Emergence of behavior through software

[btanksley@hifn.com]

From: Alik Widge [mailto:aswst16+@pitt.edu]
><lmaxson@pacbell.net> wrote:

>> We are basic agreement here.  That's why we are in disagreement
>> with respect to software-initiated life.  As far as I know all
>> organism are carbon-based.  I assume that's why we call the

>Actually, that's not 100% true. We have found some bacteria in 
>deep-sea vents which use a sulfur-based synthetic chain.

Erm -- I'm pretty sure they were carbon based.  They 'oxidized' their food
using sulfur rather than oxygen, though.  But I'm not disagreeing with you;
I don't see Lynn's point yet.  It doesn't make sense to me that life could
only be carbon-based.

>Furthermore, life on other 
>worlds, especially bacterial-analogues, seems quite common, 
>and will have to deal with very different element ratios.

Where did you find the information that life on other worlds is quite
common?  I wasn't aware that any had ever been discovered.

-Billy