We often hear exciting news about 'habitable planets' that might have life, or at least the 'building blocks of life.' Are these reports based on sound thinking about the requirements?
NASA throws money at origin-of-life (OOL) studies that are doomed to failure, and at education programs to tell students that futility is good science.
The popular RNA World hypothesis is so improbable that multiple universes would be needed to believe it, but some prefer that to the obvious implications.