Cosmic ancestry is a hypothesis of the origin of life on Earth, based on the
panspermiaPanspermia is the hypothesis that "seeds" of life exist already all over the Universe, that life on Earth may have originated through these "seeds", and that they may deliver or have delivered life to other habitable bodies....
views of
Fred HoyleSir Fred Hoyle FRS was an English astronomer noted primarily for his contribution to the theory of stellar nucleosynthesis and his often controversial stance on other cosmological and scientific matters—in particular his rejection of the "Big Bang" theory, a term originally coined by him as a...
and
Chandra WickramasingheVidya Jothi Nalin Chandra Wickramasinghe, FIMA, FRAS, FRSA is Professor of Applied Mathematics and Astronomy at Cardiff University. He is the Director of the Cardiff Centre for Astrobiology. Born and educated in Sri Lanka, he currently lives in Cardiff, Wales, UK.He was a student and collaborator...
and further developed by Brig Klyce. It incorporates strong panspermia, the
Gaia hypothesisThe Gaia hypothesis is an ecological hypothesis proposing that the biosphere and the physical components of the Earth are closely integrated to form a complex interacting system that maintains the climatic and biogeochemical conditions on Earth in a preferred homeostasis...
and the premise that life has no primary origin.
Hoyle was a long-standing advocate of strong panspermia. He claimed (with Wickramasinghe) that spectral analysis of interstellar dust indicated that large organic molecules and even bacterial spores occur in space.
Cosmic ancestry is a hypothesis of the origin of life on Earth, based on the
panspermiaPanspermia is the hypothesis that "seeds" of life exist already all over the Universe, that life on Earth may have originated through these "seeds", and that they may deliver or have delivered life to other habitable bodies....
views of
Fred HoyleSir Fred Hoyle FRS was an English astronomer noted primarily for his contribution to the theory of stellar nucleosynthesis and his often controversial stance on other cosmological and scientific matters—in particular his rejection of the "Big Bang" theory, a term originally coined by him as a...
and
Chandra WickramasingheVidya Jothi Nalin Chandra Wickramasinghe, FIMA, FRAS, FRSA is Professor of Applied Mathematics and Astronomy at Cardiff University. He is the Director of the Cardiff Centre for Astrobiology. Born and educated in Sri Lanka, he currently lives in Cardiff, Wales, UK.He was a student and collaborator...
and further developed by Brig Klyce. It incorporates strong panspermia, the
Gaia hypothesisThe Gaia hypothesis is an ecological hypothesis proposing that the biosphere and the physical components of the Earth are closely integrated to form a complex interacting system that maintains the climatic and biogeochemical conditions on Earth in a preferred homeostasis...
and the premise that life has no primary origin.
History
Hoyle was a long-standing advocate of strong panspermia. He claimed (with Wickramasinghe) that spectral analysis of interstellar dust indicated that large organic molecules and even bacterial spores occur in space. He also viewed natural selection and mutation as too weak a mechanism to drive evolutionary progress. Moreover, his belief in a quasi-steady-state universe allowed him to consider the possibility that life was much older than orthodox cosmology would allow. Whilst Wickramasinghe and Hoyle referred to their ideas as either panspermia or cosmic ancestry
http://www.mania.com/48845.html , the latter term has come to be associated with an expanded hypothesis proposed by Klyce, which incorporates the
Gaia hypothesisThe Gaia hypothesis is an ecological hypothesis proposing that the biosphere and the physical components of the Earth are closely integrated to form a complex interacting system that maintains the climatic and biogeochemical conditions on Earth in a preferred homeostasis...
of
James LovelockJames Ephraim Lovelock, CH, CBE, FRS is an independent scientist, author, researcher, environmentalist, and futurist who lives in Devon, England...
.
Theory
Cosmic ancestry holds that life is neither the product of
supernatural creationIntelligent design is the assertion that "certain features of the universe and of living things are best explained by an intelligent cause, not an undirected process such as natural selection." It is a modern form of the traditional teleological argument for the existence of God, but one which...
, nor is it spontaneously generated through
abiogenesisIn the natural sciences, abiogenesis, or "chemical evolution", is the study of how life on Earth could have arisen from inanimate matter. It should not be confused with evolution, which is the study of how groups of living things change over time...
, but that it has always existed in the universe. It claims that the evolutionary progression from simpler to more complex organisms utilises pre-existing genetic information and does not compose this information as it occurs.
According to the theory, higher life forms, including intelligent life, descend ultimately from pre-existing life which was at least as advanced as the descendants. The genetic programs for the evolution of such higher forms may have been delivered to
biosphereThe biosphere is the global sum of all ecosystems. It can also be called the zone of life on Earth. From the broadest biophysiological point of view, the biosphere is the global ecological system integrating all living beings and their relationships, including their interaction with the elements...
s, such as the Earth's, within viruses or bacteria in the same manner as proposed by other versions of panspermia. The genetic programs may then be installed by known gene transfer mechanisms. Also, according to cosmic ancestry, life initiates
Gaian processesThe Gaia hypothesis is an ecological hypothesis proposing that the biosphere and the physical components of the Earth are closely integrated to form a complex interacting system that maintains the climatic and biogeochemical conditions on Earth in a preferred homeostasis...
that may environmentally alter biospheres.
Cosmic ancestry is opposed to both
neo-DarwinismNeo-Darwinism is a term used today to describe the modern evolutionary synthesis of Darwinian evolution by natural selection with Mendelian genetics, the latter of which Darwin himself had been unaware, but which entails that the mechanism of inheritance in evolution involves the digital,...
and
Intelligent designIntelligent design is the assertion that "certain features of the universe and of living things are best explained by an intelligent cause, not an undirected process such as natural selection." It is a modern form of the traditional teleological argument for the existence of God, but one which...
theories. Its assertions require the universe to be ageless.
Evidence
Evidence for the possible astral origin of life is summarised in theoretical
panspermiaPanspermia is the hypothesis that "seeds" of life exist already all over the Universe, that life on Earth may have originated through these "seeds", and that they may deliver or have delivered life to other habitable bodies....
.
Recent evidence suggests that mechanisms other than random mutation and natural selection could play an important role in evolution - it is now apparent that
horizontal gene transferHorizontal gene transfer , also Lateral gene transfer , is any process in which an organism incorporates genetic material from another organism without being the offspring of that organism. By contrast, vertical transfer occurs when an organism receives genetic material from its ancestor, e.g...
is much more widespread than previously thought. There are also many instances of genes detected in species that have no known use for them. It is claimed that other aspects of evolution which present problems for neo-Darwinism are more easily explained by cosmic ancestry or panspermia, such as life's rapid start on Earth
http://www.astrobio.net/news/article2039.html,
punctuated equilibriumPunctuated equilibrium is a theory in evolutionary biology which proposes that most sexually reproducing species will experience little evolutionary change for most of their geological history . When evolution occurs, it is localized in rare, rapid events of branching speciation...
and
convergent evolutionConvergent evolution describes the acquisition of the same biological trait in unrelated lineages.The wing is a classic example of convergent evolution in action. Although their last common ancestor did not have wings, birds and bats do, and are capable of powered flight. The wings are similar in...
.
The primary justification for the hypothesis is claimed to be the lack of direct evidence that any natural process can (1) cause life to originate from non-living matter, or (2) compose genetic programs for new evolutionary features. Evidence for speciation, adaptation, variation, and optimization within narrow ranges via natural selection is not disputed.
Criticisms
Postulating that life (and the universe) have always existed is contrary to nearly all contemporary scientific views. The cosmic ancestry hypothesis has been largely ignored by the scientific community, except for those with a direct interest in
astrobiologyAstrobiology is the study of the origin, evolution, distribution, and future of life in the universe...
. Most biologists regard natural selection as an adequate (although not fully understood) and more plausible explanation for the evolution of life on Earth. Some evidence, such as Hoyle's interpretation of his spectral analysis, is widely disputed.