Universal Bacteria?

Guessers about the origin of life on Earth last week hearkened when a distinguished Californian announced the discovery of bacteria in meteorites. For lack of precise facts, some guessers have placed life, with meteors, sunshine, starshine and cosmic rays, as an extramundane intrusion. Professor Charles Bernard Lipman, the booming, moon-faced plant-physiologist who is dean of the University of California's graduate division, now thinks such guessers have been correct. From several sources he acquired meteorites (meteors which landed intact on Earth). These he doused, scrubbed, seared and otherwise sterilized, then pulverized in sterile mortars. The dust he placed in germ-cultures. Nine cultures showed growth of rod or coccoid bacteria.

Three years ago when Professor Lipman found crystals in lifeless agar-agar taking the forms of living bacteria, he boomed: "It is fascinating and irresistible to speculate as to whether or not these artificial bacilli may, under the proper environmental conditions, take on the properties of living cells. . . ."

Last week he boomed about his meteoritic bacteria: "I realize, of course, that the experiments and conclusions will be challenged by competent critics and probably more so by critics who are not competent. . . ."

The criticism he expects will parallel the criticism he aroused when he reported finding germs in archaic sedimentary rocks, ancient coal, deepwell petroleum: that bugs got into his specimens despite all his germicidal precautions.

To anticipate skeptics, Professor Lipman last week noted that he found enough organic nitrogen in his meteoric specimens to sustain the life of a few bacteria: that bacteria can endure intense cold; that the heat generated by a meteorite passing through the Earth's atmosphere is not enough to kill sealed-in bacteria because the passage occurs so quickly that the interior of the meteorite is relatively cool though the outside is white hot.

Californians trust Professor Lipman ("Lippy" to students). He is one of the most learned men at Berkeley, and eminently practical. About ten years ago he became interested in curing iron deficiency in fruit trees by injecting certain liquids into the trunks. His technic has saved many a tree. Later he showed lumbermen how to poison trees destined for marine construction or telephone poles. The poisons repel molds, fungi, borers and other wood-destroying agents.

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