In this TED talk, chemist Lee Cronin asks what is the minimum unit of matter that can under go Darwinian evolution? The answer is, in fact, a single cell.

Before life existed on Earth, there was just matter, inorganic dead “stuff.” How improbable is it that life arose? And — could it use a different type of chemistry? Using an elegant definition of life—anything that can evolve—Cronin explores this question by attempting to create a fully inorganic cell using a “Lego kit” of inorganic molecules — no carbon — that can assemble, replicate and compete.

Read what you’ve been missing. Subscribe to Farnam Street via Email, RSS, or Twitter.

Shop at Amazon.com and support Farnam Street.