> The big question isn't, and wasn't, whether a system with primordial chemicals could generate self-replicating reactions and structures - you could figure that out by looking in a mirror.

OK, we knew that, but what are the precise conditions under which it is more or less likely to happen? Understanding that requires a mathematical theory of exactly how self-replicating patterns form under the laws of thermodynamics, which is what this line of work is aiming to provide.