Robert Shapiro (28 November 1935 – 15 June 2011) was professor emeritus of chemistry at

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, the ...

. He is best known for his work on the

origin of life In biology, abiogenesis (from a- 'not' + Greek bios 'life' + genesis 'origin') or the origin of life is the natural process by which life has arisen from non-living matter, such as simple organic compounds. The prevailing scientific hypothes ...

, having written two books on the topic: ''Origins, a Skeptic’s Guide to the Creation of Life on Earth'' (1986) and ''Planetary Dreams'' (1999). He opposed the

RNA world hypothesis The RNA world is a hypothetical stage in the evolutionary history of life on Earth, in which self-replicating RNA molecules proliferated before the evolution of DNA and proteins. The term also refers to the hypothesis that posits the existence ...

, and held that the spontaneous emergence of a molecule as complicated as

RNA Ribonucleic acid (RNA) is a polymeric molecule essential in various biological roles in coding, decoding, regulation and expression of genes. RNA and deoxyribonucleic acid ( DNA) are nucleic acids. Along with lipids, proteins, and carbohydra ...

is highly unlikely. Instead, he proposed that life arose from some self-sustaining and compartmentalized reaction of simple molecules: "metabolism first" instead of "RNA first". This reaction would have to be able to reproduce and evolve, eventually leading to RNA. He claimed that in this view life is a normal consequence of the laws of nature and potentially quite common in the universe.Alvin Powell
NYU chemist Robert Shapiro decries RNA-first possibility
''Harvard University Gazette'', 23 October 2008

Works

*''Life Beyond Earth: The Intelligent Earthling's Guide to Extraterrestrial Life'' (with

Gerald Feinberg Gerald Feinberg (27 May 1933 – 21 April 1992) was a Columbia University physicist, futurist and populist author. He spent a year as a Member of the Institute for Advanced Study, and two years at the Brookhaven Laboratories. Feinberg went to Bro ...

) Morrow, 1980. . *''Origins: A Skeptic's Guide to the Creation of Life on Earth'' Summit Books (January 1986) . *''Planetary Dreams: The Quest to Discover Life Beyond Earth'' Wiley; 1 edition (1999) .

References

External links

Faculty page
at

Page about his books
1935 births 2011 deaths American chemists New York University faculty Harvard University alumni City College of New York alumni {{US-chemist-stub