Originally posted by Rogan Josh
I an not sure I really buy that argument - ie that life could form multiple times but one of the 'Adams' got a head start so it could out-compete the others - because there are always places on Earth were competition is minimal. And there are always niches to fill. It is just like why there are som many species on Earth - because there are so many roles to play. But maybe....
I an not sure I really buy that argument - ie that life could form multiple times but one of the 'Adams' got a head start so it could out-compete the others - because there are always places on Earth were competition is minimal. And there are always niches to fill. It is just like why there are som many species on Earth - because there are so many roles to play. But maybe....
Originally posted by Rogan Josh
UR: it does matter what the probabilities are. Unless you invoke an anthropic principle (ie without successful creation of life on Earth we wouldn't be here to argue the point) we really have to have a non-neglible probability of life forming by random means, or explain why this planet is so different that life would form here.
UR: it does matter what the probabilities are. Unless you invoke an anthropic principle (ie without successful creation of life on Earth we wouldn't be here to argue the point) we really have to have a non-neglible probability of life forming by random means, or explain why this planet is so different that life would form here.
Originally posted by Rogan Josh
It is just like throwing a pin in the air. Imagine it lands on the pointy end and balances perfectly. This is statistically possibe but has vanishingly small probability, so if it happens you can be pretty sure there is some other underlying reason...
It is just like throwing a pin in the air. Imagine it lands on the pointy end and balances perfectly. This is statistically possibe but has vanishingly small probability, so if it happens you can be pretty sure there is some other underlying reason...
First of all this probability calculation is a risky business. Probability itself is not wrong, but the underlying assumption can be. Most creationist models try to attempt to calculate the probability of a fully formed cell spontaneously formed by random chance. This is the first thing that's wrong; lifeforms can be a lot simpler.
Secondly, there really was a lot of time and a lot of sites for chemical reactions. Consider that over 70% of the earth's surface is covered with water. Suppose that the life forming events can take place in the first 1m of water. That's an astronomical amount of sites for such reactions.
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