Sublime

unusual set of Tetrahymena genes that existed as minichromosomes, each less than a thousandth the size of the smallest human chromosome. These individual DNA molecules harbored Tetrahymena’s ribosomal RNA genes.

All diese Entdeckungen neugieriger Botaniker (die oft Wiederentdeckungen sind aus einer Zeit, als man Lebewesen generell mehr zutraute) werden von einigen Wissenschaftlern argwöhnisch beobachtet, von anderen als grandiose Leistungen der Pflanzen gefeiert.

So the criterion that was evolving in the insects had to be discriminating enough to pick the right flowers and not crude imitations; and the flowers’ design had to be such that no design that other flower species could easily evolve could be mistaken for it. Thus both the criterion and the means of meeting it had to be hard to vary.

Eine Zelle betreibt Selbstschöpfung. Sie ist die materielle Umsetzung des Prinzips der Subjektivität.

like to toy with human thought like boys toy with beetles.

Babu discovered a network core shared by all of them, made up of 62 genetic switches controlling 376 genes, for a total of 492 links. This core, Babu concluded, existed in the common ancestor of all living things.

Luria let his slot machines spin, and then he began to count spots. When he was done, the verdict was clear: a few dishes were packed with colonies while many were empty. Life’s slot machine had paid out a handful of big jackpots. Darwin had won.

In principle, one could imagine a species whose genes were unable to replicate, but instead were adapted to keep their physical form unchanged by continual self-maintenance and by protecting themselves from external influences.