title: The evolution of complex life.
abstract: In considering the probabilities that intelligent life might exist elsewhere in the Universe, it is important to ask questions about the factors governing the emergence of complex living organisms in the context of evolutionary biology, planetary environments and events in space.  Two important problems arise.  First, what can be learned about the general laws governing the evolution of complex life anywhere in space by studying its history on the Earth?  Second, how is the evolution of complex life affected by events in space?  To address these problems, a series of Science Workshops on the Evolution of Complex Life was held at the Ames Research Center.  Included in this paper are highlights of those workshops, with particular emphasis on the first question, namely the evolution of complex extraterrestrial life.
authors.affiliation: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA 94035.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Billingham
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D055580:Astronomical Phenomena; D001256:Astronomy; D005075:Biological Evolution; D001695:Biology / Q000639:trends; D018534:Earth, Planet; D018559:Exobiology; D005118:Extraterrestrial Environment; D006801:Humans; D012098:Reproduction; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D012732:Sex Determination Analysis; D016082:Solar System