Research

These are questions that have been asked, pondered, and chased throughout human history. Here at the Chicago Center for the Origins of Life, we believe that answers to these questions are now within reach.

Advances in chemistry are showing how simple molecules could be transformed into the building blocks of life and assembled into protocells. Physical studies are showing how these building blocks are shaped by natural surfaces and features. Studies of terrestrial samples reveal the different environments and conditions that existed on our planet billions of years ago, when these processes were naturally occurring. And astronomical observations are revealing that planets both like and unlike those in our Solar System exist throughout the galaxy, offering countless places where similar chemical, physical, and geologic processes may have the opportunity to play out.

However, we firmly believe that a complete understanding of life’s origins will not come from any single discipline—not chemistry, physics, Earth science, or astronomy alone. Instead, here at our Center, we are convinced that true breakthroughs require a rigorous, interdisciplinary approach. By bringing together chemists, physicists, Earth scientists, and astronomers, we provide opportunities and avenues for students, postdocs, and faculty to look beyond their own expertises, learn from one another, and push the boundaries of science. In doing so, we will move beyond idealized experiments and models conducted in isolation, to a complete understanding of how the complex processes associated with the origin of life truly unfold on a planet.