Who created electric discharge in a closed flask containing CH4, H2, NH3 and water vapour at 800°C and observed the formation of amino acids?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → Miller
Oparin and Haldane proposed that the first organic molecules formed from inorganic materials on early earth (chemical evolution). S.L. Miller (1953) recreated these conditions in a closed flask and found that amino acids had formed. This supported the idea that the building blocks of life arose by chemical evolution.
NCERT Extract:
Origin of Life – “… The conditions on earth were – high temperature, volcanic storms, reducing atmosphere containing CH4, NH3, etc. In 1953, S.L. Miller, an American scientist created similar conditions in a laboratory scale (Figure 6.1). He created electric discharge in a closed flask containing CH4, H2, NH3 and water vapour at 8000C. He observed formation of amino acids. In similar experiments others observed, formation of sugars, nitrogen bases, pigment and fats.”
Figure 6.1 Diagrammatic representation of Miller’s experiment