Principles of Evolution

Alien life, what an exciting topic! Let's investigate some principles of life which might help illuminate what life forms there are on other planets. One of these principles states that "not all life that can exist does, but all life that cannot exist does not". What this means is that, just because we have discovered certain chemical and physical environments that suggest a life form (for example an earth worm), doesn't mean that an earth worm exists there, or that it will ever exist. However, if the environmental properties are analysed accurately, then it is possible to make an assumption that it is likely for a certain life form to have existed there, or for it to be likely to sometime develop there. The reason why "all life that cannot exist does not" is fairly obvious, either because life will not develop in unfavourable conditions, or because life in unfavourable conditions dies. Another result of that principle is that evolution never reaches a dea...

Let's now start with the beginning. All those capable of basic reasoning have at some point wondered what life is. What's the purpose of life? How do I know I am alive? These are just a few questions that seem to have swept humans for a long time. For a moment, let's move away from humans, and focus specifically on life as a general entity. Think of a frog, a bacterium, a rose, or even an extraterrestrial life form. We are going to look at the principles which govern universal life. As chemistry lies on physics, so does biology lie on chemistry. That is, in order to understand the development of life, we must look at the development of those which make up life: chemical compounds and their behaviour. It is conclusively established that atoms seek stable electron configuration, and this is what drives atoms. The pursuit of chemical stability ultimately results in the development of life forms. By definition, all life is self-supporting (survival) and self-propagating (mult...