This note describes the origin and development of life on the
planet Earth within the context of an evolving universe. It begins with an
overview of the origins of the universe from the "Big Bang" to our own solar
system and then integrate the principles of physics, chemistry, geology and
biology to study the origins of life on Earth.
This book presents results from several projects in the new field of computational
astrobiology, which is devoted to advancing our understanding of the origin,
evolution and distribution of life in the Universe using theoretical and
computational tools.