One of the great outstanding scientific mysteries is the origin of life. How did it happen? When I was a student, most scientists thought that life began with a stupendous chemical fluke, unique in the observable universe. Today it is fashionable to say that life is written into the laws of nature – easy to get started and therefore likely to be widespread in the universe. The truth is, nobody has a clue. It could be either extreme, or somewhere in the middle.
We may soon know the answer, though. The clincher would be the discovery of a second genesis on…
