12-13-2010, 01:52 PM
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#23882 (permalink)
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The Reforms
Location: Rarely, if ever, here or there, but always in transition
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Perhaps you've heard..?
According to the just-unembargoed research paper “A Bacterium That Can Grow by Using Arsenic Instead of Phosphorus,” the much-debated possibility of a terrestrial “shadow biosphere” (that is, “a second genesis for life on this planet”) has allegedly been confirmed by scientists studying the microbes of California’s arsenic-rich Mono Lake.
From Cosmic Log:
[/indent]In the paper published today, the researchers report that some of the bacteria could survive on arsenic and incorporate it into their cellular biochemistry. Instead of the usual phosphate-rich DNA, they observed arsenate-rich DNA. Heightened levels of arsenic also showed up in the cell’s proteins and fats. The scientists used mass spectroscopy, radioactive labeling and X-ray fluorescence to confirm that the arsenic was really being used in the biomolecules rather than merely contaminating the cells.[/indent]
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As human beings, our greatness lies not so much in being able to remake the world (that is the myth of the Atomic Age) as in being able to remake ourselves. —Mohandas K. Gandhi
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