COLLABORATIVE PROJECT

Scientific research

How did life begin on Earth?

Over the last century, scientists have tried to figure out the answer to this question.

In the 1950s,  Stanley Miller, an undergraduate student and his supervisor Harold Urey, designed a device to mimic the conditions in the atmosphere in its beginning. They used electric pulses to simulate the impact of lightning on a mixture of water and gases.  They discovered that the sparks caused the synthesis of organic molecules, the building blocks of life.

We know that life began at least 3.5 billion years ago, however, scientists are still trying to determine the origin of life. Where did it all begin? And how? As a group, you are going to start an investigation to answer some questions about this mystery.

The purpose of scientific research is to find explanations about why things happen in the natural world.

Where did early life first arise on ancient Earth? Work as a scientific researcher to find the answer.

As a class, organise yourselves into five groups and start to research the origin of life on Earth.

As a group, choose a supervisor. Then, distribute the following questions among the members of your group.

1. What role did rocks and minerals play in the origin of life?
2. What role did water in the hydrosphere play in the origin of life?
3. What role did the gases in the atmosphere play in the origin of life?
4. What is the oldest evidence of life on Earth?

You will have to find the answers individually or work in pairs.

The supervisor should try to coordinate the research. Members of the group should help one another as needed.

Now that you have all the information you need, it’s time to put everything together in order to write a scientific article.  

Remember that your goal is to answer the question: Where did life begin on Earth?

Prepare the images, tables and graphs. Then, follow these steps to organise your article:

1. Write the title and some key words.
2. Write the introduction. What did you/others do? Why did you do it?
3. Write the methods. How did you do your research?
4. Write the results. What did you find?
5. Write a conclusion. What the results mean?

Don’t forget to include the references at the end of your article. Include the scientific publications you have read and the links to the webpages you have used or the videos you have watched.

Present your conclusion.

Organise a presentation day in your classroom.

Each team will present the conclusion of their scientific research to the class.  At the end of each presentations, you can ask questions to the members of the team. 

Are the conclusions similar? Have all the teams found the same answers to the question? Debate and choose the best conclusion.