Schedule
The first 4 days are devoted to lectures about the scientific background. Then we will go on an excursion to the northwesternmost parts of Scotland for the next 5 days visiting geological locations and performing exercises, including Raman spectroscopy, X-ray fluorescence and reflection spectroscopy. On the last two days there will be time for write-up and presenting the results for exercises.
Lectures
Setting the stage: Evolution of early Earth
- Introduction
- Evolution of planetary systems and rocky planets
- Early geological history of Earth
Methods for detection of early life
- Geological evidence for early life
- Chemical and isotopical methods
- Problems and pitfalls of the different methods)
- Traces of early life in Scotland
- Introduction into exercises
Early evolution of life
- Conditions during the early evolution of life
- Early biochemical evolution
- Formation of first cells and LUCA
- Microbial communities and their dependence on biotic and abiotic parameters
- Co-evolution of Earth’s biosphere, geosphere and atmosphere
- The Cambrian explosion
Traces of early life
- Geological traces of early life
- Chemical traces of early life
- Possible approaches to detection of early or microbiolife on other
Confirmed Lecturers
Alexander Brasier
University of Aberdeen, UK
Johanna Marin Carbonne
Universiy of Lausanne, Switzerland
Ernest Chi-Fru
Cardiff University, UK
Stuart Harrison
UCL, UK
Sean McMahon
University of Edinburgh, UK
Maria Gabriela Mangano
Saskatchewan, Canada
Anna Neubeck
Uppsala University, Sweden
Excursions
