Authentic Science Fiction Monthly No. 43 — page 66: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

Possible Life Forms on other Planets Terrestrial organisms fall into two broad classes on the basis of energy relations—en- ergy fixers and energy dissi- pators. All organisms need energy in order to do those things by which we recognise their possession of life— growth, reproduction and so on. Some organisms—the en- ergy fixers—obtain their vital energy from extraterrestrial sources; in the main, these are photosynthetic plants. Other organisms—the energy dis- sipators—obtain their vital energy from terrestrial sources ; in the main, these are animals and non-photosyntheticplants. Of course, energy fixers also dissipate energy, but in far smaller amount than they fix it. The American botanist, Loomis, estimates that only fifteen per cent. of the material formed in a plant by photo- synthesis is used up in the plant’s respiration—so 85 per cent. of it is available for dis- sipation by you and me. And there is a kind of dynamic equilibrium in opera- tion. This ensures that the quantity of energy fixed overa reasonably lengthy period is equal to the energy dissipated 65 by H. J. Campbell in that time, thus preventing a plethora or dearth of organic material. | If Einstein is right in claim- ing that material laws are the same for all observers, and he does seem to be, then what- ever chemical form life takes on other planets, it will have to comply with these energy rela- tion laws. This enables us to assign a number of general features to lifeon other planets. Ignore for a moment the ori- gin of life. Assume that it is there; on an alien planet. It may take the form of energy dissipator, energy fixer, or both. Which will it be? We can see at once that it cannot be solely of the energy dissipator type, for such organisms need ready-made compounds as a substrate for their dissipative activities. Suppose that this alien life form is solely of the energy fixer type, that is, that they ap- proximate to our green plants. They will build up energy, stored in the chemical bonds of photosynthesized com- pounds. They will reproduce and multiply. They will die. But they will not decay. If these processes continue for a comiclooks.corn