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Re: 2012, the End of the World?

  #251  
May 26th, 2008
It is possible that the smallest forms of life like a virus or even sublife like a misfolded protein or prion (Mad Cow) will do away with larger life forms eventually. Call it God's will.
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Re: 2012, the End of the World?

  #252  
May 26th, 2008
It is easier to argue that a virus is sublife, as you call it, otheer then life since it is only dna/rna wrapped in a protein shell. A virus does not matabolize or reproduce. It is merely runs by chemical reaction brought about by the connection of a cell wall for which the virus is coded. It then injects its dna/rns inside the cell and the enzymes replicate the dna and protien shells until there is no more room in the cell at which point the cell ruptures and releases the thousands off viruses created by the cell.

It believed by most that viruses are not alive.

And your point about end of the world being caused by mocroorganism and alike is relevant but "god" having anything to do with it is definately not.
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Re: 2012, the End of the World?

  #253  
May 26th, 2008
I think the mere action of injecting into another cell to replicate makes a virus a life form. Then there is the prion, just a protein, that gets replicated in its victim.

I guess one might stretch things a little and also throw in opportunistic cancer cells.

It must be God's will that those things exist.
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Re: 2012, the End of the World?

  #254  
May 26th, 2008
Note: I really tried to follow the Keep it Clean rule here: A virus is like a penis. Not technically alive but some would say it is. It appears to have a mind of its own, even though it doesn't. It has to inject into another being to reproduce.
Viruses are not alive. They cannot reproduce on their own so they are not classified as living, although they are not dead either.
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Re: 2012, the End of the World?

  #255  
May 27th, 2008
Jasimp - love the simile!
scholars disagree:
Biologists debate whether or not viruses are living organisms. Some consider them non-living as they do not meet the criteria of the definition of life. For example, unlike most organisms, viruses do not have cells. However, viruses have genes and evolve by natural selection. Others have described them as organisms at the edge of life.
I have been interested in phages (anti-bacterial virii) for quite a while - I think with the current spate of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, the study of bacteriophages will come to the fore again (interest in phages stopped in the US with the discovery of Penicillin).

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Re: 2012, the End of the World?

  #256  
May 27th, 2008
Ya its amazing how useless penicillin is becoming with the resistance of pathogenic bacteria growing. They will soon run out anti-bacterial chemicals produced by fungi and humans and then were screwed.

That when phages will come back into the limelight.
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Re: 2012, the End of the World?

  #257  
May 27th, 2008
Originally Posted by steven woodman View Post
Ya its amazing how useless penicillin is becoming with the resistance of pathogenic bacteria growing. They will soon run out anti-bacterial chemicals produced by fungi and humans and then were screwed.

That when phages will come back into the limelight.
Mutating bacteria and prokaryotes could eventually become the ultimate undefeated enemy.
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Re: 2012, the End of the World?

  #259  
Jun 5th, 2008
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Re: 2012, the End of the World?

  #260  
Jun 5th, 2008
I had a sub in High School frosh bio class who kept telling us that viruses were alive.

Fun fact: According to the Mayans, the world will end the day before I reach the legal drinking age in my home country of USA! USA! USA!

Other fun fact: I don't trust it. The Mayans didn't predict the Spaniards...
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