Life After Earth

TL;DR

This paper reevaluates evidence suggesting life predates Earth by accounting for measurement errors, concluding that life could have appeared after Earth's formation based on revised regression analysis.

Contribution

It demonstrates that considering measurement errors and confidence intervals alters previous conclusions about the origin of life.

Findings

Revised regression analysis supports life originating after Earth's formation.

Measurement errors significantly impact conclusions in evolutionary data analysis.

Original evidence for pre-Earth life is not statistically robust when errors are included.

Abstract

A recent study reported that there is evidence life may have originated prior to the formation of the Earth. That conclusion was based on a regression analysis of a certain data set involving evolution of functional genome size across major phyla. Here it is shown that if measurement errors and "confidence" intervals are taken into account, then the regression analysis of the same data set leads to conclusions that allow for life to have appeared after the formation of the Earth.