Once a self-replicating system develops from chemicals, this is the beginning of genetic history, since each molecule carries the imprint of its ancestor. Dr. Crick, who was interested in the chemistry that preceded replication, once observed, “After this point, the rest is just history.”
— From Nicholas Wade, “New Glimpses of Life’s Puzzling Origins,” New York Times.
He just summed up the high-school/general public attitude on our favorite subject: it’s all facts, figures, and nothing is new under the sun. It’s the cyclical/repetition school. Besides, if he really found history interesting, he wouldn’t have become a geneticist! – TL