Understanding the Origin and Evolution of Life on Earth and the Galaxy

The "Origins of Life" Gordon Conference provides the most important venue where chemists, biologists, natural historians, planetary scientists, astronomers, and others meet to create approaches to study "big questions" about origins, questions not easily addressed by hypothesis-driven research. The focus on the plural "Origins" allowed the 2014 Conference Chair, Steven Benner,to expand topics to include the origins of advanced biology, including human physiology and disease. Further, a session is devoted on the practical applications of "origins" research, to technology, industry, and medicine, to move "origins" from an academic field to one that is fundable. To advance the Origins conference mission as a place where students and early-stage researchers can develop careers studying "big questions", conference attendees will include staff from foundations interested in supporting "big question" research, and strong international representation from Europe and the Far East. Support for early stage researchers to cover attendance costs and participate in planning discussions has been made possible by generous grants from the Templeton Foundation, NASA, the Simon Foundation, and the NSF.