The Miller Volcanic Spark Discharge Experiment

[Realitycheck]

Originally considered a dud, an old volcano-in-a-bottle experiment designed to mimic conditions that may have brewed the components of life might have been right on target.

 

He did this experiment to mimic the conditions around volcanos during the age of pre-cellular life. What he did not know at the time that he did the experiments was just how supportive it was of his theories, because back then, he did not have access to high-performance chromatography. Hence, it was pushed out of view and forgotten about, in favor of his most famous experiment with Urey. However, upon reexamination by the heir to his works, "they found no fewer than 22 amino acids, several of which were never seen by Miller in a lifetime of primordial modeling."

 

http://blog.wired.com/wiredscience/2008/10/forgotten-exper.html?npu=1&mbid=yhp

http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/abstract/322/5900/404

[iNow]

We've been talking about this over here too:

 

http://www.scienceforums.net/forum/showthread.php?t=35875

[Realitycheck]

This is a different experiment, dug up out of the closet, forgotten about, that was more realistic than the more famous one, and was essentially more effective.

Edited October 19, 2008 by agentchange