The Origins of Life and Soup

Who conducted the experiment that led to the creation of "primordial soup" in 1952?

What did Stanley Miller's experiment demonstrate?

What were the limitations of the Stanley Miller experiment when explaining the origin of life?

What is the term used to describe the origin of life from non-living matter?

• Evolution

• Abiogenesis

• Photosynthesis

• Metamorphosis

What is are the key characteristics of all living things?

• A living thing must have a source of energy to avoid decay and disorder

• A living thing has to create a closed system, or be made of cells

• They have some molecule that can carry information about how to build cell machinery

• This information must evolve by natural selection

Why is a boundary between the outside and inside of a cell so important for life?

What features of phospholipid-like molecules suggest that they could have formed basic cell membranes in primordial conditions?

• They are made of carbon, Hydrogen and Oxygen

• They can from spontaneously under the right conditions

• They spontaneously coalesce into spherical bilayers

• They are amphipathic

What features of RNA suggest it played a crucial role in the earliest days of life?

What is the best evidence to suggests that RNA played a role in early life?

• Ribozymes catalyse the formation of the peptide bond during protein synthesis at the ribosome in all modern cells

• RNA is present in all cells

• RNA is single-stranded so the base sequence is always accessible

• Some viruses store all their genetic information as RNA

What natural feature is suggested as a possible location for the origin of life on Earth?

• Deserts

• Deep-sea hydrothermal vents

• Mountain tops

• Forests