I agree. But with the rules being enforced in an inconsistent manner, who knows how long such a statement may be allowed to exist.

This article is junk, IMO. I'm positive that Peter Ward wants to re-christan the taxonomical tree, the "Wardian Taxonomical Tree". The (non)inclusion of viruses is a problem, yes, but hardly merits its own kingdom, or whatever he chooses to call it.

Exotic alien amino acids- what might those be ? If acids beyond the 20 "native" ones were feasible anywhere (including Earth), then we'd be aware of it in some lifeform by now. Even so, the two decades of manufacturing life in labs that Ward refers to will bear out this fallacy. And the mere mention of silicon-based life makes the entire article laughable. Just as a biochemist why carbon = good, silicon = bad, for a lesson in molecular bonding properties.

Yes, when the aliens drop in for tea several Tuesdays from now, then we can look to re-evaluate the classification tables. Guessing the unknown just complicates biologists' work needlessly.