News and Music Discovery
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

3rd Form Of Life

NPR's Richard Harris reports that researchers have for the first time deciphered the complete genetic blueprint of an organism known as an 'archaea'. These microorganisms have long been thought to represent a form of life distinct from the two major forms of life, prokaryotes (PROH-kare-ee-otts) and eukaryotes (YOO-kare-ee-otts). The blueprint confirms this distinction.

Copyright 1996 NPR