very plausible.</p> <p>Coolness.</p> <p>-- MarkusQ</p> ~2% of the way to life

Wow. Although I didn't see a length specified in the article, if you assume it's a little under a thousand units long (a plausible value for catalytic activity) and it can replicate 14 units, then its about 2% of the way to a two phase self-replicating system.

Now, some people have a hard time accepting this as a model of what actually happened, but if you do a little math, taking into account the size of the oceans, the amount of time involved, and the high probability of earlier, less accurate proto-catalysts (molecules which favour the conditions, however slightly–remember that "catalyst" is a fuzzy category), it seems very plausible.

Coolness.

– MarkusQ

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