Carbon chauvinism

Carbon chauvinism

Carbon chauvinism is a neologism meant to disparage the assumption that the chemical processes of hypothetical extraterrestrial life must be constructed primarily from carbon (organic compounds),[1] as carbon's chemical and thermodynamic properties render it far superior to all other elements.

Contents

Concept

The term was used as early as 1973, when scientist Carl Sagan described it and other human chauvinisms that limit imagination of possible extraterrestrial life. It suggests that human beings, as carbon-based life forms who have never encountered any life that has evolved outside the Earth’s environment, may find it difficult to envision radically different biochemistries.[2]

In a 1999 Reason magazine article discussing the theory of a fine-tuned universe, Kenneth Silber quotes astrophysicist Victor J. Stenger using the term:

There is no good reason, says Stenger, to "assume that there's only one kind of life possible" - we know far too little about life in our own universe, let alone "other" universes, to reach such a conclusion. Stenger denounces as "carbon chauvinism" the assumption that life requires carbon; other chemical elements, such as silicon, can also form molecules of considerable complexity. Indeed, Stenger ventures, it is "molecular chauvinism" to assume that molecules are required at all; in a universe with different properties, atomic nuclei or other structures might assemble in totally unfamiliar ways.[3]

Carbon alternatives

Like carbon, silicon can form four stable bonds with itself and other elements, and long chemical chains known as silane polymers, which are very similar to the hydrocarbons essential to life on Earth. Silicon is more reactive than carbon, which could make it optimal for extremely cold environments.[4] However, silanes spontaneously burn in the presence of oxygen, so an oxygen atmosphere would be deadly to any silicon-based life, and water as a solvent would be equally deadly for the same reason. So, any environment with the potential for silicon-based life would have to be very cold, devoid of oxygen and water, but with another compatible solvent, such as liquid methane or a methyl compound to exhibit polymer activity.[4]

Criticism

The concise answer of science is that the chronicle of life on Earth refers to facts strictly connected to the cosmic physics and chemistry. Then, life on Earth is not dominated by eventuality, but life has been determined by the fundamental physical constants of the universe.[5] The emergence of life on our planet obeyed to the universal physico-chemical laws and occurred like a natural and basic process.[5]

Scientists observe that all life on Earth is carbon-based and they have not ruled out other forms of life, but there is currently no empirical data to support other forms, such as life based on silicon. The apparent lack of silane polymers and the abundance of carbon in meteorites would suggest that carbon-based life is much more probable than silicon-based life

See also

References

  1. ^ Darling, David. "Carbon-based life". Encyclopedia of Life. http://www.daviddarling.info/encyclopedia/C/carbon-based_life.html. Retrieved 2007-09-14. 
  2. ^ Sagan, Carl (1973). The Cosmic Connection. Anchor Books (Anchor Press / Doubleday). p. 47. 
  3. ^ Silber, Kenneth (July 1999). "Is God in the Details?". Reason Magazine. http://www.reason.com/news/show/31071.html. Retrieved 2007-09-14.  Full article
  4. ^ a b "Target: Titan & Silicon-based life". Astrowright. 18 March 2010. http://astrowright.wordpress.com/2010/03/18/target-titan/. Retrieved 2011-03-05. 
  5. ^ a b "Astrobiology". Biology Cabinet. September 26, 2006. http://biocab.org/Astrobiology.html. Retrieved 2011-01-17. 

Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • carbon chauvinism — noun The doctrine that the molecules responsible for the chemical processes of life must be constructed primarily from carbon …   Wiktionary

  • Carbon — (), but as most compounds with multiple single bonded oxygens on a single carbon it is unstable.] Cyanide (CN–), has a similar structure, but behaves much like a halide ion (pseudohalogen). For example it can form the nitride cyanogen molecule… …   Wikipedia

  • Carbon (disambiguation) — Carbon may refer to:Chemical element*Carbon, the chemical element *Carbon black, a filler often used to improve the properties of rubber or plastic compounds *Carbon chauvinism, a term meant to disparage the assumption that the molecules… …   Wikipedia

  • Carbon-based life — For the music group, see Carbon Based Lifeforms. See also: Organism and Life form The Lewis structure of a carbon atom, showing its four valence electrons. Carbon forms the backbone of biology for all of life on Ea …   Wikipedia

  • Hypothetical types of biochemistry — are forms of biochemistry speculated to be scientifically viable but not proven to exist at this time. While the kinds of living beings we know on earth commonly use carbon for basic structural and metabolic functions, water as a solvent and DNA… …   Wikipedia

  • Alternative biochemistry — is the speculative biochemistry of alien life forms that differ radically from those on Earth. It includes biochemistries that use elements other than carbon to construct primary cellular structures and/or use solvents besides water. Theories… …   Wikipedia

  • Anthropic principle — In astrophysics and cosmology, the anthropic principle is the philosophical argument that observations of the physical Universe must be compatible with the conscious life that observes it. Some proponents of the argument reason that it explains… …   Wikipedia

  • Kohlenstoffchauvinismus — (engl. carbon chauvinism) ist ein polemischer Begriff der Exobiologie und philosophischen Bewusstseinsdebatte. In der Exobiologie werden Positionen als kohlenstoffchauvinistisch kritisiert, wenn sie die Möglichkeit der Entstehung von… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Углеродный шовинизм — Углеродный шовинизм  неологизм, использующийся для пренебрежительного отзыва о теории универсальности водно углеродной жизни ввиду исключительных химических и термодинамических свойств углерода, делающих его намного предпочительнее всех… …   Википедия

  • Biochemistry — For the journal, see Biochemistry (journal). Biological Chemistry redirects here. For the journal formerly named Biological Chemistry Hoppe Seyler, see Biological Chemistry (journal). Biochemistry, sometimes called biological chemistry, is the… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”