JE,

On Sun, 08 Aug 2004 08:46:53 -0700, JE wrote:

...

There is a problem in transporting DNA vast distances because of the
danger of damage through interstellar radiation. Even at the speed of
light the time it takes for the DNA to get here from the other side of the
galaxy/universe there would be no DNA left.

Don't forget about Deinococcus Radiodurans. It's extremely
radiation-tolerant, though I don't know quantitatively how long it could
stand the typical radiation flux in interstellar space. One account I
found stated that its ability to live and reproduce was unaffected by a
1.5 million rad dose of ionizing radition. That's a couple of thousand of
times what it takes to kill a human.

...

Randall Schulz