Thanks to Michael Ferrari who has pointed out a cool new phylogenetics visualization tool called the "Interactive Tree of Life"Put out (I believe) by Peer Bork's group, this tool allows users to upload their own trees and then view and manipulate them from anywhere. Seems like Peer is trying to become the Google of phylogenetics.
Have you seen the picture on the Homo sapiens branch? Check it out.
ReplyDeleteI am glad it was not Watson or Venter. Borat makes a much better reference human
ReplyDeleteBorat sapiens The itol is not that new, but I do agree with the concept of Peer becoming the phylogenetics' google. Try to upload your own trees and pimp them the tool is fantastic ;)
ReplyDeleteWhence And Whither
ReplyDelete2010 Update Concepts Of Life/Evolution
On Life's Twist
A. Di Mauro's RNA formation concept is great.
http://www.f1000scientist.com/2010/7/1/23/1/
But, a step further is required. How had the RNA become alive, i.e. how did it (1) uptake the sun's radiation and how did it (2) catalytically use it to perform work, to keep augmenting its constrained energy by keeping augmenting its self-propagation, WHICH IS THE ESSENCE OF LIFE ?
THIS IS THE STILL MISSING TWIST IN THE BRANCHING OF LIFE FROM OTHER SURVIVING, ENERGY DIGESTING, MATTER SUCH AS BLACK HOLES. THIS TWIST IS THE BIOLOGICAL ENTITY "CULTURE", LEARNING-ADAPTING, THE ESSENCE OF DARWINIAN EVOLUTION SINCE LIFE'S DAY ONE. THIS MUST HAVE BEEN THE CRUCIAL PROCESS TWIST, EVEN WITHOUT YET KNOWING ITS MECHANISM.
Or, is the mechanism of this twist known now?
It is now known how the RNAs, Earth's primal organisms, adopt an enhanced energy event's DNA conformation. But what is the mechanism of its recognizing the enhanced energy event? Does it derive from augmented RNA propagation and alternative splicing feedback loop, or is the augmented propagation a result of an energetic feature recognized by the RNA?
B. Ponder with plain commonsense, and stick to obvious data.
Sleep and chirality are data, evidence that RNAs ARE ORGANISMS, alive, that came into being and were active prior to evolution of biometabolism. RNAs are not just "genes in the organisms". They are Earth's base primal organisms. Plain and simple. Why complicate the obvious simple evident data?
Add to this the embarrassingly obvious evident data-based concepts of the dual cycle universe, with cosmic expansion as the driver of universal evolution, the continuous melee of mass formats for energy.
Our essential science interests should be the BASIC ESSENTIAL existential matters. Seek them carefully within the infinite number of mechanisms. Focus on the mechanisms that are rational evidence for the basic matters.
This is the opinion of an old-timer, a self-considered scientist, tired of the preposterous 20th-21st centuries technology culture and of the century-old corrupt science tradeunion-guild-establishment.
Dov Henis
(Comments From The 22nd Century)
http://www.the-scientist.com/community/user/profile/1655.page
Seed of Human-Chimp Genomes Diversity
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_2SF3CJJM5OU6T27OC4MFQSDYEU/blog/articles/53079
03.2010 Updated Life Manifest
http://www.the-scientist.com/community/posts/list/54.page#5065
Evolution, Natural Selection, Derive From Cosmic Expansion
http://darwiniana.com/2010/09/05/the-question-reductionists-fear/