填空题
[A] These issues cut right across traditional
religious dogma. Many people cling to the belief that the origin of life
required a unique divine act. But ff life on Earth is not unique, the case for a
miraculous origin would be undermined. The discovery of even a humble bacterium
on Mars, if it could be shown to have arisen independently from Earth life would
support the view that life emerges naturally.
[B] Contrary to popular belief, speculation that we are not alone in the universe is as old as philosophy itself. The essential steps in the reasoning were based on the atomic theory of the ancient Greek philosopher Democritus. First, the laws of nature are universal. Second, there is nothing special or privileged about Earth. Finally, if something is possible, nature tends to make it happen. Philosophy is one thing, filling in the physical details is another. Although astronomers increasingly suspect that bio-friendly planets may be abundant in the universe, the chemical steps leading to life remain largely mysterious.
[C] There is, however, a contrary view-one that is gaining strength and directly challenges orthodox biology. It is that complexity can emerge spontaneously through a process of self-organization, ff matter and energy have an inbuilt tendency to amplify and channel organized complexity, the odds against the formation of life and the subsequent evolution of intelligence could be drastically shortened. The relevance of self- organization to biology remains hotly debated. It suggests, however, that although the universe as a whole may be dying, an opposite, progressive trend may also exist as a fundamental property of nature. The emergence of extraterrestrial life, particularly-intelligent life, is a key test for these rival paradigms.
[D] Similar reasoning applies to evolution. According to the orthodox view, Darwinian selection is utterly blind. Any impression that the transition from microbes to man represents progress is pure chauvinism of our part. The path of evolution is merely a random walk through the realm of possibilities. If this is right, there can be no directionality, no innate drive forward; in particular, no push toward consciousness and intelligence. Should Earth be struck by an asteroid, destroying all higher life -forms, intelligent beings, still less humanoids, would almost certainly not arise next time around.
[E] Traditionally, biologists believed that life is a freak-the result of a zillion - to - on& accidental concatenation of molecules. It follows that the likelihood of its happening again elsewhere in the cosmos is infinitesimal. This viewpoint de- rives from the second law of thermodynamics, which predicts that the universe is dying - slowly and inexorably degenerating toward a state of total chaos. Life stumbles across this trend only because it is a pure statistical luck.
[F] Historically, the Roman Catholic church regarded any discussion of alien life as heresy. Speculating about other inhabited worlds was one reason philosopher Giordano Bruno was burned at the stake in 1600. Belief that mankind has-a special relationship with God is central to the monotheistic religions. The existence of alien beings, especially if they were further advanced than humans intellectually and spiritually, would disrupt this cozy view.
[G] The discovery of life beyond earth would transform not only our science but also our religions, our belief systems and our entire world view. For in a sense, the search for extraterrestrial life is really a search for ourselves - who we are and what our place is in the grand sweep of the cosmos.
Order:
[B] Contrary to popular belief, speculation that we are not alone in the universe is as old as philosophy itself. The essential steps in the reasoning were based on the atomic theory of the ancient Greek philosopher Democritus. First, the laws of nature are universal. Second, there is nothing special or privileged about Earth. Finally, if something is possible, nature tends to make it happen. Philosophy is one thing, filling in the physical details is another. Although astronomers increasingly suspect that bio-friendly planets may be abundant in the universe, the chemical steps leading to life remain largely mysterious.
[C] There is, however, a contrary view-one that is gaining strength and directly challenges orthodox biology. It is that complexity can emerge spontaneously through a process of self-organization, ff matter and energy have an inbuilt tendency to amplify and channel organized complexity, the odds against the formation of life and the subsequent evolution of intelligence could be drastically shortened. The relevance of self- organization to biology remains hotly debated. It suggests, however, that although the universe as a whole may be dying, an opposite, progressive trend may also exist as a fundamental property of nature. The emergence of extraterrestrial life, particularly-intelligent life, is a key test for these rival paradigms.
[D] Similar reasoning applies to evolution. According to the orthodox view, Darwinian selection is utterly blind. Any impression that the transition from microbes to man represents progress is pure chauvinism of our part. The path of evolution is merely a random walk through the realm of possibilities. If this is right, there can be no directionality, no innate drive forward; in particular, no push toward consciousness and intelligence. Should Earth be struck by an asteroid, destroying all higher life -forms, intelligent beings, still less humanoids, would almost certainly not arise next time around.
[E] Traditionally, biologists believed that life is a freak-the result of a zillion - to - on& accidental concatenation of molecules. It follows that the likelihood of its happening again elsewhere in the cosmos is infinitesimal. This viewpoint de- rives from the second law of thermodynamics, which predicts that the universe is dying - slowly and inexorably degenerating toward a state of total chaos. Life stumbles across this trend only because it is a pure statistical luck.
[F] Historically, the Roman Catholic church regarded any discussion of alien life as heresy. Speculating about other inhabited worlds was one reason philosopher Giordano Bruno was burned at the stake in 1600. Belief that mankind has-a special relationship with God is central to the monotheistic religions. The existence of alien beings, especially if they were further advanced than humans intellectually and spiritually, would disrupt this cozy view.
[G] The discovery of life beyond earth would transform not only our science but also our religions, our belief systems and our entire world view. For in a sense, the search for extraterrestrial life is really a search for ourselves - who we are and what our place is in the grand sweep of the cosmos.
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