title: The origin of life--how long did it take?
abstract: We do not understand the steps leading from the abiotic early earth to the RNA world. Consequently, we cannot estimate the time required for the origins of life. Attempts to circumvent this essential difficulty are based on misunderstandings of the nature of the problem.
authors.affiliation: The Salk Institute for Biological Studies, San Diego, CA 92186, USA.
authors.forename: L E
authors.initials: LE
authors.lastname: Orgel
mesh_terms: D018534:Earth, Planet; D019418:Evolution, Chemical; D019143:Evolution, Molecular; D009841:Oligonucleotides / Q000737:chemistry; D000069497:Origin of Life; D012313:RNA / Q000737:chemistry*; D012266:Ribose / Q000737:chemistry; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D009841:Oligonucleotides; D012313:RNA; D012266:Ribose