Robert Shapiro (chemist)

Robert Shapiro
Born(1935-11-28)November 28, 1935
New York City, United States
DiedJune 15, 2011(2011-06-15) (aged 75)[1]
NationalityAmerican
Alma materCity College of New York (BS), Harvard University (PhD)
Known forWork on origin of life
AwardsTrotter Prize (2004) with Paul Davies[1]
Scientific career
FieldsChemistry
InstitutionsUniversity of Cambridge, New York University
Doctoral advisorRobert B. Woodward
Not to be confused with chemist Robert H. Shapiro who discovered the Shapiro reaction.

Robert Shapiro (28 November 1935 – 15 June 2011[1]) was professor emeritus of chemistry at New York University. He is best known for his work on the origin of life, having written two books on the topic: Origins, a Skeptic’s Guide to the Creation of Life on Earth (1986) and Planetary Dreams (1999). He opposed the RNA world hypothesis, and held that the spontaneous emergence of a molecule as complicated as RNA is highly unlikely. Instead, he proposed that life arose from some self-sustaining and compartmentalized reaction of simple molecules: "metabolism first" instead of "RNA first". This reaction would have to be able to reproduce and evolve, eventually leading to RNA. He claimed that in this view life is a normal consequence of the laws of nature and potentially quite common in the universe.[2]

  1. ^ a b c "Bob Shapiro Passes Away at Age 75". New York University. Archived from the original on 28 September 2011. Retrieved 15 August 2011.
  2. ^ Alvin Powell, NYU chemist Robert Shapiro decries RNA-first possibility, Harvard University Gazette, 23 October 2008