DailyDirt: Re-visting Vitalism

from the urls-we-dig-up dept

In the early days of chemistry, organic molecules were thought to require a living source. Then Friedrich Wohler synthesized urea using a process that didn't involve any living organisms. That chemical reaction struck down the hypothesis of vitalism -- which suggested that living matter was fundamentally different from inanimate chemicals. Over a hundred years later, though, no one has really discovered how to create living materials from scratch. Here are just a few projects that could change that. By the way, StumbleUpon can recommend some good Techdirt articles, too.
Hide this

Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.

Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.

While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.

–The Techdirt Team

Filed Under: amino acids, biology, life, non-organic, organic chemistry, organisms, protocell, unnatural, vitalism


Reader Comments

Subscribe: RSS

View by: Time | Thread


  • identicon
    chem geek, 14 Nov 2011 @ 9:44pm

    Arthur C Clarke...

    How about just trying to re-create all the life we know, but the mirror image of it? All the life we currently know has a certain chirality, but the opposite chirality is equally favorable energetically.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Lawrence D'Oliveiro, 15 Nov 2011 @ 1:07am

    Vitalism Isn’t Dead

    It just got transmuted into a non-living compound.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • icon
      Michael Ho (profile), 15 Nov 2011 @ 6:33pm

      Re: Vitalism Isn’t Dead

      I suppose you think "both sides" of the vitalism debate should be taught in schools, too...?

      link to this | view in chronology ]

      • identicon
        Lawrence D'Oliveiro, 19 Nov 2011 @ 3:12pm

        Re:Teaching The Controversy

        And while we’re at it, all sides of the religious debate. Why not?

        link to this | view in chronology ]


Follow Techdirt
Essential Reading
Techdirt Deals
Report this ad  |  Hide Techdirt ads
Techdirt Insider Discord

The latest chatter on the Techdirt Insider Discord channel...

Loading...
Recent Stories

This site, like most other sites on the web, uses cookies. For more information, see our privacy policy. Got it
Close

Email This

This feature is only available to registered users. Register or sign in to use it.