Teaching the origin of the first living systems

Abstract

The most fundamental of questions in biology, namely that of the origin of living systems, is being lost to teaching and a new technique to rekindle interest in it must be found. This paper presents a novel idea of teaching a scientific concept using a poem, which describes the major perspectives on the origins of living systems, as the medium of instruction. All of the major schools of thought - chemical evolution, DNA vs. RNA, protocell formation, coacervates, panspermia and special creation - are discussed. The aim of the paper is not to be a definitive review on the origin of living systems, but rather to be a focal point on which to hinge further discussion.