It does sound very counter intuitive doesn't it? At it's core is the idea
that the base pairs of the DNA ladder must reassemble a certain way and
that, with mathematical probability, when very long base pair segments from
different stands overlap with each other they can be assumed to part of the
same species. The scientists, their lap equipment, and their computers are
doing what your own RNA does; putting back together after replication what
belonged together in the first place. However, they *are* doing it with
more than one species genes at a time. The mind does not boggle quite as
much when you think of it this way....


"Steve" wrote in message
...
al wrote:

...............They collect the water, strain it through ever finer
filters to collect a gooey glob of micro organisms and then they extract
their DNA by slicing it into tiny nucleotide bits, then they replicate
these bits, then they REASSEMBLE them back into complete genomes....and
out of this gene puree and reassembly process comes something a computer
program can use to count the number of unique organisms that were in the
sea water sample BEFORE they were chopped to bits.

One of the remarkable things they have discovered, other than the Amazing
and unpredictably large number of new species.........................

Well no wonder! It sounds to me like they are MAKING new species.

Steve