(May 9, 2009 at 9:35 am)Tiberius Wrote: Who said anything about spontaneous generation? Abiogenesis says nothing of this. It is the study of how life can arise from inorganic matter. It doesn't say "one day inorganic matter, next day *poof* life".
I suppose there has to be spontaneous generation of life somewhere, if only based on your definition of life.
At one point your collection of molecules doesn't obey all the criterions set for life (whatever they might), and in the next it does.
I agree that the point at which it occurs is quite arbitrary depending on how you define life, and anyway it's nothing like the spontaneous generation that Chris seems to think abiogenesis is about i.e complex lifeforms magically being arranged out of billions of organic molecules
Galileo was a man of science oppressed by the irrational and superstitious. Today, he is used by the irrational and superstitious who claim they are being oppressed by science - Mark Crislip
