Stanley Miller
Encyclopedia
Stanley Lloyd Miller was an American
chemist
and biologist
who is known for his studies into the origin of life, particularly the Miller–Urey experiment which demonstrated that organic compound
s can be created by fairly simple physical processes from inorganic substances. The experiment used conditions then thought to provide an approximate representation of those present on the primordial
Earth
.
, he studied at University of California at Berkeley (earning his B.S. in 1951) and then at University of Chicago
where he earned his Ph.D. in chemistry in 1954. While at Chicago, Miller was a student of Harold Urey
.
Miller continued his research at California Institute of Technology
(1954–1955) and then joined the department of biochemistry at Columbia University
, New York where he worked for the next five years. He then returned to California where he was an assistant professor (1960–1962), associate professor (1962–1968), then full professor of chemistry at University of California at San Diego (from 1968).
His work dealt with the origin of life (and he was considered a pioneer in the field of exobiology), the natural occurrence of clathrate hydrates, and general mechanisms of anesthesia
. He was a member of the National Academy of Science, and received the Oparin Medal
. He was a participant in the pioneering Miller-Urey experiment
. In the 1950s, Urey guessed that the early atmosphere of the Earth was probably like the atmosphere now present on Jupiter—i.e., rich in ammonia, methane, and hydrogen. Miller, working in his laboratory at the University of Chicago, demonstrated that when exposed to an energy source such as an electrical discharge, these compounds and water can react to produce amino acids essential for the formation of living matter: similar ideas had been suggested by Russian chemist Aleksandr Oparin
and British scientist J.B.S. Haldane in the 1920s. Since then there have been objections that the early environment was possibly not as reducing as Miller and Urey assumed and Miller acknowledged this.
In 2008, researchers found the apparatus that Miller used in his early experiments and analyzed the material using more sensitive later techniques. The experiments included previously unreported simulations of other environments, such as gases released in volcanic eruptions. The later analysis turned up more amino acids and other compounds of interest.
In 1828 Friedrich Wöhler
had shown that it is possible to synthesize urea
. As urea is an organic molecule, many at the time thought it could only be made by living organisms. This led to recognition that there is no obvious difference between a physically produced and an organically produced molecule. Miller's experiment went slightly further by showing that basic biomolecules can be formed through simple physical processes, and that it was not impossible for the first stages of abiogenesis
to have occurred on the early earth.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
chemist
Chemist
A chemist is a scientist trained in the study of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties such as density and acidity. Chemists carefully describe the properties they study in terms of quantities, with detail on the level of molecules and their component atoms...
and biologist
Biologist
A biologist is a scientist devoted to and producing results in biology through the study of life. Typically biologists study organisms and their relationship to their environment. Biologists involved in basic research attempt to discover underlying mechanisms that govern how organisms work...
who is known for his studies into the origin of life, particularly the Miller–Urey experiment which demonstrated that organic compound
Organic compound
An organic compound is any member of a large class of gaseous, liquid, or solid chemical compounds whose molecules contain carbon. For historical reasons discussed below, a few types of carbon-containing compounds such as carbides, carbonates, simple oxides of carbon, and cyanides, as well as the...
s can be created by fairly simple physical processes from inorganic substances. The experiment used conditions then thought to provide an approximate representation of those present on the primordial
Primordial
Primordial may refer to:* Primordial sea . See abiogenesis* Primordial nuclide, nuclides, a few radioactive, that formed before the Earth existed and are stable enough to still occur on Earth...
Earth
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
.
Life and career
Born in Oakland, CaliforniaOakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
, he studied at University of California at Berkeley (earning his B.S. in 1951) and then at University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
where he earned his Ph.D. in chemistry in 1954. While at Chicago, Miller was a student of Harold Urey
Harold Urey
Harold Clayton Urey was an American physical chemist whose pioneering work on isotopes earned him the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1934...
.
Miller continued his research at California Institute of Technology
California Institute of Technology
The California Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Pasadena, California, United States. Caltech has six academic divisions with strong emphases on science and engineering...
(1954–1955) and then joined the department of biochemistry at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, New York where he worked for the next five years. He then returned to California where he was an assistant professor (1960–1962), associate professor (1962–1968), then full professor of chemistry at University of California at San Diego (from 1968).
His work dealt with the origin of life (and he was considered a pioneer in the field of exobiology), the natural occurrence of clathrate hydrates, and general mechanisms of anesthesia
Anesthesia
Anesthesia, or anaesthesia , traditionally meant the condition of having sensation blocked or temporarily taken away...
. He was a member of the National Academy of Science, and received the Oparin Medal
Oparin Medal
The Oparin/Urey Medal honours important contributions to the field of origins of life. The medal is awarded by ISSOL . The award was originally named for Alexander Ivanovich Oparin, one of the pioneers in researching the origins of life...
. He was a participant in the pioneering Miller-Urey experiment
Miller-Urey experiment
The Miller and Urey experiment was an experiment that simulated hypothetical conditions thought at the time to be present on the early Earth, and tested for the occurrence of chemical origins of life. Specifically, the experiment tested Alexander Oparin's and J. B. S...
. In the 1950s, Urey guessed that the early atmosphere of the Earth was probably like the atmosphere now present on Jupiter—i.e., rich in ammonia, methane, and hydrogen. Miller, working in his laboratory at the University of Chicago, demonstrated that when exposed to an energy source such as an electrical discharge, these compounds and water can react to produce amino acids essential for the formation of living matter: similar ideas had been suggested by Russian chemist Aleksandr Oparin
Aleksandr Oparin
Alexander Ivanovich Oparin was a Soviet biochemist notable for his contributions to the theory of the origin of life, and for his authorship of the book The Origin of Life. He also studied the biochemistry of material processing by plants, and enzyme reactions in plant cells...
and British scientist J.B.S. Haldane in the 1920s. Since then there have been objections that the early environment was possibly not as reducing as Miller and Urey assumed and Miller acknowledged this.
In 2008, researchers found the apparatus that Miller used in his early experiments and analyzed the material using more sensitive later techniques. The experiments included previously unreported simulations of other environments, such as gases released in volcanic eruptions. The later analysis turned up more amino acids and other compounds of interest.
In 1828 Friedrich Wöhler
Friedrich Wöhler
Friedrich Wöhler was a German chemist, best known for his synthesis of urea, but also the first to isolate several chemical elements.-Biography:He was born in Eschersheim, which belonged to aau...
had shown that it is possible to synthesize urea
Urea
Urea or carbamide is an organic compound with the chemical formula CO2. The molecule has two —NH2 groups joined by a carbonyl functional group....
. As urea is an organic molecule, many at the time thought it could only be made by living organisms. This led to recognition that there is no obvious difference between a physically produced and an organically produced molecule. Miller's experiment went slightly further by showing that basic biomolecules can be formed through simple physical processes, and that it was not impossible for the first stages of abiogenesis
Abiogenesis
Abiogenesis or biopoesis is the study of how biological life arises from inorganic matter through natural processes, and the method by which life on Earth arose...
to have occurred on the early earth.