‘This is why you’re interested in cell development?’ ‘The cell is basically an ocean capsule. A preserved primordial capsule, holding the original marine environment inside. This is . . . this is just beyond incredible, isn’t it? I mean, you could describe us as both people, and as mobile assemblages of ocean. I am not ready to get over this.’ Stefan gave a quiet laugh. ‘It’s what we’re hearing now, sloshing beneath us as the ship goes through it. It’s a mistake to think of our origins, of all life’s origins, as belonging only to the past. It’s still there.’
