150 life's beginning on the earth 



their appearance. It is also possible to grow similar struc- 

 tures outside solutions. To this end a rather large "seed," 

 consisting of a lime salt, is placed in a shallow dish, con- 

 taining a solution of a suitable substance, such as soda or 

 waterglass, which will form an insoluble slimy material 

 through chemical interaction when in contact with the lime 

 salt. Like a plant growing from the soil, the upper part of 

 this osmotic structure rises above the liquid. 



11. WHAT WE CAN LEARN FROM THE EXPERIMENTS WITH 



ARTIFICIAL STRUCTURES 



In spite of many striking life-like features, none of these 

 artificial structures is a living entity. They all lack the 

 power of propagation. Moreover they arc loo brittle to 

 maintain themselves for any considerable time. 



And yet we may learn a great deal from these perishable 

 artificial structures. In a striking manner they reveal the 

 widespread action of the formative forces which nature has 

 at its command. The entire development of the living- 

 world is the result of these forces; its immense diversity is 

 quite comprehensible. The artificial structures are prod- 

 ucts of a crude and simple technique, yet present a com- 

 plicated appearance. It seems reasonable to conclude that 

 the much more complicated processes which occur in the 

 living world must lead to much more complex organisms; 

 and that is what we actually sec. The secret of life is thus 

 unfolded a little. 



Just, as a new type of material is formed when living- 

 plants and animals grow and develop, so also these artificial 

 structures form new matter from the surrounding solution. 

 This means that chemical reactions occur in them. Hut 

 these chemical reactions are entirely different in type from 

 those in real life where enzymes are acting. In spite of 



