In the 1980 s, a biomarker contributed to the success of the small but seminal clinical trial of human growth hormone in children who were unable to produce it naturally.

How do we search for alien life if it's nothing like the life that we know? At TEDxUIUC Christoph Adami shows how he uses his research into artificial life self replicating computer programs to find a signature, a 'biomarker,' that is free of our preconceptions of what life is.