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Throwawaycuzawkward t1_j2bzhea wrote

"For all i know i am not made of carbon"

If this is your argument: "I can't see it, so how do I know if it's true?" then modern science might not be for you.

If you'd actually like to know: there is a reason; it has to do with the commonality of certain atoms in the universe, but almost more to do with their valence electrons.

Carbon, Hydrogen, and Oxygen bond very easily with each other into long polymers, that have unique properties, because they easily share electron and they are very common. These polymers - some of them - form the foundations of life as we so far know it. Though there is an easy argument for Silicon based life, for the same reasons.

I'D LIKE TO EDIT MY STATEMENT, because it was originally arrogant, but I'll leave the original arrogance: If this is your argument: "I can't see it, so how do I know if it's true?" then modern science MIGHT ACTUALLY be for you.

You should question things. THAT is modern science. Modern science, as it happens, has already been down the rabbit hole of "what are we made of?" and Carbon most definitely lies at it's center.

I'm glad you're asking questions, and I apologize for my initial reaction.

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Responsible-Big-2644 OP t1_j2c2ojo wrote

So fundamentally carbon is the "glue" that bond everything in our body am i correct ? THANKS FOR THE EDIT i was thinking that my question was stupid

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Throwawaycuzawkward t1_j2c3hqo wrote

It wasn't a stupid question, my response was. And yes: Carbon is central to the chemical bonds that make up everything meaningful in your body: proteins that help repair wounds and your farts. Literally everything.

There's a specific kind of Chemistry, you can get a very expensive degree in it that those that have it generally call: O-Chem, Organic Chemistry, and it is specifically about the chemicals and chemical reactions made up by Carbon, essentially.

Like I said, Science has been down that rabbit hole, for about 90 years in fact. I know you can't see it with your eyes, but we can see it with chemical reactions, and Electron Spectrometry, and a bunch of other stuff.

There's several robots on mars currently that are looking for - and have found - chemical signatures of life there, all of them based around carbon-bonded compounds.

I would encourage you to go look into basic chemistry - not because you're basic, but because you are obviously curious, and a little understanding of how atoms are made up will make it clear to you, I think, why Carbon is, in fact "the glue" in the organic chemistry of life.

Best of luck, friend.

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