Science Pub Eugene

"The Origins of Life on Earth"

Where did life come from? What is alive, anyway? How could it all have started on a lifeless planet? At this Science Pub we will explore problems in studying the origins of life, and some insights and advances towards solving the puzzle of the beginning of life on Earth.

Dr. Niles Lehman is a professor of Chemistry and past chair of the Department of Chemistry at Portland State University, where he has been since 2001. He received his B.S. and M.A. from the University of California, Berkeley before obtaining his Ph.D. in evolutionary biology from UCLA in 1990. His career spans several institutions and projects, including studies of the population genetics of wolves, coyotes, foxes, seals, and water fleas. But his main personal and professional interests lie in the issues surrounding abiogenesis and the origins of life on Earth. His current work is funded by NASA to investigate how populations of catalytic RNA molecules can replicate themselves. Niles is associate editor for scientific journals such as the Journal of Molecular Evolution, Astrobiology, and Trends in Evolutionary Biology. When not in the laboratory his interests include badminton, steel-tip darts, and college football.