On Sat, 16 Aug 2008 00:37:10 -0700, Timberwoof
<timberwoof.spam@inferNOnoSPAMsoft.com> enriched this group when s/he
wrote:

In article <K5ednc0cW6yDrznVnZ2dnUVZ_uSdnZ2d@comcast.com>,
Charlie Siegrist <none.active@this.time.check.back.later> wrote:

On Wed, 13 Aug 2008 18:50:06 -0700, Timberwoof wrote:

This suggests that the formation of such a molecule is a very rare
event.

No, it suggests that once a particular chemical basis of life gets
established, another one won't.

That is the conclusion, if I recall correctly, of a recent Scientific 
American article about this subject.  There is an effort afoot to try to 
find some evidence of a different form of organic material still on Earth.

That's going to be tough to find. I'd start by asking a geologist where 
to look. Probably on land, for anywhere in the ocean would be touched, 
chemically, by everywhere else, and there's no ocean floor old enough. 

My amateur guess is it would have to be on some isolated old continental 
interior. But like Arlo Guthrie, there's no place untouched. Some 
ancient fossilized tidal pool?

It could be that the only place we will find any evidence is on the
Moon.

-- 
Bob.