New Life Form

[archmage]

In case you missed it, NASA has discovered a new life form. The bacteria, called GFAJ-1 and found in Mono Lake, California, is unlike anything currently living in planet Earth. It's capable of using arsenic to build its DNA, RNA, proteins, and cell membranes.

Needless to say, this redefines a lot of things.

Comments

[mariadkins]

i think this is so damned awesome - and it kills me that most people are like "whatever". come on people!!

[veiravx]

As cool as this is, I just finished writing a paper on hypothetical alternate biochemistry for alien life... NOW I HAVE TO REWRITE IT alkdjfalkjdfa;fjkd

No but really, this is cool. I've been wondering what their announcement today was going to be.

[archmage]

I dunno, you might be able to work this in as a final "chapter", about how your theories either stand up to it or could be changed in the face of new info.

[veiravx]

Yeah, I'm going to (hopefully) figure out a way to add it at the end, rather than rework a whole bunch of it.

[pornrockangel]

very cool! been wanting to go to mono lake for some time now... saw it on a hiking show I like and it looks incredible for photographs.

[blackwingbear]

WHOAH. Cool.