Early Archaean Ecology - Exploring the Evidence and Habitats for Early (3.6-3.85 billion year old) Life

21世纪的首要科学探索将是生命的起源。最早的生命证据是在3.85 Ga（十亿年）的格陵兰岛Akilia的世界上最古老的已知沉积物中。这些岩石在后来的地壳剧变中被扭曲和加热，3.85 Ga生命的证据存在争议。 这样的生命将是非常重要的，因为首先，原始生命出现在已知的地层记录之前。该项目将扩展用于探测最早生命的方法，并利用格陵兰岩石探索其他可能的早期栖息地（海底火山岩和温泉）并了解其环境。

The prime scientific quest of the 21st century will be the origin of life. The earliest evidence for life is at 3.85 Ga (billion-years) in the world's oldest-known sediments from Akilia, Greenland. These rocks were contorted and heated during later crustal upheavals, and the evidence for life at 3.85 Ga is controversial. Such life would be highly significant, because then first, primitive life arose before the known stratigraphic record. The project will extend the methods used to detect earliest life, and use Greenland rocks to explore other possible early habitats (submarine volcanic rocks and hot springs) and understand its environment.