LIFE ELSEWHERE MAY BE…LIKE US: If we ever encounter sentient life on another planet, we may find much in common, according to a study published in the International Journal of Astrobiology.
In the study, scientists from the University of Oxford use evolutionary theory to argue that aliens potentially are “shaped by the same processes and mechanisms that shaped humans, such as natural selection,” according to the university’s website.
The scientists argue: “Given aliens undergo natural selection we can say something about their evolution. In particular, we can say something about how complexity will arise in space. Complexity has increased on the Earth as a result of a handful of events, known as the major transitions in individuality. Major transitions occur when groups of individuals come together to form a new higher level of the individual, such as when single-celled organisms evolved into multicellular organisms. Both theory and empirical data suggest that extreme conditions are required for major transitions to occur. We suggest that major transitions are likely to be the route to complexity on other planets."
The article, Darwin’s Aliens, by Samuel R. Levin, researcher in Oxford's Department of Zoology, et al, has been published in The International Journal of Biology, Nov. 1.
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