Extreme forms of life -- from organisms living in the scalding water of hot springs to the possibility of life away from Earth -- will be the focus of a symposium at the University of Colorado at Boulder.
The symposium, "The Extremes of Life," will be held Thursday, Aug. 31, at 7 p.m. in the University Memorial Center's Glenn Miller Ballroom and will feature a panel discussion. The event is free and open to the public and is geared toward a broad audience.
The panel, sponsored by the Graduate School, will be made up of five CU-Boulder professors from different departments on campus who will delve into the topic.
"The idea is to have several campus experts coming at the issue (extreme forms of life) from different directions," said Jerry Peterson, assistant vice chancellor of the CU-Boulder Graduate School.
This is the fifth year the Graduate School has put a symposium together to mark the beginning of the school year and to welcome students to campus, Peterson said.
One of the major discoveries in terrestrial biology in the last couple of decades is that living organisms can be found in a much wider range of environments than previously thought, according to CU-Boulder astrobiologist Bruce Jakosky, one of the panelists.
"Exploring the extremes in which life can exist on Earth allows us to explore the nature of life itself, and to understand the conditions in which life may have originated and in which it can exist," Jakosky said.
Jakosky will touch on the potential of life to exist elsewhere in the solar system, in particular on Mars and Europa. He also will talk about the recent discovery of geological evidence for near-surface liquid water in Mars' recent past and the implications for possible life on Mars.
Journalism Associate Professor Tom Yulsman will start his talk by discussing the premise that the extraordinary public interest in the search for life elsewhere in the universe stems from a desire to understand our place in the cosmos. He will then review how science has contributed to that understanding 聳 particularly the recent impact that astrobiology has had.
Molecular, cellular and developmental biology Professor Kathleen Danna will talk about research being done on organisms that live in the extreme temperatures of hot springs like those found in Yellowstone National Park, and what the research may mean for the future, particularly for development of clean-burning fuels.
Aerospace engineering Assistant Professor David Klaus, who was an astronaut finalist, will talk about what is required to survive in space. He also will discuss an experiment involving antibiotic production in a zero gravity laboratory onboard the International Space Station.
Environmental, population and organismic biology Professor Ned Friedman will delve into the evolutionary history of life on Earth, focusing on some highlights of the last four billion years.
The audience is encouraged to participate in a discussion following the panelists聮 talks. The UMC is located at the intersection of Broadway and Euclid Avenue. Parking will be available in the Euclid Avenue Autopark, just east of the UMC, for $1.25 after 5 p.m.