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摘要

Scientists are continually looking for an Earth-like planet, claiming that Earth has the perfect conditions to cradle and sustain life ["Quest for a Second Earth," November]. Criteria for likely planetary candidates hosting life tend to include a cool, rocky surface that holds water. But it is no coincidence that Earth provides the exact climate for our life; all forms of life on Earth have adapted specifically to the conditions found in their environment. This is simply the only kind of life that we have witnessed. There is no reason to believe that life on other planets would not evolve to fit their own potentially very different environments. We're looking for new forms of life through a very narrow lens. It's akin to a literature professor at Oxford claiming that the one criterion for distinguishing a great novel is that it must be written in English.