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What Is Life: Various Definitions Towards The Contemporary Astrobiology

Research · September 2015

DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.1.2618.8002

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Marta Cortesão
German Aerospace Center (DLR)
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What Is Life: Various Definitions Towards
The Contemporary Astrobiology

Marta Filipa Barros Cortesão Rocha Fernandes

Evolució del Pensament Biològic - Facultat de Biologia, Universitat de Barcelona 2013

Abstract

Since the beginnings of consciousness humans have struggled to define life, but life is
an empirical concept and this task of defining it is likely to remain, at best, a work in
progress (Tirard S, 2010). Nowadays the definition of life is a question that affects
branches of biology, biochemistry and currently also astrobiology. However there is still
no general agreement on a single definition among scientists. Hence, in this work I
expose some of the definitions of life proposed by many scientists and how different
definitions reflect different science values. In addition, I expose the particular case of
astrobiology, where the identification of life on other planets takes its definition beyond
life as we know it.
Key-words: definition of life, origin of life, astrobiology, autopoiesis, darwinian
evolution

Introduction

The philosophical question of the definition of life has increasing its practical
importance, and how to define "life" is now a question that affects branches of biology,
biochemistry, genetics, and ultimately the search for life elsewhere in the universe. As
science makes progress towards understanding the origins of life on Earth, as laboratory
experiments approach the synthesis of life, and as greater attention is focused on
astrobiology the utility of a general definition grows (Cleland and Chyba 2002).
Although we still lack a generally agreed-upon definition of life, astrobiology depends
on the definition of life to be successful - “if we want to project a space probe to search
for life on other planets, we have to assume some kind of life definition which allows us
to differentiate living things.” (Chodasewicz, K. 2012)