Most living things have a suite of genes dedicated to repairing their DNA, limiting the rate at which their genomes change through time. But scientists at Vanderbilt and University of […]
Vanderbilt University
Posted inOrigin & Evolution of Life, Press Release
Fossil Evidence Supports Theory That First Mass Extinction Engineered by Early Animals
Newly discovered fossil evidence from Namibia strengthens the proposition that the world’s first mass extinction was caused by “ecosystem engineers” – newly evolved biological organisms that altered the environment so […]
Posted inBiochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Commercial & Private Sector, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Lava / magma ocean / Volcanic Worlds, Microbiology & Virology, Nanotechnology & SynBio, Press Release, ROVs/Submersibles/Diving, Sample Return
Extremophiles: Untapped Source of Antibacterial Drugs
One of the most mysterious forms of life may turn out to be a rich and untapped source of antibacterial drugs.
Posted inPress Release, Societal Issues
Are the World's Religions Ready for E.T.?
In 1930, Albert Einstein was asked for his opinion about the possibility of life elsewhere in the universe. “Other beings, perhaps, but not men,” he answered. Then he was asked […]
Posted inOrigin & Evolution of Life
Early Earth Less Hellish Than Previously Thought
Conditions on Earth for the first 500 million years after it formed may have been surprisingly similar to the present day, complete with oceans, continents and active crustal plates. This […]
Posted inExoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones
Some Sun-like Stars are Earth-eaters
Some Sun-like stars are ‘Earth-eaters.’ During their development they ingest large amounts of the rocky material from which ‘terrestrial’ planets like Earth, Mars and Venus are made. Image: What if […]
Posted inGaia - Planetary Perspectives, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Nomenclature, Systematics, Natural History, Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release
Untangling The Tree of Life on Earth
Two recent high-profile phylogenetic studies reached conflicting conclusions about whether snail’s closest relatives are bivalves or an enigmatic group called tusk shells. Vanderbilt phylogeneticists suggest that the cause of this […]