ABSTRACT

The three-domain universal tree of life established by Carl R. Woese fundamentally reset the stage of evolutionary theory and has forever changed the face of modern biology. His new vision of cells that are capable of extensive collective sharing of genetic materials, and their universal possession of partially conserved genes that can serve as a measuring stick of evolutionary relatedness, resulted in the identification of the Archaea and a fundamentally new understanding of the origin and early evolution of life. NASA was the sole federal funding agency that made this research possible. The resulting universal tree of life is now the fundamental roadmap used to probe the most fundamental of challenges facing society regarding the environment, energy, medicine, and the search for life throughout the cosmos.