California Space Institute. NASA Specialized Center of Research and Training (NSCORT) in Exobiology Records

ADMINISTRATIVE FILES

Scope and Content of Series

Series 1) ADMINISTRATIVE FILES: Includes correspondence, meeting agendas and minutes, organizational charts, outreach materials, press releases and newspaper clippings, and photographs. Arranged chronologically.

Box 1, Folder 1

Portraits and group photographs ca. 1970-1999

General note

Includes portraits of Gustaf Arrhenius, Stanley Miller (black and white version), Gerald Joyce, Jeffery Bada, and Leslie Orgel. Also includes group photograph with Alexander Oparin, Stanley Miller, and Jeffrey Bada.

Portrait of Gerald Joyce with DNA model and laboratory equipment ca. 1999

Portrait of Stanley Miller (color version) ca. 1999

Box 1, Folder 2

Press release and newspaper clippings 1991-1993

Box 1, Folder 3

NSCORT logo 1992-1994

General note

Includes slides.

Box 1, Folder 4-6

Meeting agendas and minutes 1992-2000

Box 1, Folder 7

Organizational flow charts 1992-2001

Box 1, Folder 8

Correspondence 1994-1996

Box 1, Folder 9

Website home page 1996

EVENTS, LECTURES, AND INTERVIEWS

Scope and Content of Series

Series 2) EVENTS, LECTURES, AND TALKS: Includes posters, flyers, brochures, drafts of lectures and talks, audio and video recordings, and photographs. Arranged chronologically.

Box 1, Folder 10

Events - Flyers and brochures 1992-1998

General note

Includes flyers from Salk Institute seminar (1992), NSCORT journals club, NSCORT exobiology intern conference, and Stanley Miller's 70th birthday brochure.

Box 1, Folder 11

Nash, Madeline. Time Magazine - The origin of life 1993 July-1993 October

Box 1, Folder 12

The NSCORT exobiology program lecture 1994 April

General note

Speech presented at Fifth Symposium on Chemical Evolution as NASA AMES research center, NASA NAGW-2881.

Box 1, Folder 13

Conversations with Michael Meyer 1994 July-2002 March

General note

Includes correspondence regarding NSCORT grant funding, and project continuations.

Box 1, Folder 14-15

Outreach - La Jolla High School - Course in exobiology 1994-1996

General note

Includes planning notes and correspondence, as well as print out of course website.

Box 1, Folder 16

Events and outreach - Photographs ca. 1995-1996

General note

Includes La Jolla High School students from Steve Brown class, Rincon Indian Reservation students, Summer Symposiums, and Comet Hyakutake trip.

Box 1, Folder 17

Miller, Stanley M. Prebiotic synthesis of organic compounds and the origin of life - Lecture 1997

Box 1, Folder 18-24

Miller, Stanley M. Celebrating 50 years of prebiotic chemistry - Presentation materials 2003-2004

General note

Includes event posters, budget information, award letter, final report, and event photographs. NASA exobiology grant NAG5-13621.

Box 1, Folder 25

Astrobiology graduate conference 2004 Novmber-2005 September

General note

Agouron Institute grant used for conference funding. Grant number AI-SGIA-26.06.2.

Box 1, Folder 26

Stevenson, David. Origin of the moon - James R. Arnold lecture series 2006 May

General note

Includes presentation abstract and lecturer's profile.

Box 1, Folder 27

Brownlee, Donald E. Stardust, catching a comet and bringing it home - James R. Arnold lecture series 2007 May

Box 1, Folder 28

The adventures of Percy the proton undated

Audio and video recordings

The Origin of Life 1969

General note

Produced by Encyclopedia Britannica. Includes footage of Stanley Miller and descriptions of research. Running time 10:11.

Box 3, Folder 12

The Origin of Life 2009

General note

Includes correspondence and notes.

Box 3, Folder 13

Polynucleotides and Their Analogs, NSCORT Eschenmoser discussion (Two audiocassettes) 1993 May 28

Box 3, Folder 13

Current State of Origins of Life Research (Two audiocassettes) 1994

General note

Session organized by Jeffery L. Bada for the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Annual Meeting. Session features Gerald Joyce.

Box 3, Folder 14

Student Reflections on the 1997 NSCORT Undergraduate Reflections Symposium in Exobiology (VHS) 1998 January

General note

Video produced by UCSD-TV and includes interview with Manuelita A. Brown (coordinator of the UCSD Honors Achievement Workshop). Running time 21:05 (Reflections video ends at 13:30).

Box 3, Folder 15

Robert D. Tschirgi memorial lecture - Crawling out of the RNA World (VHS) 1998 April 17

General note

First in the lecture series, with speaker Thomas R. Cech. Running time 68:12.

Box 3, Folder 16

UCSD Conversations: Lowe, Exobiology, Brown (VHS) 1998

General note

Includes Patrick Ledden talking about exobiology, as well as Manuelita A. Brown and Lisa Lowe talking about their work. Video produced by UCSD-TV (#3562). Running time 58:00.

Box 3, Folder 17

Robert D. Tschirgi memorial lecture - Gravity is Cool: Why Our Universe is Hospitable to Life (VHS) 1999 July 13

General note

Presented by Freeman Dyson (Institute for Advanced Studies) sponsored by UCSD Exobiology Institute. Video produced by UCSD-TV (#4138). Running time 78:00.

Box 3, Folder 18

The Search for the Origin of Life: Survival of Life Beyond its Planet of Origin (VHS) 1999 July 16

General note

Speaker is Chris Mckay. Produced by UCSD-TV (#4690), sponsored by NSCORT. Running time 29:00.

Box 3, Folder 19

The Search for the Origin of Life: Searching for Extraterrestrial Life-Lessons from the Earth (VHS) 1999 July 16

General note

Presented by Ken Nealson (JPL Astrobiologist). Produced by UCSD-TV , sponsored by NSCORT. Running time 29:50.

Box 3, Folder 20

NSCORT Summer Symposium (VHS) 2000

General note

Running time 2:40:24.

Box 3, Folder 21

Russell Doolittle - The Revolution of Biology (VHS) ca. 2000

General note

Video produced by UCSD-TV (#5226) as part of the 40/40 Vision series. Running time 58:00.

Box 3, Folder 22

UCSD Conversations: Evolution, Fighting Prejudice, Treating Performers (VHS) ca. 2000

General note

Includes Patrick Ledden talking with Christopher Wills and Jeffrey Bada about their book The Spark Of Life: Darwin And The Primeval Soup, with introduction by introduction by Mary Walshok (Associate Vice Chancellor for Public Programs). Video produced by UCSD-TV (#5132). Running time 56:42.

Box 3, Folder 23

UCSD Conversations: School of Medicine, Mars Rocks, CONNECT (VHS) 2001 January 16

General note

Video produced by UCSD-TV (#5469). Running time 55:00.

Box 3, Folder 24

The Spark of Life: Darwin and the Primeval Soup (VHS) ca. 2001

General note

Featuring talk by Jeffrey Bada and Christopher Wills. Video produced by UCSD-TV (#5268) as part of the Perspectives on Ocean Science series. Running time 49:00.

Box 3, Folder 25

The Search for the Origin of Life: The Habitability of Early Mars (VHS) undated

General note

Speaker is Michael H. Carr (U.S. Geological Survey). Video produced by UCSD-TV (#4483), sponsored by NSCORT. Running time 25:44.

Box 3, Folder 26

What is Life (VHS) undated

General note

Video produced by the Discovery Channel, features speaker Jeffrey Bada (NSCORT Director) and includes lab footage. Running time 12:37.

Box 3, Folder 27

Horizon: Life is Impossible (VHS) undated

General note

Video produced by BBC Television. Speakers included Stanley Miller, Jeffery Bada, Michael Russel, and Everett Shock. Running time 15:42.

GRANTS, PUBLICATIONS, AND REVIEWS

Scope and Content of Series

Series 3) GRANTS, PUBLICATIONS, AND REVIEWS: Includes grant proposals, reports, papers, newsletters, and reviews of the center.

Arranged chronologically and in two subseries: A) Grants and Publications and B) Site Visits and Reviews.

Grants and Publications

Grants - The Chemistry of Early Self-Replicating Systems (Stanley Miller and Jeffery L. Bada)

Box 1, Folder 29

Award notice 1991

General note

Grant number: NRA 90-0SSA-25.

Box 1, Folder 30-42

Proposals, award notices, reports, budgets, and renewals 1992-1998

General note

NASA Grant Number: NAGW-2881. UCSD grant numbers: 91-1435, 93-1117R1, 94-1072, 96-1111, 95-1033. Includes draft report from Stanley Miller "The Components of the Precursors to RNA".

Box 1, Folder 43-56

Proposals, award notices, reports, budgets, and renewals 1995-2003

General note

NASA grant number: NAG5-4546. UCSD grant numbers: 96-1416, 22723R1, 2003-9732. Includes summer student symposium materials (2002-2003).

Box 2, Folder 1

Proposal ca. 2001

General note

Nasa grant number: NRA 96-OLSMA-02

Box 2, Folder 2-3

Award notice and report 2003-2005

General note

NASA grant number: NAG5-12849. UCSD grant number: 2003815. Includes information regarding Jeffery L. Bada's appointment as Director of NSCORT.

Box 2, Folder 4

Proposal and award notice 2004-2005

General note

NASA grant number: NAG 5-13621. UCSD grant numbers: 20044150.

Box 2, Folder 5-6

Proposal, award notice, and report 2004-2007

General note

Grant number: NNG04GQ41G. UCSD grant numbers: 2005-3065, 2004-4150, 20053065.

Publications

Box 2, Folder 7

Arrhenius, Gedulin, and Mojzsis. Phosphate in models for chemical evolution ca. 1993

General note

Supported by NASA exobiology grants NAGW 2881 and 1031.

Box 2, Folder 8

Robertson, Dworkin, and Miller. Prebiotic synthesis of hydroxymethyluracil and some t-RNA bases ca. 1993

General note

NASA NAGW-2881.

Box 2, Folder 9

Robertson et al. Prebiotic synthesis of hydroxymethyluracil and some t-RNA bases ca. 1993

General note

Research presented at fifth symposium on chemical evolution and the origin of life, NASA NAGW-2881.

Box 2, Folder 10

Fan, Mojzsis, and Arrhenius. Confocal study of microaggregates in 2.5 billion year old sediments ca. 1993

General note

NASA NAGW-2881.

Box 2, Folder 11-16

Annual Reports 1993-2000

Box 2, Folder 17

T. Arrhenius, G. Arrhenius, and W.J. Paplawsky. Archean geochemistry of formaldehyde and cyanide and the oligomerization of cyanohydrin 1994 February

General note

NASA NAGW-2881.

Box 2, Folder 18

Lazcano and Miller. How long did it take for life to begin and evolve to cyanobacteria 1994 March 16

General note

NASA NAGW-2881.

Box 2, Folder 19

Arrhenius et al. Nitrogen compounds and mineral induced reactions in biopoesis 1994 April

General note

Research presented at fifth symposium on chemical evolution as NASA Ames research center, NASA NAGW-2881.

Box 2, Folder 20

Becker et al. Fullerenes in the 1.85 billion-year-old Sudbury impact structure 1994 July

General note

NASA NAGW-2881.

Box 2, Folder 21

Rembold et al. Polycytidylate and poly(7-deazaguanylate): A pair of complimentary templates 1994 July

General note

Nasa NAGW-2881.

Box 2, Folder 22

Breaker, Banerji, and Joyce. Continuous in vitro evolution of bacteriophage RNA polymerase promoter elements 1994 October

General note

Ms. Number BI9411272

Box 2, Folder 23

Chakrabarti et al. Production of RNA by a polymerase encapsulated within phospholipid vesicles 1994 December

Box 2, Folder 24

Liu and Visscher. A novel preparation of nicotinamide mononucleotide 1994

General note

NASA NAGW-2881.

Box 2, Folder 25

Kolb, Dworkin, and Miller. Urazole is a potential precursor to uracil 1994

General note

NASA NAGW-2881.

Box 2, Folder 26

Gedulin and Arrhenius. Sources and geochemical evolution of RNA precursor molecules - The role of phosphate ca. 1994

General note

NASA NAGW-2881.

Box 2, Folder 27

Breaker and Joyce. Minimonsters: Evolutionary byproducts of in vitro RNA amplification. ca. 1994

General note

NASA NAGW-2881.

Box 2, Folder 28

Newsletters - What's evolving at the La Jolla NSCORT and summer issue 1994-1995

General note

NASA NAGW-2881.

Box 2, Folder 29

Correspondence regarding publications 1994-1996

General note

Includes brochure.

Box 2, Folder 30

Kolb and Orgel. Oligonucleotides as probes for studying polymerization reactions in dilute aqueous solution II. Polycondensations 1995 February

General note

NASA NAGW-2881.

Box 2, Folder 31

McDonald and Bada. A search for endogenous amino acids in the Martian meteorite EETA 79001 1995 March

General note

NASA NAGW-2881.

Box 2, Folder 32

Keefe and Miller. Polyphosphates are unlikely prebiotic reagents 1995 December

General note

NASA NAGW-2881.

Box 2, Folder 33

Braterman et al. Preferential uptake of ammonium ions by zinc ferrocyanide 1995 December

General note

NASA NAGW-2881.

Box 2, Folder 34

Lehman and Joyce. In vitro evolution: Analysis of a phylogeny of Ribosomes 1995

General note

NASA NAGW-2881.

Box 2, Folder 35

Bada, Miller, and Zhao. The stability of amino acids at submarine hydrothermal vent temperatures ca. 1995

General note

NASA NAGW-2881.

Box 2, Folder 36

Summary of NSCORT collaboration with the UC television stations ca. 1995

General note

Includes list of UCSD-TV productions

Box 2, Folder 37

Bada and McDonald. Amino acid racemization in the Martian environment: Implications for identification of biomolecules from an extinct Martian biota ca. 1995

General note

NASA NAGW-2881.

Box 2, Folder 38

Bada et al. A search for extraterrestrial amino acids in polar ice: A progress report 1996 January

General note

Research presented at the international conference of circumstellar habitable zones, NASA NAGW-2881.

Box 2, Folder 39

Brinton and Bada. A reexamination of amino acids in lunar Solis: implications for the survival of exogenous organics during impact delivery 1996 January

General note

NASA NAGW-2881.

Box 2, Folder 40

Miller and Lazcano. From the primitive soup to the cyanobacteria: It may have taken more than 10 million years 1996

Box 2, Folder 41

Orgel, Leslie. The origin of life - How long did it take? 1997 June

Box 2, Folder 42

Arrhenius and Paplawsky. Distinguishing between production and dissolution of biogenic calcite - An old problem with new solutions 1997 August

Box 2, Folder 43

Schmidt et al. Information transfer from DNA to peptide nucleic acids by template-directed synthesis 1997 October

Box 2, Folder 44

Schmidt, Nielsen, and Orgel. Information transfer from peptide nucleic acids to RNA by template-directed syntheses 1997 October

Box 2, Folder 45

Krishnamurthy et al. Toward RNA - The Phosphorylation of glycolaldehyde 1997 November

General note

Research presented at NASA ARC symposium, supported by NASA exobiology grant NAGW 1031.

Box 2, Folder 46

Arrhenius et al. Early life environments of Earth and Mars 1997

General note

Research presented at NASA ARC symposium, supported by NASA exobiology grant NAGW 2881.

Box 2, Folder 47

Mojzsis and Arrhenius. Early Mars and early Earth: paleoenvironments for the emergence of life 1997

Box 2, Folder 48

Mojzsis, Stephen. Ancient sediments of Earth and Mars - Dissertation 1997

General note

NAG54546.

Box 2, Folder 49

Liu and Orgel. Oxidative acylation using thioacids 1997

Box 2, Folder 50

Orgel, Leslie E. Polymerization on the rocks: Theoretical introduction ca. 1997-1998

General note

NAG54546.

Box 2, Folder 51

Progress report 1997-1998

General note

Includes organization progress report.

Box 2, Folder 52

Koppitz, Nielsen, and Orgel. Template - directed formation of oligonucleotide-PNA-chimeras 1998 May

Box 2, Folder 53

Liu and Orgel. Polymerization on the rocks: B-Amino acids and arganin 1998 June

Box 2, Folder 54

Hill, Bohler and Orgel. Polymerization on the rocks: Negatively charged ?-amino acids 1998 June

General note

NAG4546

Box 2, Folder 55

Liu and Orgel. Polymerization of B-amino acids in aqueous solution 1998

Box 2, Folder 56

Brinton, Catlos, and Bada. The use of the ninhydrin reaction for the elimination of protein amino acids in cosmogeochemichal samples undated

General note

Research presented at the Gordon research conference, NASA NAGW-2881.

Box 2, Folder 57

McDonald and Bada. Inhibition of amino acid metabolic enzymes by a-aminoisobutyric acid undated

General note

NASA NAGW-2881.

Box 2, Folder 58

Miller, Stanley. The components of the precursors to RNA - Annual report undated

Box 2, Folder 59

NSCORT general organization report undated

Site Visits and Reviews

Box 2, Folder 60-68

Annual Review Committee 1991-1999

General note

Includes correspondence, presentation materials, information packets, recommendations, and reports.

Box 2, Folder 69-70

Review Panel 1992-2002

General note

Includes summary of activities and progress reports.

Box 3, Folder 1-7

Review Panel 1992-2002

General note

Includes correspondence, presentation materials, information packets, recommendations, and reports.

Box 3, Folder 8

National Research Council (NRC) review 1995

Box 3, Folder 9

Site visit presentation materials for Jeffery L. Bada 1996

Box 3, Folder 10-11

NASA site visits 1996-2001