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

Betül Kaçar is an astrobiologist at University of Wisconsin. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors: - House of Macadamias: https://houseofmacadamias.com/lex and use code LEX to get 20% off your first order - Mizzen+Main: https://mizzenandmain.com and use code LEX to get $35 off - Eight Sleep: https://www.eightsleep.com/lex to get special savings - ExpressVPN: https://expressvpn.com/lexpod to get 3 months free - GiveDirectly: https://givedirectly.org/lex to get gift matched up to $1000 - Blinkist: https://blinkist.com/lex to get 25% off premium 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: Podcast website: https://lexfridman.com/podcast Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2lwqZIr Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8 RSS: https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/ YouTube Full Episodes: https://youtube.com/lexfridman YouTube Clips: https://youtube.com/lexclips SUPPORT & CONNECT: - Check out the sponsors above, it's the best way to support this podcast - Support on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman - Twitter: https://twitter.com/lexfridman - Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman - Medium: https://medium.com/@lexfridman 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