Researchers are attempting to apply the field of forensic science to space exploration recently. This task would be able to do DNA and RNA sequencing on Martian microbes (if they potentially exist) to either debunk the myth that humans are descended from some alien race from Mars or to prove it. The theory is called panspermia and such testing to also see if Martian microbes could potentially pose a risk to humans should they colonize Mars in the distant future. Landers would have to be sent to Mars in order to acquire these genomes. The idea does not claim that Martians landed on Earth millions of years ago but claims that microbes latched onto meteorites from Mars and were blasted to Earth, mutating over time to become humans. The article was well presented and thoroughly interesting because of how unique it was from other forensic articles in the news. Applying forensic science to science one would find in NASA is extremely far fetched and science fiction sounding—all in all this article does not relate in any way to anyone’s immediate life or directly to the field of criminal forensic science but to forensic science in general and almost a new take on it.
http://news.discovery.com/space/space-forensics-might-point-to-a-martian-ancestry-110326.html posted for J. O'Neill
4 comments:
I love Justin’s article! It is so interesting and really grabbed my attention, even after the first sentence. I also like how he kept to the point of what the article was trying to say; he didn’t go into the subdivisions as in depth as the original article did. Lastly, I like how Justin summarized the article; he made it easy to follow.
Things he could work on would be elaborating a little bit more. Maybe using an example like the Harvard experiment would be good. Also, if he used some quotes and stated who was conducting these experiments.
I was really impressed by the article and Justin’s review. The idea of using Forensic Science in space exploration is just fascinating, and personally I would have never thought to do it.
three things i liked about this review is that for one thing it is an interesting article, along with the review being a good length and to the point.
two things i would look into would be to explain more about the myth of panspermia and maybe what other recent articles or news mention this theory.
overall, i thought this was an good attention-grabbing article and i was interested that forensics and science could team up to present this topic
When I first saw Justin’s article, I couldn’t believe my eyes! It was about something cool and amazing that is (literally!) out of this world: the Red Planet, otherwise known as Mars. I liked this article because it made me curious about aliens. Are they truly real, or just cartoony fictional creatures? I also found the “connection” between humans and extraterrestrial life forms to be particularly enjoyable (and somewhat educational) to read. In addition, this article inspires me to become an astronaut when I'm older.
However, even though this article was entertaining, I noticed some slight errors. First of all, I don’t see any pictures. How can someone prove that aliens exist if there is no photographic evidence, let alone know what the aliens look like? Do they have three eyes, green skin, tentacles, etc.? Second, Justin’s personal critique is missing. But I must give him credit for providing the source – kudos to Justin for NOT plagiarizing!
The last thing I want to say is that I can relate to this article. I am pondering whether or not I come from human origin. Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to refer to my birth certificate… good-bye for now!
I think that Justin picked a great article, the topic of life on mars is always something of great interest. It is very interesting to know that the science of forensics can go beyond our own planet. Justin did a great job with just staying to the point and really giving good background on the article. The article was very easy to follow and was interesting from start to finish. However there are a few things that he could have done better. I think that he could have given a little more detail on the experiment and how it was going to be conducted. Also, he needs to leave a paragraph about what he thought of the article himself. Overall though I thought that this was a superb article by Justin.
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