Dr Ralph Pudritz and Dr Paul Higgs
Course Outline - PDF
PDF Papers to download
These papers are complementary to the lectures or the assignments.
Miller and Lazcano (1995) - The Origin of Life - Did it Occur at High Temperatures? PDF
Islas et al. (2003) - Hyperthermophily and the origin and earliest evolution of life PDF
Whittet (1997) - Is extraterrestrial organic matter relevant to the origin of life on earth? PDF
Gribbin and Rees "Cosmic Coincidences" - Tailor-made for man? PDF
Orgel (2004) - Prebiotic chemistry and the origin of the RNA world PDF
Joyce (2002) - The antiquity of RNA-based evolution PDF
Jeffares, Poole and Penny (1998) - Relics from the RNA world PDF
Segre and Lancet (2000) - Composing Life PDF
Eigen, McCaskill and Schuster (1988) - Molecular Quasispecies PDF
Nowak and May (1992) - Evolutionary Games and Spatial Chaos PDF
Szabo et al (2002) - Replicators with limited dispersal evolve towards higher efficiency and fidelity PDF
Szathmary et al (2005) - The evolutionary potential and requirements for minimal protocells PDF
Castresana (2001) - Comparative genomics and bioenergetics PDF
Olson and Blankenship (2004) - Thinking about the evolution of photosynthesis PDF
Rothschild and Mancinelli (2001) - Life in extreme environments PDF
Schopf (2006) - Fossil evidence of Archaean life PDF
Brasier et al (2006) - A fresh look at the fossil evidence for early Archaean cellular life PDF
Origins Institute Book
All the chapters are worth looking at and can be downloaded from the book web page.
PLEASE READ the following two chapters carefully because we are intending to have a class discussion on these.
Deamer - Emergent phenomena in biology: the origin of cellular life.
McKay - The search for life on Mars
Lecture notes to download
The powerpoint show should open in the Internet Explorer web browser.
Pudritz - Introduction PPT
Pudritz - Cosmic Foundations PPT
Higgs - Chemistry of Life PPT
Pudritz - Stars PPT
Pudritz - Star Formation PPT
Pudritz - Planet Formation PPT
Pudritz - Earth History PPT
Higgs - RNA World PPT
Higgs - Theoretical Models PPT
Higgs - Thermodynamics PPT
Higgs - Metabolism PPT
Pudritz - Mars PPT
Pudritz - Europa PPT
Higgs - Fossils PPT
Higgs - Phylogenetics PPT
EXCELLENT FOR REVISION - Astrobiology Primer PDF
Assignments to download
Pudritz - Assignment 1 - due by Oct 3rd (worth 10%) PDF
Pudritz - Assignment 2 - due by Oct 20th (worth 10%) PDF
Higgs - Assignment 3 - due by Oct 31st (worth 10%) DOC
Mid-term test - Tue 7th Nov (worth 15%)
Higgs - Assignment 4 - due by Nov 24th (worth 10%) DOC ANSWERS DOC
Last lecture - 1st Dec
Final exam - Fri 8th Dec (worth 45%)
Extra interesting stuff
These papers are relevant but we will not expect you to know the details for the exam.
Weber and Miller (1981) - Reasons for the occurrence of the 20 coded protein amino acids PDF
Gogarten and Taiz (1992) - The evolution of proton pumping ATPases: Rooting the tree of life PDF
Gupta and Golding (1996) - The origin of the eukaryotic cell PDF
Roger and Hug (2006) - The origin and diversification of eukaryotes PDF