Sara Walker: How the Origin of Life Could Guide Our Search for Aliens [Ep. 456]

Into the Impossible With Brian Keating

Brian Keating

Science, Physics, Natural Sciences

4.7 • 1.1K Ratings

🗓️ 1 September 2024

⏱️ 88 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

What is the connection between the origin of life on Earth and the search for extraterrestrial life? Could a revolutionary new theory guide us in our search for aliens? And is consciousness an inevitable outcome of life’s complexity, or is it something more mysterious? I had the pleasure of discussing these fascinating issues with the incredible astrobiologist and theoretical physicist Sara Walker. Sara has greatly contributed to our understanding of how life emerges from non-living matter and how information processing in biological systems differs from that in non-living systems. Her work often explores the intersections of physics, biology, and information theory, seeking to uncover the fundamental principles that govern the transition from chemistry to biology. In this episode, we dive deep into the mysteries of life, assembly theory, consciousness, and life beyond Earth. Tune in! — Key Takeaways: 00:00:00 Intro 00:01:40 The origin of life and our search for aliens 00:05:31 Judging a book by its cover 00:10:04 Assembly theory and consciousness 00:15:33 What’s the testable hypothesis? 00:21:25 Is life a miracle? 00:30:47 Criticisms of assembly theory 00:43:35 Intelligent design 00:46:35 The concept of time in physics 00:51:08 The future of assembly theory 00:58:30 Predicting life on other planets using assembly theory 01:04:05 What if life didn’t originate on Earth? 01:07:19 Issues with assembly theory and Johannes Jäger 01:21:19 The day after aliens 01:26:44 Outro — Additional resources: ➡️ Connect with Sara Walker: ✖️ Twitter: https://x.com/Sara_Imari/ 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alien_matter/ — ➡️ Follow me on your fav platforms: ✖️ Twitter: https://twitter.com/DrBrianKeating 🔔 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/DrBrianKeating?sub_confirmation=1 📝 Join my mailing list: https://briankeating.com/list ✍️ Check out my blog: https://briankeating.com/cosmic-musings/ 🎙️ Follow my podcast: https://briankeating.com/podcast — Into the Impossible with Brian Keating is a podcast dedicated to all those who want to explore the universe within and beyond the known. Make sure to follow/subscribe so you never miss an episode! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	What is life? It's perhaps the biggest unanswered question in all of science.
0:04.5	And what's the connection between the origin of life on Earth and the search for alien life forms in the
0:10.9	Cosmos? Could a revolutionary new theory hold a key to detecting life beyond
0:16.0	earth and is consciousness an inevitable outcome of life's complexity? Or is it something much
0:22.0	more mysterious?
0:23.0	Professor Sarah Walker, an incredible astrobiologist and theoretical physicist joins me
0:28.0	for her second appearance on the podcast today.
0:30.0	To illuminate these fascinating questions and more, on the occasion of the release of her
0:34.8	fantastic new book, Life as no one knows it.
0:38.9	The physics of life's emergence.
0:41.0	Sarah's groundbreaking research dives deep into the origin of life,
0:44.6	exploring how the same principles that govern life on Earth might apply to life
0:49.2	elsewhere in the universe. Can we make life? Can we produce it here in the lab?
0:53.7	Sarah thinks we might just be able to, and that would be a key unlock to our understanding
0:58.5	of mankind's oldest question.
1:00.6	With her pioneering work on assembly theory done with her close collaborator and past guest Lee Cronin,
1:06.0	she's redefining how we search for alien life by focusing on the complexity of the molecules that matter most.
1:13.0	This conversation will change how you see the universe and life itself.
1:17.0	Let's go. Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.
1:27.0	Open the pod bay doors now. Sarah, thank you so much for joining us today.
1:34.0	It's such an honor to have you on, especially now that you are a published author.
1:38.0	So exciting.
	...

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