The Meteorite (Chondrite) and its Organisms – Otto Hahn

anautonomousagent — Sat, 12 Oct 2019 19:24:05 +0000

Petrified life-forms compose the chondrites (which represent 86% of the total number of collected meteorites to date) proposed Otto Hahn in his book, The Meteorite (Chondrite) and its Organisms, containing 142 microphotographs to serve as his proof. Published in 1880 this work took the academic community by surprise. David Weinland wrote in Das Ausland:

The result of this study is the full conviction that, at least in these structures, we are really dealing with the remnants of corals, most of which belong to the Favositidae, a family that has so far only been found as fossils in the Paleozoic, the ancient layers of Earth.
Das Ausland, 1881, No. 16, Article 1

And also,

Well-preserved forms are, of course, quite rare; it is mostly debris, e.g. quite similar to that observed in young ocean limestone of the Mexican Gulf. After acquiring some practice and comparing many cuts, certain recurring forms can be restored quite easily. Especially developed are the sponges of which I have already determined three specific genera.
Das Ausland, 1881, No. 16, Article 1

Reading this in Das Ausland must have ruffled the feathers of directors of zoology and paleontology, especially coming from Weinland, who responded to Anton Rzehak’s criticism with:

This may still seem like a venturesome statement today, but my peers, who have known me for twenty-five years, will probably know that I do not easily pronounce my conviction.
Das Ausland, 1881, No. 26, Article 1

And indeed, Weinland went on to express his conviction by establishing in a treatise 16 genera each with multiple species, submitting his work to the Leopoldina and Acta, and proclaiming that:

Not ten years will pass before we will have a small universally recognized fauna of the meteorites.
Das Ausland, 1881, No. 26, Article 1

Certainly this is a fascinating story and a book worthy of reading! And regarding Hahn’s ideas about the iron meteorites, you will want to research the ironically named Chondrites.

Read: The Meteorite (Chondrite) and its Organisms

Read: Das Ausland Articles

Phase Transitions and Signs of Life – Ricard Sole

anautonomousagent — Sun, 30 Dec 2012 03:38:00 +0000

Phase Transitions by Ricard Sole provides a mathematical account of many current areas of research in the field of of complexity. The book demonstrates the wide range of topics that involve complex systems. I feel that the book would be a good reference for further study, as it contains many references.

I was first introduced to the writings of Sole when I found his book entitled Signs of Life. Signs of Life can be considered as a prelude to Phase Transitions. I believe that it was by accident that I found Sole’s book in the library catalog, or perhaps it was after I had read Emergence The Connected Lives of Ants, Brains, Cities, and Software by Steven Johnson. I feel like Johnson mimicked the outline and ideas of Sole, but that is only my opinion. Sole’s book provides amazing details on the prevalence of complexity all around us. The book provides a simple and easy to read introduction to the concepts of complexity and serves as a starting point for Kauffman’s books Investigations and Origins of Order (both Sole and Kauffman work/worked at the Santa Fe Institute), which I discuss in other posts. (ISBN: 9780691150758)

signs of life – An Autonomous Agent

The Meteorite (Chondrite) and its Organisms – Otto Hahn

Phase Transitions and Signs of Life – Ricard Sole