Instructify

December 3, 2010

Okay, so NASA hasn’t found extraterrestrial life. They did find something pretty cool, though — a microorganism “able to thrive and reproduce using the toxic chemical arsenic. The microorganism substitutes arsenic for phosphorus in its cell components.”

What this means is that life can spring from more than just carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, phosphorus and sulfur. More broadly, it’s a fundamental shift in how and where scientists can look for new forms of life, opening a lot more possibilities of the sorts of extraterrestrial life NASA might hope to find. More locally, your district may have to update its science textbooks in the near future.

Science teachers, how will this affect your teaching? Do you plan to share this announcement with your class? Read the full story and leave a comment about how this discovery will alter your teaching.

NASA-Funded Research Discovers Life Built With Toxic Chemical

Newly discovered giant bug terrorized prehistoric seas

Awesomeosaurus: New Carnivorous Dinosaur Discovered