EXAM (for the Heidelberg students): Monday, the 24th of July 2023, at 10:30, INF 306 "Theoretikum", First floor (1. OG), SR20

Lectures: Do 11:30-13:00 HSII, Geb. 30.41 Flachbau Chemie KIT

Lecture in hybrid format, participants can join on-site or online

ATTENTION!!! Due to "Vorlesungsfreie Zeit" at the KIT Karlsruhe, the lecture scheduled on the 01.06. will not take place. As the next Thursday (the 8th of June - Fronleichnam) is also a public holiday in BW, the lecture nr. 5 will take place on the 15th of June, Lect.6 - on the 29thof June and Lect. 7 - on the 06th of July.

First lecture: 20. Apr. 2023, 7 lecture units: 20.04., 27.04., 4.05., (two weeks break), 25.05., 15.06. (two weeks break), 29.06. and 6.07.

the lecture slides will be available for download shortly before the respective lecture.

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The link for all the lectures in Zoom (accessible without restrictions, also externally):

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82998619637?pwd=VFVGN3Fnc2VPYm52OCtoOExhdm5PUT09

Meeting ID: 829 9861 9637
Access code: 339566

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Following topics will be discussed:

Definitions of life – e.g. self-replicating chemical systems that use external energy sources to stay out of the equilibrium;

The origin of atoms and simple molecules - how the Universe, stars, planets, and molecules building them were formed?

Minimal requirements for a habitable environment – under which conditions the known forms of life can exist? Hypothetical other chemistries that could form living systems elsewhere;

The primordial soup – what pool of biologically relevant molecules likely existed on the prebiotic Earth: the Miller-Urey experiment, the formose reaction, prebiotic syntheses of aminoacids, sugars, nucleic acids, nucleotides, and lipids, prebiotic polymerization;

The origin of life – self-replicating systems, metabolism-first vs. gene-first, the “RNA world”, the origins of homochirality;

Formation of protocells – enhancing RNA with polypeptides, establishment of the genetic code, DNA as the enhanced information storage, metabolic networks, membranes;

From molecules to cells – LUCA (Last Universal Common Ancestor), information storage and function – split on different molecules, origins of the genetic code, metabolic networks and lipid membranes;

The history of life on Earth – timeline for LUCA, beginning of photosynthesis and aerobic metabolism, Eukaryotes, multicellular life, extremophilic organisms, habitable worlds outside Earth – current status of knowledge, space exploration programs;