The Eukaryote, the First Cell to Get Organized

(quantamagazine.org)

32 points | by elsewhen8 hours ago

8 comments

  • chasil35 minutes ago
    "At some point, in a sequel to mitochondrial capture, a eukaryote engulfed a cyanobacterium capable of photosynthesis... green organelles called chloroplasts, evolved into plants and other photosynthesizers."

    Chloroplasts are only one type of plastid; this process occurred far more than once.

    https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plastid

  • thangalin3 hours ago
    A brief synopsis of eukaryotic life from my book, showing where complex life fits into our timeline:

    https://impacts.to/downloads/lowres/impacts.pdf#page=12

  • lotsofspots1 hour ago
    The first cell with a surviving lineage to get organised. There could have been countless other 'attempts' that, for one reason or another, failed to get established, or died out before they could leave a trace in the fossil record.
  • nkrisc30 minutes ago
    So did multi-celled life evolve several times independently among the original eukaryotes if some gained chloroplasts or mitochondria before being multi-cellular?
  • janpmz3 hours ago
    Yesterday an article was trending "The Secret Electrostatic World of Insects". Now I wonder, how much does static electricity actually affect cells? https://www.wired.com/story/the-secret-electrostatic-world-o...
  • asplake4 hours ago
    > The eukaryotes invented organization, if we use the literal definition of “organize”: to be furnished with organs

    I write about organisations, and I had never considered that! I wonder if that fits with the historical bias towards functional organisation. (And functionalism in sociology, but I undestand that to be discredited now)

  • Log_out_4 hours ago
    Trading complexity for statistic dice throws aka copies.
    • notarobot1234 hours ago
      Much like the evolution of programming practices in the age of LLMs.
  • cyberax7 hours ago
    What? Cells of organized labor?

    Next thing, they'll start talking about unions!

    • InDubioProRubio2 hours ago
      We can not have cancer within the cancer that is within the original structure giving cancer that is the state. Thats meta-meta-meta-stasis
    • xyzal4 hours ago
      You made me laugh out loud. Thank you.