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The Origin of Life
The Origin of Life
Four theories
concidered
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Introduction
The Miller-Urey-experiment.
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allow life to begin. In 1953 Stanley L. Miller and Harold C. Urey, working
at the University of Chicago, conducted an experiment which would
change the aproach of scientific investigation into the origin of life.
Miller took molecules which were believed to represent the major
components of early Earth’s atmosphere and put them into a closed
system. The gases they used were methane (CH4), ammonia (NH3),
hydrogen (H2) and water (H2O). Next, he ran a continious electric current
through the system to simulate lightning storms believed to be common
on the early earth. Analysis of the experiment was done by chromoto-
graphy. At the end of one week, Miller observed that much as 10-15 % of
the carbon was now in the form of organic compounds. Two percent of the
carbon had formed some of the amino acids which are used to make
proteins. Perhaps, most importantly, Miller’s experiment showed that
organic compounds such as amino acids could be made easily under the
conditions that scientists believed to be present on the early earth.
This enormous finding inspired a multitude of experiments. Scientists
became very optimistic that the question about the origin of life would be
solved within a few decades. This has not been the case, however.
A later wave of scepticism concerning Miller’s experiment showed up. (2)
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Amino acids
These are organic acids with the formula NH2- CHR – COOH, where the
side group R variates. Amino acids are the building blocks in proteins,
beeing “hooked” together in long chains, beeing called peptides. We know
there is several hundreds different amino acids, all given a name and a
formula, but in a smart way. Group R in the formula indikate that this is
Arginin, one of th most essential
amino acids.
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Recent experiments suggest that if bacteria were somehow sheltered from
radiation of space, perhaps innside a thich meteoride or any icy comet,
they could survive dormant for millions of years. A radioresistant bacteria
(Deinoccus radiodurans) can survive high radiation levels.
Spores are produced as part of normal life cycle of many plants, algea,
fungi and some protazoans. These structures may be highly resistant to
ultraviolet and gamma radiation, desiccation- temperature, starvation and
chemical disinfectants. (4)
Panspermia
Panspermia is the hypothesis that “seeds” of life exist already all over the
Universe, that life on Earth may have originated through these “seeds”,
and that they may deliver or have delivered life to other habitable bodies.
Precambrium fossil record indicates that life appeared soon after the Earth
was formed. This would imply that life appeared within several hundred
million years when conditions became favourable. The oldest known
fosslized stromatolites or bacterial aggregates are dated at 3.5 billion
years old. (5)
Kjell W. Tveten
Rererences
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