What Counts as Life? Astrobiology Series: Part 1

This is the first installment in the Dr. Starkid astrobiology series, adapted from the astrobiology course Dr. Dakotah Tyler taught at UCLA and Pomona College. Expect to learn what astrobiology actually means, why sci-fi aliens are usually too human, why UFO claims require careful assumptions, and why defining life is harder than it sounds. We cover viruses, dormant microbes, ideas as information systems, chemical possibility, life as a physical process, habitability, synthetic life, biosigna...