Prebiotic chemistry: A fuzzy field

If prebiotic chemistry is defined as the study of the chemical steps, which lead to the first organisms, a clear-cut definition of "living organism" is needed. Unfortunately, no unambiguous and universally accepted definition exists for the concept "living". Under these conditions, fuzzy logic is probably the methodological tool that can best be used to handle questions pertaining to "the origin of life". A conventional scale must, however, be defined which interestingly enough, depends necessarily on our present-day scientific knowledge. (C) 2010 Published by Elsevier Masson SAS on behalf of Academie des sciences.