Antonio Lazcano – författare

Astrobiology, a new exciting interdisciplinary research field, seeks to unravel the origin and evolution of life wherever it might exist in the Universe. The current view of the origin of life on Earth is that it is strongly connected to the origin and evolution of our planet and, indeed, of the Universe as a whole.

We are fortunate to be living in an era where centuries of speculation about the two ancient and fundamental problems: the origin of life and its prevalence in the Universe are being replaced by experimental science. The subject of Astrobiology can be approached from many different perspectives. This book is focused on abiogenic organic matter from the viewpoint of astronomy and planetary science and considers its potential relevance to the origins of life on Earth and elsewhere.

Guided by the review papers in this book, the concluding chapter aims to identify key questions to motivate future research and stimulate astrobiological applications of current and future research facilities and space missions. Today’s rich array of new spacecraft, telescopes and dedicated scientists promises a steady flow of discoveries and insights that will ultimately lead us to the answers we seek.

This book collects three outstanding examples of the work of Mexican biologist Alfonso Luis Herrera (1868-1943), a pioneer in experimental origins of life research. Two of the collected works appear here in English for the first time. Herrera''s works represent the attempt to deal experimentally with the issue of an autotrophic origin of life, a possibility that was widely accepted prior to Alexander I. Oparin''s ideas regarding the possibility of organic synthesis and the origin of life in an early Earth environment. An active promoter of Darwinian ideas in Latin America, Herrera was also among the first 20th century researchers to attempt to “create life in a test tube.”

This collection shows the remarkable prescience of researchers in Mexico with regards to laboratory approaches to the problem of the origin of life. It also includes a modern commentary by researchers actively engaged in research in prebiotic evolution and the origins of life, and deeply concerned with the historical development of ideas in these fields. The list includes H. James Cleaves, Antonio Lazcano, Alicia Negrón-González and Juli Peretó, who discuss in detail the relevance of Herrera''s ideas to modern theory and their historical context. The book will expose modern readers and researchers to currents of thinking that have been lost, largely to time and language inaccessibility, of a seminal early theoretical biologist.