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Question

What evidence do we have for the origin of life from inanimate matter?

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Solution

The experiment conducted by two eminent biochemists, Stanley L. Miller and Harold C. Urey, in 1953, provided an evidence to the fact that the life on earth has originated from inanimate matter.
In this experiment, they created an artificial atmosphere containing ammonia, methane and hydrogen sulfide. There was no oxygen in this atmosphere taken under consideration. Presumably, during the earth was formed, this type of atmosphere existed. The apparatus with the mentioned gases was maintained at high temperature and electrical sparks were introduced to the apparatus and it played the role of the lightning in the early atmosphere. The whole set up was placed above a water bath. After a week of running this experiment, it was seen that the gases participated in chemical reactions resulting in the formation simple organic molecules like amino acids which were found in the water bath, thus suggesting the origin of life from inanimate matter.

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