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Cell biology

Video: The Dennis Noble lecture in Suzhou China on physiology and Neo-Darwinian evolutionary biology . . . N.B. revolutionary, transforming ideas and facts

Between Sal C and Nullasalus, this has come up: [youtube RYNLgX50TpU] Paper can be read here. Also cf. The Music of Life sourcebook, here. A key step in the reasoning: Noble’s pivotal point in light of his detailed argument: This is meant to support a thread of discussion, so kindly comment here. END

Was four-stranded, ‘quadruple helix’ DNA designed or mutated?

‘Quadruple helix’ DNA seen in human cells Balasubramanian’s group has been pursuing a four-stranded version of the molecule (DNA) that scientists have produced in the test tube now for a number of years. It is called the G-quadruplex. The “G” refers to guanine, one of the four chemical groups, or “bases”, that hold DNA together and which encode our genetic information (the others being adenine, cytosine, and thymine). The G-quadruplex seems to form in DNA where guanine exists in substantial quantities. . . . This revealed the four-stranded DNA arose most frequently during the so-called “s-phase” when a cell copies its DNA just prior to dividing. . . . If the G-quadruplex could be implicated in the development of some Read More ›

Evidence for an Engineered Universe

In the next video for the Engineering and Metaphysics conference, we have our keynote speaker, Walter Bradley, author of The Mystery of Life’s Origin (the book which kicked off the Intelligent Design movement). Here Bradley presents an overview of the cosmological case for design. Lots of interesting information from the man who started it all! There are a few breaks in the video due to tape changes. If you can’t see the embedded video, the YouTube URL is http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nLd_cPfysrE

The Design of the Simplest Self-Replicator

The first video from the Engineering and Metaphysics conference is from Arminius Mignea. His talk is about self-replication, and what is really required for self-replication to occur. Mignea reviews current attempts at self-replication, and shows the minimal structures needed for it to occur. The slides for the talk are available here. Enjoy!

On the Impossibility of Abiogenesis

Modern science takes for granted that the naturalistic origin of life, called “abiogenesis” or “chemical evolution” or “pre-biotic evolution” is extremely improbable but not impossible. “Life” here means a single self-reproducing and self-sustaining biological cell. Science claims that life can arise from inorganic matter through natural processes. This unsupported claim is based on the conviction that all arrangements of atoms are possible and life is considered merely one such arrangement. In what follows I try to explain that such a believe is unfounded because abiogenesis is impossible in principle. My argument, expressed in its simplest form, has two main steps: (1) to show that a computer cannot be generated naturalistically; (2) to show that biological systems contain computers. From #1 and #2 I will argue the impossibility of abiogenesis. Read More ›