A New Look on Controversial View of Terrestrial and Extraterrestrial Origins of Life
- Paper number
IAC-07-A1.5.-A1.7.01
- Author
Dr. Brij Tewari, University of Guyana, Guyana
- Coauthor
Ms. D. Usmanali, University of Guyana, Guyana
- Year
2007
- Abstract
For the generation of life organic compounds are essential. It has been controversial that major sources of organic compounds used for the generation of terrestrial biosphere was of terrestrial origin or of extraterrestrial origin.First group of Scientists believed in terrestrial origin of biosphere. It is estimated that primitive Earth atmosphere was not strongly reduced and contained CO, CO2, N2, and H2O. In such case, formation of amino acids and other bioorganic compounds were quite difficult to form.The recent experiment indicates that amino acid or their precursor is easily produced event in slightly reduced gases by irradiation with high energy charged particles ,cosmic rays might be an effective energy sources for a biotic formation of bioorganic compounds on primitive Earth. Second group of Scientists believed in extraterrestrial origins of biosphere. It is estimated that the primitive Earth atmosphere was not strongly reduced. In such scenario, significance of exogenic organic compounds become greater, since formation of bioorganic compounds essential for origin of life were quite difficult to form in less reduced atmosphere. The extraterrestrial theory suggests that organic compounds exist in space transported to the Earth by meteorites, asteroids and comets. Third group of Scientists believed in both terrestrial and extraterrestrial origin of biosphere. But question is that how much organic compound was produce in space and were carried into the Earth ?
Recent investigations suggested that double metal ferrocyanides, might have abundantly existed in primitive Earth environment. Platinum and tungsten ferrocyanides were synthesized and characterized by elemental and spectral studies. Adsorption of dl-histidine , dl-threonine and dl-valine on platinum and tungsten ferrocyanides have been studied at neutral pH (7.0 ± 0.01) and room temperature (30 ± 1oc). The progress of the adsorption was followed spectro- photomerically by measuring the absorbance of amino acid solution at their corresponding λmax. At neutral pH dl-valine and dl – histidine was found to show maximum and minimum adsorption , respectively on both metal ferrocyanides studied. Present studies support terrestrial origins of life, hypothesis. Detail will be presented.
- Abstract document