The Mystery of Life's Origin
The Mystery of Life's Origin (2nd ed.) (2020) by James Tour, et al.
This Discovery Institute published book explores origin of life research in chemistry, physics, astrobiology, biochemistry, etc. A number of authors were involved including Charles Thaxton, Walter Bradley, Roger Olsen, James Tour, Brian Miller, Guillermo Gonzalez, Jonathan Wells, and Stephen C. Meyer; however, the focus of this post will be on James Tour.
“James M. Tour is a prominent American synthetic organic chemist and nanotechnologist. He serves as the T. T. and W. F. Chao Professor of Chemistry, with additional appointments as Professor of Materials Science and NanoEngineering and Professor of Computer Science at Rice University in Houston, Texas” (xAI, Grok 4, 2025).
He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry from Syracuse University and his Ph.D. in synthetic organic and organometallic chemistry from Purdue University. He completed postdoctoral training at the University of Wisconsin–Madison and Stanford University.
“Tour has authored over 800 research publications, holds more than 130 patents, and has an h-index exceeding 170, with citations surpassing 140,000. His work has earned him numerous accolades, including election to the National Academy of Engineering in 2024 and recognition as one of the world’s most influential scientists” (xAI, Grok 4, 2025).
Links:
James Tour Group: https://jmtour.com/
James Tour journal publications page: https://jmtour.com/publications-dr-james-tour/
James Tour Evolution/Creation page: https://jmtour.com/evolution-creation/
James Tour personal statement: https://jmtour.com/hello-world/
James Tour on the origin of life: https://inference-review.com/article/animadversions-of-a-synthetic-chemist and https://inference-review.com/article/two-experiments-in-abiogenesis
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