Chapter Objectives

1. Describe 2 lines of evidence for the antiquity of life
2. Describe the contributions of A. I. Oparin, J. B. S. Haldane, S. Miller, and H. Urey made toward developing a model for abiotic synthesis of organic molecules
3. Provide plausibe evidence to support the hypothesis that chemical evolution resulting in life's origin occured in 4 stages
   1. Abiotic synthesis of organic monomers
   2. Abiotic synthesis of polymers
   3. Formation of probobionts
   4. Origin of genetic information
4. Describe the basis for thr 3-domain and the 6-Kingdom systems

Chapter Terms:

Chapter Outline Framework

1. Introduction to the History of Life
   1. Life on earth originated between 3.5 and 4.0 billion years ago
   2. Major episodes in the history of life
2. Prebiotic Chemical Evolution and the Origin of LIfe
   1. The first cells may have originated by chemical evolution on a young earth
   2. Abiotic sysntesis of organic monomers is a testable hypothesis
   3. Laboratory simulations of early earth conditions have produced organic polymers
   4. Protobionts can form by self-assembly
   5. RNA was probably the first genetic material
   6. The origin of hereditary information made Darwinian evolution possible
   7. Debate about the origin of life abounds
3. The Major Lineages of Life
1. Arranging the divereity of life into the highest taxa is a work in progress

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