The search for life is looking for Earthlike planets but it could exist on planets where we could not in many strange forms. Even maybe under the Earth, some say:


http://www.indiadaily.com/editorial/3387.asp

Yes... A considerable amount of time ago I conceived the idea that there was life based off of other compounds, rather than carbon.

I also believe that there is acidic life somewhere in this universe...

Yes... A considerable amount of time ago I conceived the idea that there was life based off of other compounds, rather than carbon.

I also believe that there is acidic life somewhere in this universe...

You, specifically, conceived this idea? Wow. Impressive.

Sci fi authors like James P. Hogan and Robert L. Forward who are also scientists have invented many forms of life that are nothing like our DNA-based biosphere. It's a staple of sci fi stories for humans to encounter living creatures that are so different from Earth life that they don't even realize they're alive.

Non-carbon based natural life is unlikely from our present understanding of chemistry so temperatures ranges beyond 200C are unlikely to sustain any kind of natural life (as most carbon molecules begin to break down beyond that).

Life living in a reducing atmosphere made of hydrogen is very possible in fact such organisms are still alive here on earth, but the energy values provided by reducing are a 1/4-1/8 the values of oxygenation, so this would limit the potential for high energy using multicellular organism like us. Sulfur and chlorine oxygenates also provide lower energy content then oxygen, and chlorine is unlikely due to extremely high reactivity.

Liquids other then water would need to be warm enough for organic chemical reactions to occur and polar, ammonia is the only viable substitute for water and a pure ammonia environment would need to be a much greater pressures then our own.

First of all, please note that the India Daily has rather 'unusual' editorial standards, and will publish all sorts of rumours and half-truths as well as more interesting stuff. This explains the inclusion of the 'sounds of hell' nonsense in that article.
See this page on Snopes for a debunking of that myth.
http://www.snopes.com/religion/wellhell.asp
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On the other hand, it is interesting to speculate on other forms of life, even non carbon based life, in the universe. For a serious investigation into the possibilities I'd recommend this on-line book;
The Limits of Organic Life in Planetary Syatems (http://books.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=11919#toc)
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For a less serious exploration of the possibilities, here are some alien life forms from the Orion's Arm Universe Project with exotic chemistries
Ammonia based (the Muuh) (http://www.orionsarm.com/xenos/Muuh.html)
Ammonia/Water based (the Soft Ones) (http://www.orionsarm.com/xenos/Soft_Ones.html)
Metallic Hydrogen based (the Menexenes) (http://www.orionsarm.com/xenos/Menexenes.html)
Silicate based (the Rheolithoids) (http://www.orionsarm.com/xenos/Rheolithoids.html)
Silicon/Carbon hybrid (the Cybiota) (http://www.orionsarm.com/topics/Cybyota.html)

You, specifically, conceived this idea? Wow. Impressive.

Yes, one day I sat down and thought,
What if there was life, but not based off of carbon? What would it be based off of? How would it work?
That was about, oh a good 4 or 5 years ago. Perhaps more.

Yes, one day I sat down and thought,

That was about, oh a good 4 or 5 years ago. Perhaps more.

Are you sure the idea didn't come to you from reading or watching TV/movies?? Scientists and sci-fi writers have been talking about it for decades - especially silicon-based lifeforms. Shucks, Star Trek was showing that stuff 20 years ago.

I wonder if there could be carbon lifeforms who have a reversed metabolism. Eat oxygen rich food and breath carbon gasses (like CO2)

I wonder if there could be carbon lifeforms who have a reversed metabolism. Eat oxygen rich food and breath carbon gasses (like CO2)

Plants come VERY close to that.:D

orcot,

Sure how about a creature that eat sulfur and "breaths" out sulfides?

also exists

also exists

exactly :D

Here is a list of chemoautotrophs, (organisms which get energy from chemical sources rather than photosynthesis) found in Earth's biosphere; there may be others on alien worlds.
Methanogens (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methanogen) :Halophiles (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halophile) : Sulphur Reducing Bacteria (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sulfur-reducing_bacteria) : Nitrifying Bacteria (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nitrification) : Bacteria capable of anaerobic ammonium oxidation (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anammox) (new one on me, that) : and thermoacidophiles (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermoacidophile) (hmm; I think I've heard of them before).

It would be nice if they could find/make a hydrogen peroxide lifeform altough I doubt that there are places on earth that are drye and cold enough. They would be ideaal lifeforms to terraform mars (if they also can withstand some radiation)

Are you sure the idea didn't come to you from reading or watching TV/movies?? Scientists and sci-fi writers have been talking about it for decades - especially silicon-based lifeforms. Shucks, Star Trek was showing that stuff 20 years ago.

No, why is that so hard to believe? I realized that life could derive from carbon. So I thought, what made carbon so different from the rest of the elements? What are the properties that are required for the very base of life?

No, why is that so hard to believe? I realized that life could derive from carbon. So I thought, what made carbon so different from the rest of the elements? What are the properties that are required for the very base of life?

What makes carbon so different? You mean besides the fact that it can form VERY complex molecules (which many other elements cannot) and that it reacts with most other elements ( which many others cannot)?

What makes carbon so different? You mean besides the fact that it can form VERY complex molecules (which many other elements cannot) and that it reacts with most other elements ( which many others cannot)?

I wasn't asking questions just now. That was a while ago, just simple pondering of the things I didn't know.

Great bags of ugly water, beware the the glowing crystals

The search for life is looking for Earthlike planets but it could exist on planets where we could not in many strange forms. Even maybe under the Earth, some say:


http://www.indiadaily.com/editorial/3387.asp

But ofcause we will. seriously!

All living on this planet can communicate with others of their race!

We have just not thought of them as "aliens".

Even the cells in our body can communicate with out our knowledge.

Why should we be "special"?

look at the other races in our family of Carbon.......

We are all born of carbon, carbon is an atom.
Look at the periodic table of the elements, there are 15 nonmetals.
Now in chemistry we all know that we define each group of elements as of how they behave.
Carbon is a nonmetal and we know that one of its traits is that it can sustain life, so if this atom can some of the other atoms in the group might behave in the same way.