Articles | Volume 12, issue 16
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-12-4913-2015
© Author(s) 2015. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-12-4913-2015
© Author(s) 2015. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
Research article
| 
19 Aug 2015
Research article |
| 19 Aug 2015
Fundamental molecules of life are pigments which arose and co-evolved as a response to the thermodynamic imperative of dissipating the prevailing solar spectrum
Instituto de Física, UNAM, Circuito Interior de la Investigación Científica, Cuidad Universitaria, México D.F., C.P. 04510, Mexico
Independent researcher, Bigla str. 7, Skopje, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
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We reply to Lars Björn's critique of our article concerning the importance of photon dissipation to the origin and evolution of the biosphere. Björn doubts our assertion that organic pigments, ecosystems, and the biosphere arose out of a non-equilibrium thermodynamic imperative to increase global photon dissipation. He shows that the albedo of some non-living material is less than that of living material. We point out, however, that photon dissipation involves other factors besides albedo.
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We reply to Lars Björn's critique of our article concerning the importance of photon dissipation to the origin and evolution of the biosphere. Björn doubts our assertion that organic pigments, ecosystems, and the biosphere arose out of a non-equilibrium thermodynamic imperative to increase global photon dissipation. He shows that the albedo of some non-living material is less than that of living material. We point out, however, that photon dissipation involves other factors besides albedo.
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Short summary
We show that the fundamental molecules of life (those common to all three domains of life: Archaea, Bacteria, Eukaryota), including nucleotides, amino acids, enzyme cofactors, and porphyrin agglomerates, absorb light strongly from 230 to 280nm (in the UV-C) and have chemical affinity to RNA and DNA. This supports the "thermodynamic dissipation theory for the origin of life", which suggests that life arose and evolved as a response to dissipating the prevailing Archaean UV-C sunlight into heat.
We show that the fundamental molecules of life (those common to all three domains of life:...
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