Plasma blobs hint at new life form...

I was scanning the net and came across an article that I found very interesting. It is from 2003, but I have never heard about this before. Scientists conducting experiments on conditions which existed before life was here on earth found some interesting things.

The researchers studied environmental conditions similar to those that existed on the Earth before life began, when the planet was enveloped in electric storms that caused ionised gases called plasmas to form in the atmosphere.

Physicists have created blobs of gaseous plasma that can grow, replicate and communicate - fulfilling most of the traditional requirements for biological cells. Without inherited material they cannot be described as alive, but the researchers believe these curious spheres may offer a radical new explanation for how life began.

The scientists are saying that life may not have formed over millions of years but could potentially have been created within a few milliseconds.

Most biologists think living cells arose out of a complex and lengthy evolution of chemicals that took millions of years, beginning with simple molecules through amino acids, primitive proteins and finally forming an organised structure. But if Mircea Sanduloviciu and his colleagues at Cuza University in Romania are right, the theory may have to be completely revised. They say cell-like self-organisation can occur in a few microseconds.

What do you guys think? Could this really be the origins of life on earth and elsewhere in the universe? Could this help us to rethink other life forms that may still exist somewhere in the vast regions of space? I want everyone to think outside the box as far as what this could potentially mean. All questions and comments are welcome.

Full article is linked below (assuming I did the link properly).

Plasma blobs hint at new form of life

Hopefully this will be looked into alot more by the scientific community, because this could change the way we look for life on other planets. Really, really interesting! Maybe it's not how we ''came about'' but may be how other beings were first formed.

Great stuff.

how can plasma evolve into carbon?

If they did indeed form I don't see how they could have been responsible for the first bacteria.

[edit on 17-1-2007 by DarkSide]

Originally posted by DarkSide
how can plasma evolve into carbon?

If they did indeed form I don't see how they could have been responsible for the first bacteria.

[edit on 17-1-2007 by DarkSide]

You have a very valid point, DarkSide. I am no biology guru by any means, but could it be possible that these organized plasma blobs eventually evolved into a state which allowed them to "absorb" some of the components for life, utilized it, and that became a springboard for life to form as we know it?

Wow, this is really very wow. I like the theory that life may have begun very quickly. The theory bandied about as fact is the one that 'stuff' (like the birth and changes in suns) take 'millions of years', I think science will be telling us differently more and more now. I have a feeling that one of the properties of the universe is that it likes to do things quickly!

Originally posted by DarkSide
how can plasma evolve into carbon?

If they did indeed form I don't see how they could have been responsible for the first bacteria.

Remember that there are four states in matter, plasma is one of them - it is a state of existence of matter.

I see this as the code and spark for life on Earth. These spheres are born in high tempreture but will exist at lower temps

"That would be the sort of environment in which normal biochemical interactions occur."

Thanks Sanitys Last Day for bringing this up

edit - shpellin

[edit on 17/1/07 by Dae]

I came across another site which basically reitterated what the original article said, but it also gave a few places to look for plasma-based life.

This research raises the intriguing possibility that life throughout the universe could have a very much broader basis that normally recognized. If plasma-based life can arise naturally, places to look for it could include the outer layers or interiors of stars (see Sun, life in), planetary magnetospheres, HII regions, and even ball lightning.

www.daviddarling.info...

This could give us a heads up on some areas of research to see of this phenomenon is occurring naturally elsewhere in the universe and even here on earth. I am going to do a little bit more research on this topic and see what I can come up with.

Originally posted by Sanitys Last Day
I came across another site which... gave a few places to look for plasma-based life.

This research raises the intriguing possibility that life throughout the universe could have a very much broader basis... places to look for it could include the outer layers or interiors of stars, planetary magnetospheres, HII regions, and even ball lightning.

Thanks for reiterating this. It clarifies the point that if these Romanian plasma balls are a sort of proto-life at all, they are the prototypes of a very different kind of life to that we are familiar with on earth. Sadly, they do not appear to shed any direct light on how our kind of life originated.

[edit on 19-1-2007 by Astyanax]

Originally posted by Dae
Remember that there are four states in matter, plasma is one of them - it is a state of existence of matter.

I see this as the code and spark for life on Earth. These spheres are born in high tempreture but will exist at lower temps

So plasma could become solid? But then, I wonder if it would keep it's "living" properties.

I was just wondering [as you do] Sanitys Last Day did you get a look at the dark matter recently generated by nasa in 3d Astronomers Create 3D Map of Dark Matter [From ATS]. To me the dark matter looked a little like plasma, but then im not sure what plasma looks like. Just thought i would throw it in here anyway. What do you think?

Originally posted by DarkSide
So plasma could become solid? But then, I wonder if it would keep it's "living" properties.

Argg, good question, one that doesnt have an easy answer. The four states of matter is a simplified version of whats really happening in the world. For instance ice has 9 to 11 possible solid phases and liquid helium has more than 1 liquid phase. Metal is like plasma because it conducts electricity as their electrons can move about, but it isnt plasma because super cooling still results in the metal's free electrons. They say that white dwarf suns have solid plasma due to their high temperature and pressure. Source.

How I see this working and I could be totally wrong... The plasma when it cools down can interact with organic matter around it, providing the 'spark' or 'code' for life. So yeah, I can see this happening on Earth and elsewhere in the universe.

Clumsy personal incompetence, hence double post, sorry.

[edit on 23-1-2007 by Astyanax]

Originally posted by DarkSide
So plasma could become solid?

No, plasma cannot become solid. The old-fashioned, clear-cut concept of three (or four) states of matter has now got a bit confused, but plasma is still plasma and cannot become a solid without ceasing to be plasma.

The page Dae quoted explains the situation but -- beware -- is also likely to confuse you if your basic physics knowledge is limited:

Metals consist of positive atoms that are surrounded by a "gas" of free electrons. Metals conduct electricity because these electrons can move. The positive atoms or ions cannot move. Metals are sort of a solid plasma. The difference between a gas plasma and metal is that even if a metal is cooled to near absolute zero, the electrons stay free, so a metal is not a real plasma.

As I said before, the plasma blobs mentioned by the OP bear no relation to our understanding of how life evolved on Earth. They are, however, fascinating in what they suggest about the possibility of life (of a different kind) evolving in environments that would be utterly hostile to life on Earth, such as in the photospheres of stars, the magnetospheres of gas giants, etc.

Perhaps the New Horizons probe, which will investigate Jupiter's 'long tail' of magnetosphere in February before heading out to Pluto, will have some surprises in store for us.

[edit on 23-1-2007 by Astyanax]

Originally posted by Astyanax

Perhaps the New Horizons probe, which will investigate Jupiter's 'long tail' of magnetosphere in February before heading out to Pluto, will have some surprises in store for us.

Ahhh, I didn't even think about the probe, Astyanax. Since it is past February now I am going to look that up and see what I can find. Thanks for the information.

The old-fashioned, clear-cut concept of three (or four) states of matter has now got a bit confused.

It's actually got a lot more complicated lately with the discovery of Superfluids/Solids/Gases. String-net fluid is also another type of matter though I'm unsure wether it deserves it's own category or wether it falls in the catchall term of superfluidity. I'm thinking the latter.

www.findarticles.com...

en.wikipedia.org...

en.wikipedia.org...

Could this start to explain how we seem to have a conciseness sorta superimposed onto our nervous system?

This could explain the "UFOs" seen in STS mission tapes eg STS-75 (the tether footage - footage of a giant electrical experiment)... and I remember it being said that they were often spotted around thunderstorms - the STS footage clearly shows one "materialize" above an active storm cell. Plasma, storms , and electricity go together hand in hand. Any one else seeing the possible connection here ?

Here is a link showing some of the footage for anyone who has not seen it (skip the first 2-3 mins):

Google Video Link

just incase the above link does not work here is another direct link to this vid on google:
NASA UFO footage

Originally posted by C.H.U.D.
This could explain the "UFOs" seen in STS mission tapes eg STS-75 (the tether footage - footage of a giant electrical experiment)...

Thats pretty much what I think and what the UK government thinks too. You should have a look at this thread if you havnt already Plasma-based life & UFOs.

Cool. Definitely sounds plausible. Sounds like aliens in Sundiver.

Originally posted by Dae
Thats pretty much what I think and what the UK government thinks too. You should have a look at this thread if you havnt already Plasma-based life & UFOs.

It's been a while coming, but thanks for that link Dae. I'm not sure that it explains all the things going on up there, but it's a start. Check out this ATS thread, where there is a bit more speculation.

original poster: Sanitys Last Day

I was scanning the net and came across an article that I found very interesting. It is from 2003, but I have never heard about this before. Scientists conducting experiments on conditions which existed before life was here on earth found some interesting things.

The researchers studied environmental conditions similar to those that existed on the Earth before life began, when the planet was enveloped in electric storms that caused ionised gases called plasmas to form in the atmosphere.

Physicists have created blobs of gaseous plasma that can grow, replicate and communicate - fulfilling most of the traditional requirements for biological cells. Without inherited material they cannot be described as alive, but the researchers believe these curious spheres may offer a radical new explanation for how life began.

The scientists are saying that life may not have formed over millions of years but could potentially have been created within a few milliseconds.

Most biologists think living cells arose out of a complex and lengthy evolution of chemicals that took millions of years, beginning with simple molecules through amino acids, primitive proteins and finally forming an organised structure. But if Mircea Sanduloviciu and his colleagues at Cuza University in Romania are right, the theory may have to be completely revised. They say cell-like self-organisation can occur in a few microseconds.

What do you guys think? Could this really be the origins of life on earth and elsewhere in the universe? Could this help us to rethink other life forms that may still exist somewhere in the vast regions of space? I want everyone to think outside the box as far as what this could potentially mean. All questions and comments are welcome.

Full article is linked below (assuming I did the link properly).

Plasma blobs hint at new form of life

The theorum that these plasma gases could've created life instantaneously is a good one. But how did they do it? My guess would be that the right conditions along with the right elements allowed the plasma to electrically manipulate the solid matter into a replication of the plasma. Sort of like how a magnet aligns a pile of metal slivers into a pattern, except that, this life-like plasma that isn't really alive acted sort of like a blueprint for the matter, effectively giving the life a jumpstart of sorts. This would be made to happen through the electrical discharges of plasma gas. I don't know, that was my best guess. Never heard of this before though, glad I found the thread. Thanks.