Skip to main content
Home
plus.maths.org

Secondary menu

  • My list
  • About Plus
  • Sponsors
  • Subscribe
  • Contact Us
  • Log in
  • Main navigation

  • Home
  • Articles
  • Collections
  • Podcasts
  • Maths in a minute
  • Puzzles
  • Videos
  • Topics and tags
  • For

    • cat icon
      Curiosity
    • newspaper icon
      Media
    • graduation icon
      Education
    • briefcase icon
      Policy

    Popular topics and tags

    Shapes

    • Geometry
    • Vectors and matrices
    • Topology
    • Networks and graph theory
    • Fractals

    Numbers

    • Number theory
    • Arithmetic
    • Prime numbers
    • Fermat's last theorem
    • Cryptography

    Computing and information

    • Quantum computing
    • Complexity
    • Information theory
    • Artificial intelligence and machine learning
    • Algorithm

    Data and probability

    • Statistics
    • Probability and uncertainty
    • Randomness

    Abstract structures

    • Symmetry
    • Algebra and group theory
    • Vectors and matrices

    Physics

    • Fluid dynamics
    • Quantum physics
    • General relativity, gravity and black holes
    • Entropy and thermodynamics
    • String theory and quantum gravity

    Arts, humanities and sport

    • History and philosophy of mathematics
    • Art and Music
    • Language
    • Sport

    Logic, proof and strategy

    • Logic
    • Proof
    • Game theory

    Calculus and analysis

    • Differential equations
    • Calculus

    Towards applications

    • Mathematical modelling
    • Dynamical systems and Chaos

    Applications

    • Medicine and health
    • Epidemiology
    • Biology
    • Economics and finance
    • Engineering and architecture
    • Weather forecasting
    • Climate change

    Understanding of mathematics

    • Public understanding of mathematics
    • Education

    Get your maths quickly

    • Maths in a minute

    Main menu

  • Home
  • Articles
  • Collections
  • Podcasts
  • Maths in a minute
  • Puzzles
  • Videos
  • Topics and tags
  • Audiences

    • cat icon
      Curiosity
    • newspaper icon
      Media
    • graduation icon
      Education
    • briefcase icon
      Policy

    Secondary menu

  • My list
  • About Plus
  • Sponsors
  • Subscribe
  • Contact Us
  • Log in
  • Mario Livio

    Advent calendar door #19:The origin of life

    19 December, 2024

    Is there life elsewhere in the Universe? And how did life emerge here on Earth? These two questions are often considered separately, but answers to one shed important light on answers to the other. In the book Is Earth exceptional: The quest for cosmic life, renowned astrophysicist Mario Livio and Nobel laureate Jack Szostak combine both these question and find fascinating answers.

    We revisit an interview with Livio about the new book. From creating life in the lab to searching for it on distant planets, Livio gives us a riveting whistelstop tour of research into the origin of life, here on Earth an elsewhere. Is Earth exceptional is out on September 10, 2024 in the US and on September 26, 2024 in the UK.

    To get a taster of Livio's writing (which we think is very good) see a list of his Plus articles. We have also reviewed six of Livio's books:

    • Galileo and the science deniers
    • Why? What makes us curious
    • Brilliant blunders
    • Is god a mathematician?
    • The equation that couldn't be solved
    • The golden ratio
    Book cover

    Return to the advent calendar 2024!

    You can listen to the podcast using the player above, and you can listen and subscribe to our podcast through Apple Podcasts, Spotify and through most other podcast providers via podbean.

    • Log in or register to post comments

    Our Podcast: Maths on the Move

    Our Maths on the Move podcast brings you the latest news from the world of maths, plus interviews and discussions with leading mathematicians and scientists about the maths that is changing our lives.

    Apple Podcasts
    Spotify
    Podbean

    Plus delivered to you

    Keep up to date with Plus by subscribing to our newsletter or following Plus on X or Bluesky.

    University of Cambridge logo

    Plus is part of the family of activities in the Millennium Mathematics Project.
    Copyright © 1997 - 2025. University of Cambridge. All rights reserved.

    Terms