• Question: how did the first living thing get created

    Asked by cowen to Asif, Laura, Lena, Sean, Viv on 14 Mar 2012. This question was also asked by jb98, therussian, qwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnm123456789.
    • Photo: Lena Ciric

      Lena Ciric answered on 13 Mar 2012:

      It is thought that life began in a warm pond about 3.5 billion years ago. This happened when the right combination of chemicals from the atmosphere and some form of energy resulted in the formation of amino acids, the building blocks of proteins. These then evolved into single celled organisms and subsequently all the species of organisms that have ever lived. This is called the Primordial Soup Theory.

    • Photo: Sean Murphy

      Sean Murphy answered on 13 Mar 2012:

      Lena describes the theory commonly accepted by scientists. Researchers have shown that under the right conditions simple DNA-like molecules can be formed, and that these are able to reproduce to some extent. I should mention that this theory does not necessarily mean that this first “life” occurred on earth. It is also possible that this happened on another planet and life on earth was carried here on an asteroid. If we ever find signs of life on another planet we will be a lot closer to answering this question.

    • Photo: Laura Waters

      Laura Waters answered on 14 Mar 2012:

      Two great answers from Lena & Sean. I’d agree with them and also add that nobody is really sure!

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