4 INTRODUCTION 



research clearly points towards its general acceptance. Many gaps in 

 the records have been lately filled by lucky finds and we feel sure 

 what this research is leading up to. 



On the other hand, there is the problem of the origin of life on 

 earth. Here the data are extremely poor. The time elapsed is so 

 enormous that it is difficult to prov-e anything at all, because the 

 record is not only incomplete in the extreme, but also often changed 

 beyond recognition by younger events. Moreover, such research im- 

 plies a doubt towards popular views on creation and thereby provokes 

 criticism on immaterial grounds from the side of churchpeople: criti- 

 cism which cannot be effectively answered owing to the lack of data. 



A certain defeatism consequently reigned in geology. Although 

 perhaps never clearly expressed, the attitude has for a long time been: 

 "Let us study the evolution of life on earth over the last half billion 

 years". This gives us quite enough to do. We may leave the origin 

 of life on earth either to creation or to some generatio spontanea. 

 The subject is not ripe for scientific research for want of data. As 

 long as this is the case we scientists had better leave it alone, because 

 it might prove too hot to handle. Everybody can philosophize over 

 it at his owTi discretion, but we have no real scientific basis from 

 which to start research. 



THE BIOLOGICAL APPROACH 



This situation has now completely changed. Although in geology, 

 too, we have acquired some very interesting new data, and although 

 the techniques for absolute dating, which will be treated in extenso 

 further on, give us a far better geologic understanding of the problem, 

 this has not been the main reason for the complete change in outlook. 

 The real impetus has come from the v^ast interest biologists have since 

 taken in the subject. An interest which has perceptibly quickened 

 since World War II. It is not geology alone which is now asked for 

 definite answers to this problem. Quite to the contrary, it is biology, 

 mainly basing itself on microbiology and biochemistry, which has 

 arrived at certain definite conceptions and is eagerly pursuing further 

 research. Biology now derives from theoretical grounds a possible 

 mode of origin of life on earth through natural causes. This does not 

 prove that life did really originate on earth in this way. But it pro- 

 vides us with an acceptable hypothesis for further study. The question 



