Darwin And His Dangerous Idea
Evolution can be defined as "the gradual process in which something changes into a different and usually more complex or better form." A biological definition of evolution is that of a "population during successive generations, as a result of natural selection acting on genetic variation among individuals, and resulting in the development of new species" (dictionary.com).
According to these definitions, from the simplest to the most complex, it is obvious that evolution never even tries to account for the origin of life, but only explains what happens once life is present and capable of reproduction.
Life could have started in many ways, as there are numerous theories which strive to explain this phenomenon. Very few people may actually believe that the creation of life was purely due to chance.
As stated in the Campbell-Reece Biology 101 textbook (page 516), "most biologists favor the hypothesis that life on Earth developed from nonliving materials that became eventually capable of self-replication and metabolism." This abiogenetic view is definitely not due to chance, but rather favorable conditions and the presence of a certain advantage for the combination of nonliving materials to form living organisms. "In 1953, Stanley Miller and Harold Urey tested the Oparin-Haldane hypothesis" (page 518) which required certain "chemical conditions and energy sources for the abiotic synthesis of organic molecules (page 518). Their experiment consisted of a warm flask of water, which was to simulate the primeval sea. "The atmosphere consisted of water, hydrogen gas, ammonia, and methane. Sparks were discharged in the synthetic atmosphere to mimic lightning. A condenser cooled the atmosphere, raining water and any dissolved compounds back to the miniature sea. As material circulated through the apparatus, the solution in the flask changed from clear to murky brown. After one week, Miller and Urey analyzed the contents of the solution and found a...
Please login to view the full essay...