Resumo

DREYER, Johan  e  VAN DER WALT, Kobus. The origin of life: "In the beginning was the Word". Tydskr. geesteswet. [online]. 2023, vol.63, n.2, pp.211-228. ISSN 2224-7912.  http://dx.doi.org/10.17159/2224-7912/2023/v63n2a3.

Many scientists and researchers agree that biological life on earth most likely arose naturally, but they cannot account for the exact method by which life arose. Numerous experiments and observations have provided evidence that the basic building blocks of life (amino acids) can form spontaneously under the conditions thought to be those present on ancient earth. The recent discovery of Extremophiles (organisms that thrive in extreme conditions such as high temperature and pressure) gave further impetus to the belief that it is possible for unguided, random mechanisms to produce life. However, contrary to scientists who present contemporary scientific evidence as proof of life having a natural origin, there is a growing number of authoritative scholars who claim that the a priori conditions for life to exist at all, as well as its complexity, are indicative of carefully planned, guided mechanisms. Contrary to a materialistic/atheistic view, these researchers advocate a willingness to follow contemporary data to its most likely, logical conclusion. This conclusion involves the continuous involvement of a Creator right from the moment of creation, to the present. The group of theories that centre around a belief that life was created by a supernatural force or deity is known as Creationism. It is based on religious beliefs that determine the way in which natural scientific data is interpreted. Creationists argue that the complexity of living organisms, as well as the existence of consciousness, cannot be explained by random, unguided processes and must have been designed by a higher power. One of the arguments for a supernatural origin of life, is the Anthropocentric principle (or the so-called "fine-tuning" argument), which claims that the universe has precise values for certain physical constants and laws that make it possible for life to exist. Proponents of this view argue that the universe's design could only have been orchestrated by a conscious, purposeful designer. Further evidence cited for supernatural involvement includes the Cambrian explosion and other discontinuities in the paleontological record, as well as the belief that the information in the DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) molecule must have had an intelligent author. Criticism of Creationism is that there is no scientific evidence that the universe was fine-tuned solely for the purpose of facilitating life, or that a conscious designer was responsible for it. Furthermore, the "Multiverse" hypothesis, which postulates that there can be many universes with different physical constants, offers a possible naturalistic explanation for why our universe possesses the properties that are observed. As for the paleontological discontinuities and the information in DNA, these are indeed interesting phenomena that have been and still are the subject of much scientific investigation. However, it is important to note that there is ongoing scientific debate about possible unguided mechanisms that could have caused the Cambrian explosion, and the information in DNA can, according to materialists, also be explained by natural processes such as evolution through natural selection. One of the Naturalistic theories about the origin of life on earth is Abiogenesis, which claims that life arose spontaneously from non-living matter through an optimal coincidence of chemical reactions under favourable conditions. This theory is based on the idea that the conditions on the early earth were perfect for the formation of simple organic molecules, which eventually gave rise to more complex structures capable of self-replication. The Miller-Urey experiment, for example, showed that simple organic molecules formed under conditions that, according to the knowledge at the time, were identical to those on early earth. However, this experiment was discredited over time because the researchers assumed that the primordial atmosphere consisted mainly of methane, ammonia, and water vapour, but later research showed that the early atmosphere more likely consisted of nitrogen, carbon dioxide and water vapour. In addition, some scientists have pointed out that the conditions simulated in the experiment were too reducing in nature (that is, too poor in oxygen), to accurately reflect the conditions on the early earth which had a more oxidizing atmosphere. Therefore, while the Miller-Urey experiment remains an important milestone in the history of origin of life research, it is widely recognised that its results should be viewed with caution and that its implications for the natural formation of life on earth should not be overstated. Another naturalistic theory is that life was brought to earth by comets or meteorites. This theory, known as Panspermia, suggests that life may have originated elsewhere in the universe and was transported to earth by comets or meteorites. Panspermia is supported by the discovery of organic molecules and microorganisms in some meteorites, as well as the presence of microbial life in extreme environments on earth that may be similar to conditions on other planets. Each of these theories has its own strengths and weaknesses and there is no consensus among scientists as to which theory is the most accurate. Abiogenesis, for example, is supported by the evidence of the formation of simple organic molecules under conditions, presumably like those on the early earth, but it is difficult to explain how these molecules gave rise to complex structures capable of self-replication. Panspermia is in turn supported by the discovery of organic molecules and microorganisms in some meteorites, but this does not explain the original origin of life itself. Creationism, on the other hand is not directly supported by scientific evidence but is based on the interpretation of empirical data from a religious paradigm. The origin of life on earth therefore remains a subject of scientific inquiry and naturalistic explanations, based on empirical evidence and well-established scientific theories are still considered in mainstream science to be the only valid basis of human understanding of this complex and interesting subject. However, this normative materialist interpretation is increasingly being questioned by a growing number of eminent scholars. This article focuses on the origin and complexity of information as found in life on earth. All forms of information known to man, whether hieroglyphs, radio signals, printed media or TV broadcasts have an intelligent author, and the question is why mainstream science insists on considering the most complex information observed by humankind to date (namely the code in the DNA molecule), as strictly materialistic in origin.

Palavras-chave : origin of life; normative materialism; Creationism; Panspermia; Abiogenesis; information in DNA; Anthropocentric³ principle; data; information; knowledge; causal determinism; Thermodynamics; Irreducible complexity; biological reproduction; Stochasticity.

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