Multiple origins of life.
- 1 May 1983
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
- Vol. 80 (10) , 2981-2984
- https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.80.10.2981
Abstract
There is some indication that life may have originated readily under primitive earth conditions. If there were multiple origins of life, the result could have been a polyphyletic biota today. Using simple stochastic models for diversification and extinction, the following conclusions are made: the probability of survival of life is low unless there are multiple origins; and given survival of life and given as many as 10 independent origins of life, the odds are that all but 1 would have gone extinct, yielding the current monophyletic biota. The fact of the survival of this particular form of life does not imply that it was unique or superior.Keywords
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