> Death is the cessation of life, isn't it? Is there some living, material
> thing that is eternal?
That depends upon what you mean by eternal. However, cancer cells are
biologically immortal, in that as long as you do not kill them, they will
grow and reproduce indefinately, never "aging" or wearing out or dying when
they get too old. Nor do they self-terminate like normal cells do. They are
as close as anything natural can be to eternal.
In any event, I don't see what this has to do with protocells. You can kill
protocells and they self-destruct like normal cells, so I guess using your
reasoning that that would prove that they are alive.
Kevin L. O'Brien