When Earth almost became lifeless and building a scientifically accurate alien

Welcome! "Alien Life" tracks the latest discoveries and thoughts in the various elements of the famous Drake Equation. Here's today's news:
g Abodes - More than 251 million years ago, Earth almost became a lifeless planet. Chemical evidence buried in rocks that formed during this major extinction indicates a devastated landscape with huge “dead zones” in the oceans and runaway greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. See article.
g Life - Researchers have discovered a new member of a gene family that has powerful influences on pigmentation and the regulation of body weight. See article.
g Cosmicus - The first extraterrestrial mining operation in human history will likely start up on the moon, thanks to its ample and relatively accessible stores of water ice, experts say. See article.
g Imagining - Many science fiction story lines involve alien life forms. From a literary prospective, aliens often serve as metaphors for something more familiar. From a practical prospective, they make stories more interesting and TV more eye-catching. But what of scientific accuracy? A professor offers his advice about “How to Build an Alien”. This presentation is from 2002.

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