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Science Section => Science General Discussion => Biology, Psychology & Medicine => Topic started by: Unbeliever on December 13, 2018, 07:51:23 PM

Title: Scientists Discover Huge Bacterial Biomass Inside Earth
Post by: Unbeliever on December 13, 2018, 07:51:23 PM
It turns out that Thomas Gold was right about the deep hot biosphere:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j2M99LhYv2Q


So, if we humans sterilize the planet's surface, eventually more life might migrate up from below to build another biosphere on the surface.
Title: Re: Scientists Discover Huge Bacterial Biomass Inside Earth
Post by: Minimalist on December 13, 2018, 08:56:46 PM
I was expecting another Trump thread.
Title: Re: Scientists Discover Huge Bacterial Biomass Inside Earth
Post by: Hydra009 on December 13, 2018, 09:16:03 PM
Quote from: Unbeliever on December 13, 2018, 07:51:23 PMSo, if we humans sterilize the planet's surface, eventually more life might migrate up from below to build another biosphere on the surface.
Huh.  I've never thought about that.  Plus, on planets that might've had life on the surface in the distant past but the surface has since become inhospitable for life as we know it (Venus, Mars), native life might be doing just fine underneath the surface, just waiting to be discovered.  Quite a hopeful idea!
Title: Re: Scientists Discover Huge Bacterial Biomass Inside Earth
Post by: Baruch on December 14, 2018, 02:28:15 AM
Early life didn't like oxygen.  Once the atmosphere went with oxygen, it had to burrow underground.  Bring on the Mole People!
Title: Re: Scientists Discover Huge Bacterial Biomass Inside Earth
Post by: Unbeliever on December 14, 2018, 01:47:00 PM
Quote from: Hydra009 on December 13, 2018, 09:16:03 PM
Huh.  I've never thought about that.  Plus, on planets that might've had life on the surface in the distant past but the surface has since become inhospitable for life as we know it (Venus, Mars), native life might be doing just fine underneath the surface, just waiting to be discovered.  Quite a hopeful idea!

I doubt that Venus has any sort of deep hot biosphere, since the entire surface may melt about every 500 million years or so (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geodynamics_of_Venus), completely resurfacing the planet.

There's still plenty of hope for Mars, though!
Title: Re: Scientists Discover Huge Bacterial Biomass Inside Earth
Post by: Cavebear on December 26, 2018, 01:16:49 AM
Quote from: Unbeliever on December 13, 2018, 07:51:23 PM
It turns out that Thomas Gold was right about the deep hot biosphere:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j2M99LhYv2Q


So, if we humans sterilize the planet's surface, eventually more life might migrate up from below to build another biosphere on the surface.

It's possible, so what?  They wouldn't be likely to produce any complex life before the Earth was destroyed by the dying sun.
Title: Re: Scientists Discover Huge Bacterial Biomass Inside Earth
Post by: Unbeliever on December 26, 2018, 01:56:32 PM
Well, they might. Too bad we'll never be able to know.
Title: Re: Scientists Discover Huge Bacterial Biomass Inside Earth
Post by: Baruch on December 26, 2018, 08:07:02 PM
Quote from: Unbeliever on December 26, 2018, 01:56:32 PM
Well, they might. Too bad we'll never be able to know.

Cavebear doesn't want to be one of the Mole People.
Title: Re: Scientists Discover Huge Bacterial Biomass Inside Earth
Post by: Cavebear on December 29, 2018, 05:07:10 PM
Quote from: Unbeliever on December 26, 2018, 01:56:32 PM
Well, they might. Too bad we'll never be able to know.

You are saying then that Venusian life developed faster (if it ever existed) than Earthian life?  It possible, the planet is hotter.  Just asking why you thought it...
Title: Re: Scientists Discover Huge Bacterial Biomass Inside Earth
Post by: Unbeliever on December 29, 2018, 05:44:49 PM
Geological processes near and on Earth's surface should, over time, bring micro-organisms up from below the surface, which will begin creating new environmental niches to inhabit and exploit. Eventually that might again lead to multicellular life forms that would again evolve to create a new surface biosphere.

I don't know what that has to do with Venus.
Title: Re: Scientists Discover Huge Bacterial Biomass Inside Earth
Post by: Baruch on December 29, 2018, 07:31:20 PM
Quote from: Unbeliever on December 29, 2018, 05:44:49 PM
Geological processes near and on Earth's surface should, over time, bring micro-organisms up from below the surface, which will begin creating new environmental niches to inhabit and exploit. Eventually that might again lead to multicellular life forms that would again evolve to create a new surface biosphere.

I don't know what that has to do with Venus.

Venus - depends on the particular thermal and acidic history of the surface.  Was it always so hot and acidic?

It is unclear, that as cellular life forms evolve, that in the long run, they are permanently cutting off certain adaptations (aka entropy bites).  In which case a extremophile might be so highly adapted, that it will never have any mutate offspring that can tolerate a normal surface condition.
Title: Re: Scientists Discover Huge Bacterial Biomass Inside Earth
Post by: Cavebear on January 05, 2019, 07:58:54 AM
Quote from: Unbeliever on December 29, 2018, 05:44:49 PM
Geological processes near and on Earth's surface should, over time, bring micro-organisms up from below the surface, which will begin creating new environmental niches to inhabit and exploit. Eventually that might again lead to multicellular life forms that would again evolve to create a new surface biosphere.

I don't know what that has to do with Venus.

No offence meant.  It just seemed to be a logical extension of your earlier post...
Title: Re: Scientists Discover Huge Bacterial Biomass Inside Earth
Post by: Unbeliever on January 05, 2019, 02:00:38 PM
No offense taken! :-)


It isn't clear whether the deep hot biosphere would have sufficient time to evolve a new intelligent species before the sun heats up too much to allow surface life. The sun may last another five billion years or so, but Earth will become uninhabitable long before that, maybe only one or two billion years. But that may be enough time, I don't know.
Title: Re: Scientists Discover Huge Bacterial Biomass Inside Earth
Post by: Cavebear on January 05, 2019, 02:18:35 PM
Quote from: Unbeliever on January 05, 2019, 02:00:38 PM
No offense taken! :-)


It isn't clear whether the deep hot biosphere would have sufficient time to evolve a new intelligent species before the sun heats up too much to allow surface life. The sun may last another five billion years or so, but Earth will become uninhabitable long before that, maybe only one or two billion years. But that may be enough time, I don't know.

If me can't find a way to live elsewhere in the next thousand years, we probably don't deserve to continue.  Ever read 'Breed To Come', or 'The Uplift Wars", BTW?
Title: Re: Scientists Discover Huge Bacterial Biomass Inside Earth
Post by: Unbeliever on January 05, 2019, 02:20:22 PM
No. I've heard of the latter, but not the former, and haven't read either. I'll see if the library has them and give them a look.
Title: Re: Scientists Discover Huge Bacterial Biomass Inside Earth
Post by: Cavebear on January 05, 2019, 02:28:23 PM
Quote from: Unbeliever on January 05, 2019, 02:20:22 PM
No. I've heard of the latter, but not the former, and haven't read either. I'll see if the library has them and give them a look.

Just to add that both involve non-human species evolution ('Uplift").
Title: Re: Scientists Discover Huge Bacterial Biomass Inside Earth
Post by: Unbeliever on January 05, 2019, 02:40:28 PM
I sometimes think about how it would be in the far future for their scientists to find evidence in the ground of our previous existence, and how they'd manage to interpret what they find of us. How much would they get right? Probably not much. But it would be nice if they could take lessons from out misuse of technology and do whatever it takes for them to not make the same mistakes.
Title: Re: Scientists Discover Huge Bacterial Biomass Inside Earth
Post by: Cavebear on January 05, 2019, 02:49:24 PM
Quote from: Unbeliever on January 05, 2019, 02:40:28 PM
I sometimes think about how it would be in the far future for their scientists to find evidence in the ground of our previous existence, and how they'd manage to interpret what they find of us. How much would they get right? Probably not much. But it would be nice if they could take lessons from out misuse of technology and do whatever it takes for them to not make the same mistakes.

You should watch "Life After Earth' and the sequels.
Title: Re: Scientists Discover Huge Bacterial Biomass Inside Earth
Post by: Baruch on January 05, 2019, 03:02:13 PM
Quote from: Unbeliever on January 05, 2019, 02:40:28 PM
I sometimes think about how it would be in the far future for their scientists to find evidence in the ground of our previous existence, and how they'd manage to interpret what they find of us. How much would they get right? Probably not much. But it would be nice if they could take lessons from out misuse of technology and do whatever it takes for them to not make the same mistakes.

In the TV version of Planet of the Apes ... the apes decided that a golf club was a weird kind of weapon ;-)