The Chirality Problem

The term chirality was introduced into the vocabulary of science by Lord Kelvin in the 1880s and comes from the Greek word %etp = cheir , the hand, since chiral molecules behave like our hands, like mirror images which cannot be superimposed upon each other. 

In nature, but also in chemical syntheses, many molecules occur in two spatially different structures which behave like mirror images. This can also be seen in two dimensions one of the letters A (Fig. 9.5) can be superimposed upon the second A if it is moved to the right (or left). This is, however, not possible with the letters G . Thus, A is described as not chiral, or achiral, and G as chiral. 

The situation becomes more complex in three-dimensional structures if we lay the palms of our two hands together, the mirror plane lies exactly between them, so that the hands are chiral. Whether or not a molecule is chiral depends upon symmetry relationships  

Chiral molecules are characterised by symmetry elements of the first kind, for example, axes of rotation. 

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But why is the chirality problem a subject for the question of biogenesis Two of the most important biological molecules contain building blocks with only one of the two possible molecular species ... 

What was the importance of this research result for the chirality problem One difficulty is provided by the fact that the interaction responsible for the violation of parity is in fact not so weak at all, although it only acts across a very short distance (smaller than an atomic radius). Thus, the weak interaction is not noticeable outside the atomic nucleus, except for p-decay. It would thus have either no influence on chemical reactions or only a very limited effect on chemical reactions, as these almost completely involve only interactions between the electron shells. 

It should be pointed out that the chirality problem is based entirely on the concept of RNCs. This immediately implies that for its treatment the isometric group (l)( ( )) is sufficient and the primitive period isometries may be omitted. 

It was reported that a very strong magnetic field produced chiral products from achiral reagents. However, nobody could reproduce these experiments. Summarizing, the chirality problem is still under discussion. 

Sarfati, J. Origin of life The chirality problem. Creeition Ex NiWlo Technical Journal 12(3), 263-266 (1998)... 

The word "somehow", or any equivalent, such as "by guess or by God", should be banished from scientific discourse, to be replaced by the phrase "I don t know". Most of the so-called cosmological paradoxes exist because of half-baked explanations that gained respectability by frequent repitition. One of the most annoying examples is the way in which the chirality problem is confidently swept under the carpet, so well that most commentatators are unaware of it. 

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