Astrobiology - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

On December 2, 2010 it was announced the discovery of a terrestrial extremophile bacterium (GFAJ-1) that uses the usually poisonous element arsenic in place of phosphorus.^[32] The find gives weight to the long-standing idea that life on other planets may have a radically different chemical makeup and may help in hunt for alien life.

Arsenic-munching germ redefines "life as we know it" - Yahoo! News

Getty – The 'Tufa' formations will slowly be re-submerged into the briny water where they were formed by an underwater …
By Maggie Fox, Health and Science Editor Maggie Fox, Health And Science Editor
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A strange, salty lake in California has yielded an equally strange bacterium that thrives on arsenic and redefines life as we know it, researchers reported on Thursday. The bacteria do not merely eat arsenic -- they incorporate the toxic element directly into their DNA, the researchers said. The finding shows just how little scientists know about the variety of life forms on Earth, and may greatly expand where they should be looking for life on other planets and moons, the NASA-funded team said. "We have cracked open the door to what is possible for life elsewhere in the universe," Felisa Wolfe-Simon of the NASA Astrobiology Institute and U.S. Geological Survey, who led the study, told a news conference.

Poison-Based Bacteria Redefines Life As We Know It

Arsenic is an element that is deadly to most living creatures, but bacteria living in California's Lake Mono thrive on it. Today NASA explains how those poison-eating organisms are changing the way we search for extraterrestrial life.

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BBC News - Carla Bruni praises Pope over condoms on World Aids Day, Dec 02, 2010

Carla Bruni acts as an ambassador for a fund to combat Aids
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"I think this is quite an enormous step towards something very new," President Nicolas Sarkozy's wife said.info@als-alexander.org or interalex1@yahoo.com 

BBC Sport - Football - World Cup vote live - decision day

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