How Did Life Begin? with Betül Kaçar

StarTalk Radio

Scientist, Nasa, Neil Degrasse Tyson, Climate Science, Earth Science, Nature, Astronomy, Science, Multiverse, Spacetime, Astrophysicist, Space, Education, Cosmos, Astronomer, Startalk, Quantum Physics, Physics, Universe, Astrophysics, Star Talk

4.6 • 14.9K Ratings

🗓️ 5 May 2026

⏱️ 65 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

What are the true limits of life, will we even recognize it when we see it? Neil deGrasse Tyson and comic co-host Chuck Nice explore the beginnings of life on Earth and what they might tell us about life everywhere else with astrobiologist and bacteriologist, Betül Kaçar.

Transcript

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0:00.0	You know, all our efforts to find life in the universe?
0:01.9	Yeah.
0:02.2	At some point, it needs a ground truth.
0:03.6	So true.
0:04.2	And that happens on Earth.
0:05.9	Yes.
0:06.2	We got one of the world's experts to think about life on Earth and how it got here and how
0:11.8	it turned into what it became going back three billion years.
0:16.3	Or we're going into the way back.
0:17.9	Way.
0:18.5	Way back.
0:19.8	Coming up on StarTalk.
0:22.0	What would you do if an alien actually showed up?
0:25.9	Would you shake its hand or run?
0:28.3	Does it even have a hand to shake?
0:30.8	In my latest book, Take Me to Your Leader,
0:33.5	I explore not only how they might have gotten here,
0:36.3	but what they might want and how you should respond.
0:40.3	Because the real question is not, are we alone?
0:43.3	It's, are we ready?
0:45.3	By the way, I also narrated, take me to your leader.
0:49.3	And I'm duly informed that you can get a copy of that book or the audio book now, wherever books are sold.
	...

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