[meteorite-list] RE: Mars Meteorite ... Signs Of Life-Magnetite and Orientation

From: E.L. Jones <jonee_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu Apr 22 09:44:44 2004
Message-ID: <3AC3C4CC.7B34E236_at_epix.net>

Parsimoniously..... On Earth I accept the presence of magnetite crystals in many
species--we have assumed they are for orientation... On Mars, however, what was
the evolutionary incentive for a bacterium to develop a magneticly based
mechanism for navigation/ orientation ? Why evolve a mechanism for detecting a
magnetic field where one scarcely exists?

Elton Jones

> <snip> resemble pearl necklaces - are strung together naturally by bacteria,
> which use the magnetite to navigate with Earth's magnetic field.

> <snip>
> Bacteria make their magnetite crystals longer in order to improve the
> crystals' ability to detect Earth's magnetic poles.
Received on Thu 29 Mar 2001 06:28:10 PM PST