A research team including the geobiologist Dr. Helge Missbach from the University of Cologne has detected organic molecules and gases trapped in 3.5 billion-year-old rocks.
A widely accepted hypothesis says that the earliest life forms used small…
Category: 6. Chemistry
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Discovery Boosts Theory That Life on Earth Arose From RNA-DNA Mix
Chemists at Scripps Research have made a discovery that supports a surprising new view of how life originated on our planet.
In a study published in the chemistry journal Angewandte Chemie, they demonstrated that a simple compound called…
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A Non-Destructive Method for Analyzing Ancient Egyptian Embalming Materials
Ancient Egyptian mummies have many tales to tell, but unlocking their secrets without destroying delicate remains is challenging.
Now, researchers reporting in ACS’ Analytical Chemistry have found a non-destructive way to analyze bitumen —…
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What Did Danes And Italians in the Middle Ages Have in Common?
In the 1600s, two private chapels were erected as family burial sites for two noble families. One in the town Svendborg in Denmark, the other in Montella, Italy.
They were both attached to a Franciscan Friary, and only a few meters from the…
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Chemical Analysis Reveals Egypt Was a Multi-Cultural Hub For Centuries
The Hyksos, who ruled during the 15th Dynasty of ancient Egypt, were not foreign invaders, but a group who rose to power from within, according to a study published by Chris Stantis of Bournemouth University, UK and colleagues.
The Hyksos were a…
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Ocean changes almost starved life of oxygen 800 million years ago
Chemical changes in the oceans more than 800 million years ago almost destroyed the oxygen-rich atmosphere that paved the way for complex life on Earth, new research suggests.
Then, as now, the planet had an “oxidizing” atmosphere, driven by…
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Hydrogen energy at the root of life
Since the discovery of submarine hydrothermal vents around 40 years ago, these natural chemical reactors have been a focus for evolutionary researchers searching for the origin of life.
The vents emit hot water containing minerals, including…
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Scientific research will help to understand the origin of life in the universe
Until now, in the scientific community there has been the prevailing view that thermal processes associated exclusively with the combustion and high-temperature processing of organic raw materials such as oil, coal, wood, garbage, food, tobacco…
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Scientists tracking the ‘life signature’ of Britain
The British Geological Survey has just released a new interactive web tool that maps out the geographical variation in the isotope signatures of Britain.
This map, which includes strontium, oxygen and sulphur data, enables the determination of the…
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Italy’s oldest olive oil discovered in peculiar pot
Olive oil is a staple of Italian cuisine. It’s been that way for thousands of years. And new chemical analysis conducted on ancient pottery proves the liquid gold has existed in Italy hundreds of years longer than what anthropologists have…
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