[~ot] why is programming so fun?

[Fawzi Mohamed]

On 2008-06-02 17:46:37 +0200, BCS <ao at pathlink.com> said:

> Reply to Fawzi,
> 
>> Chris Wright Wrote:
>> 
>>> BCS wrote:
>>> 
>>>> The chances of life happening by chance are something like that, if
>>>> not worse. You could probably calculated a relative number for it
>>>> with quantum physics and/or information theory and/or string theory
>>>> or some such. IIRC there is a theory about how much info can be in a
>>>> given volume.
>>>> 
>>> I don't think anyone has come close to describing the odds of
>>> abiogenesis.
>>> 
>> definitely OT, but
>> J. Maynard Smith, Eörs Szathmáry: The Major Transitions in Evolution.
>> New York 1995, Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-850294-X
>> contains several interesting thoughts about it :)
> 
> Link by any chance?

Sorry It is a paper book.

http://www.amazon.com/Major-Transitions-Evolution-Maynard-Smith/dp/019850294X
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Major_Transitions_in_Evolution

 Being old it is not so cheap.
The same authors have also published a newer book on a similar theme 
which might be good, and is very cheap, but I haven't read it.

http://www.amazon.com/Origins-Life-Birth-Origin-Language/dp/019286209X/ref=pd_bxgy_b_text_b

Anyway 

the question for the origin of life it isn't how to create a cell by 
chance, but how to create the simplest auto replicating blocks on which 
then evolution can kick in, and one can imagine some situation in which 
this can happen, improbable for sure, but not impossible...