How did life on Earth originate? Did replication or metabolism comefirst in the history of life? In this extensively rewritten second edition,
Freeman Dyson examines these questions and discusses the
two main theories that try to explain how naturally occurring chemicals
could organize themselves into living creatures.
The majority view is that life began with replicating molecules,
the precursors of modern genes. The minority belief is that random
populations of molecules evolved metabolic activities before exact
replication existed and that natural selection drove the evolution of
cells toward greater complexity for a long time without the benefit
of genes. Dyson analyzes both of these theories with reference to
recent important discoveries by geologists and biologists, aiming to
stimulate new experiments that could help decide which theory is
correct.
