A reassessment of the “hard-steps” model for the evolution of intelligent life DOI Creative Commons
Daniel B. Mills, Jennifer L. Macalady, Adam Frank

et al.

Science Advances, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: 11(7)

Published: Feb. 14, 2025

According to the “hard-steps” model, origin of humanity required “successful passage through a number intermediate steps” (so-called “hard steps”) that were intrinsically improbable in time available for biological evolution on Earth. This model similarly predicts technological life analogous human Earth is “exceedingly rare” Universe. Here, we critically reevaluate core assumptions hard-steps lens historical geobiology. Specifically, propose an alternative where there are no hard steps, and evolutionary singularities origins can be explained via mechanisms outside intrinsic improbability. Furthermore, if Earth’s surface environment was initially inhospitable not only life, but also certain key steps existence, then timing controlled by sequential opening new global environmental windows habitability over history.

Language: Английский

A reassessment of the “hard-steps” model for the evolution of intelligent life DOI Creative Commons
Daniel B. Mills, Jennifer L. Macalady, Adam Frank

et al.

Science Advances, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: 11(7)

Published: Feb. 14, 2025

According to the “hard-steps” model, origin of humanity required “successful passage through a number intermediate steps” (so-called “hard steps”) that were intrinsically improbable in time available for biological evolution on Earth. This model similarly predicts technological life analogous human Earth is “exceedingly rare” Universe. Here, we critically reevaluate core assumptions hard-steps lens historical geobiology. Specifically, propose an alternative where there are no hard steps, and evolutionary singularities origins can be explained via mechanisms outside intrinsic improbability. Furthermore, if Earth’s surface environment was initially inhospitable not only life, but also certain key steps existence, then timing controlled by sequential opening new global environmental windows habitability over history.

Language: Английский

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