Figure 6.

A “factor tree” of the three privileged functions: replication (blue), metabolism (red), compartmentalization (gold) (Section 1.1). Within the paradigm of privileged functions at the origins of life, life represents one solution to those functions in component-space, and lyfe encompasses any living system that uses other components to accomplish the same tasks. Life, being the sought-after end-product of origins-of-life hypotheses (one such shown by the dotted purple trajectory), is positioned at the apex. The tier directly below life contains two common components to life. The tier below that contains one common component. The final tier contains no common components. Connecting the vertices via common components creates a “cube”. Rotating this shape allows any combination to assume the apex, suggestive of our position that lyfe can be just as valid a target of origins-of-life research as life.