#350 – Betül Kaçar: Origin of Life, Ancient DNA, Panspermia, and Aliens

Lex Fridman Podcast

Betül Kaçar is an astrobiologist at University of Wisconsin. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors:
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EPISODE LINKS:
Betül’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/betulland
Betül’s Instagram: https://instagram.com/betul.kacar.astro/
Kacar Lab: https://kacarlab.org/
Betül’s TED Talk: https://go.ted.com/betulkacar

PODCAST INFO:
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OUTLINE:
Here’s the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time.
(00:00) – Introduction
(08:20) – History of life on Earth
(16:25) – Origin of life
(39:11) – Genetic language of life
(52:08) – Life and energy
(1:02:50) – Ancient DNA
(1:21:48) – Evolution
(1:33:19) – Alien life
(2:01:19) – Panspermia
(2:07:41) – Restarting life on Earth
(2:20:23) – Where ideas come from
(2:27:54) – Science and language
(2:36:31) – Love
(2:37:55) – Advice to young people
(2:42:29) – Meaning of life