Searching for 'our alien origins'

[DoYouEverWonder]

14 November 2006

In July 2001, a mysterious red rain started falling over a large area of southern India.

Locals believed that it foretold the end of the world, though the official explanation was that it was desert dust that had blown over from Arabia.

But one scientist in the area, Dr Godfrey Louis, was convinced there was something much more unusual going on.

Not only did Dr Louis discover that there were tiny biological cells present, but because they did not appear to contain DNA, the essential component of all life on Earth, he reasoned they must be alien lifeforms.

"This staggering claim is that this is possibly extraterrestrial. That is a big claim I know, but all the experiments are supporting this claim," said Dr Louis.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/6146292.stm?ls

Gives new meaning to the idea that we are stardust.

[mike_c]

1. two words....

Peer review.

I'll wait for something a bit more substantive.

[file83]

6. Exactly...as the late Carl Sagan once said:

"Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence."
This dude is making claims his scientific method cannot cash.

[mhatrw]

14. Check back in a few year.

This guy's claims are a bit of a reach, but he did discover a truly bizarre microbe at the very least.

[mhatrw]

13. It's not his fault that few will investigate his research further.

He discovered a very bizarre microbe. That much is clear.

[mike_c]

23. all he has to do is write up his "discovery" and submit it...

...to a respected journal, and the results will be reviewed.

[mhatrw]

29. He'd done that. He's also presented his results to other scientists

at several symposiums. He's written three papers on the phenomenon, two in 2003 and one in 2006. The 2006 paper was published in Astrophysics and Space Science, Vol. 302.

http://education.vsnl.com/godfrey/

http://www.astrobiology.cf.ac.uk/redrain.html

http://www.bsn.org.uk/view_all.php?id=11615

[54anickel]

2. Hot damn! How cool is that?!?!?

We are stardust, we are golden,
We are billion year old carbon,
And we got to get ourselves back to the garden.

[mirandapriestly]

4. oh, so those are the words, neat...eom

[54anickel]

5. Yeah, Joni Mitchell actually wrote the song

Full lyrics are here: http://sing365.com/music/lyric.nsf/Woodstock-lyrics-Crosby-Stills-Nash-and-Young/8785F994FB9FF18548256D9900237662

Ahhh, the days of Woodstock :smoke:

[gorbal]

3. That goes with my theory

That there is not just life on SOME planets, but EVERY planet. Life just finds a way to be.

[mhatrw]

15. Not so much on, but in.

Subsurface microbial life would be the default if our experience means anything. Global surface infestations, like Earth, would be the exception that requires a certain zone of stellar (or large very large planetary) proximity.

[Tellurian]

7. suggestion...

If we are indeed part of the extraterrestrial cosmos, whoever you are
out there, please remove the Republican dna strands from humanoids.

We are aware of life forms inhabiting this planet that having researched
them at length, exhibit anticerebellum characteristics dangerous and
toxic to humanity and all living things on this planet.

We, the survivors by proxy, deserve another chance for harmony, peace and
prosperity with all life forms within this vast universe.

Please, for the benevolence of all, make it so!

[struggle4progress]

8. "Not everyone is convinced by the idea, of course.Indeed most researchers think it is highly dubious

One scientist who posted a message on Louis's website described it as 'bullshit'."

Red rain could prove that aliens have landed
Amelia Gentleman and Robin McKie
Sunday March 5, 2006
The Observer
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/world/story/0,,1723913,00.html

[Akoto]

21. Heh. Well ...

I'm sure, in ancient times, people called bullshit on some for thinking that the Earth wasn't the center of the universe. Among other wild theories that turned out to be true.

I'm all for the open thinkers. Certainly, I don't believe we're the only life out there!

[struggle4progress]

36. Science requires evidence beyond simple open-mindedness.

The questions are: first, what evidence there is that the alleged cells reproduce and show other features indicating that they meet the usual definition of life, and second, what evidence there is that these allegedly living objects contain no DNA.

The link I posted made it clear that the second claim has not been firmly established, and that at least one scientist has been misquoted on the subject.

I personally find the idea of bacteria hurling through space seeding words very attractive, as an idea, but that doesn't mean that there's a shred of evidence to support the claim that this actually happens.

[Generic Other]

9. Red rain? We don't need so steenkin' red rain

Blue rain dammit! I want blue rain.

[Peace Patriot]

10. This is quite a serious theory. Read the article!

And check out this related article...

Earth could seed Titan with life

By Paul Rincon
BBC News science reporter, Houston , Texas

Many processes that occur on Earth also occur on Titan (Nasa/JPL/SSI)


"Terrestrial rocks blown into space by asteroid impacts on Earth could have taken life to Saturn's moon Titan, scientists have announced.

Earth microbes in these meteorites could have seeded the organic-rich world with life, researchers believe.

They think the impact on Earth that killed off the dinosaurs could have ejected enough material for some to reach far-off moons such as Titan.

Details were unveiled at a major science conference in Houston, US.

The theory of panspermia holds that life on planets like Earth and Mars was seeded from space, perhaps hitching a ride on meteorites and comets." (MORE)

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/4819370.stm

[AIJ Alom]

11. Who sings the song ? Red Rain pouring down. pouring down all

over me.

[Pastiche423]

16. Peter Gabriel

http://www.lyricsfreak.com/p/peter+gabriel/red+rain_20107512.html">Lyrics

[AIJ Alom]

17. I thought so, Thanks. Now I keep humming that tune !

[AIJ Alom]

12. Interesting theory on Panspermia. n/t

[truthisfreedom]

18. wow. sounds like a job for Fox Mulder.

why didn't they include pictures of these "organisms" with no dna?

[Tesha]

19. "Where did it come from"?

[carlydenise]

20. I want "Purple Rain".........maybe Prince is an alien?

Carly

[DoYouEverWonder]

22. I'd rather take

the Purple Owsley, myself. Thanks.

[Toots]

24. Those WERE the days weren't they?

Owsley helped change the world, if only he were around today....Purple Haze......

[Marnieworld]

25. Well that's one funky-ass planet

I'd go there in a heartbeat!

[Texifornia]

34. Thought that was common knowledge (n/t)

n/t

[hedgehog]

26. Andromeda Strain!

Paging Michael Crichton!

[praeclarus]

27. let's forget about aliens for a moment...

... and ask just WTF was in that rain and where
did it come from?

Is bullshit being called due to the claim "it must
have come from outer space" or is bullshit being called
on the "biological cells with no dna"?

[mhatrw]

30. The latter it seems.

http://www.bsn.org.uk/view_all.php?id=11615

However, these microbes -- even with DNA and some perhaps unknown earthly origin -- are truly bizarre.

[praeclarus]

31. dang,

So here we have rain containing microbes complete
with DNA, enough of them to turn the rain red, falling
out of the sky.

Somebody just had to say "alien" and this gets laughed
out of existance and it's gone.

Personally I'd like to know where they came from and
I wonder why nobody has said: "bioweapons test" (gone
bad or maybe it went just right) yet.

[fjc]

28. So much for the Book of Genesis, if true.

[Nihil]

38. "Hey! You think you can edit this thing any better pal?"

"Just because I put the red rain bit as a plague in Exodus rather
than a chapter in Genesis you think that I'm a lousy editor?
And waddya mean 'What about the dinosaurs?' eh?"

[Bucky]

32. It's about time somebody got the scoop before Pravda on the alien beat

Aliens invade earth in the form of red raindrops. I know I've seen a movie like that somewhere...

[sarcasmo]

33. The question is what kind of frenzy would this send the Religious community into.

Kick and Nom.

[Thor_MN]

35. Potential perfect Liberal/Progressive WMD

If proven true, it would have the effect of casuing conservative/fundie brains to explode, while leaving open-minded people unscathed...

[BrotherBuzz]

37. Civilization is a disease from outer space

That my story, and I'm sticking to it.

[DoYouEverWonder]

39. From what I hear

this was a pretty nice planet until humans showed up.

[mtnester]

40. OK, so I will bring in the fun reference for all you Trekkies

terra-forming