Spontaneous Generation or Abiogenesis is the doctrine that living matter may originate spontaneously, that under certain circumstances dead matter may build itself up into living matter without the intervention of already existing protoplasm. In the 17th century this was the dominant view, sanctioned alike by antiquity and authority, and was first assailed by Redi, an Italian philosopher. Buffon held the doctrine in a very modified degree. He held that life is the indefeasible property of certain indestructible molecules of matter which exist in all living things, and have inherent activities by which they are distinguished from not-living matter, each individual living organism being formed by their temporary combination. Of course it is only animals or plants of very low type and minute size that have been supposed thus to be produced spontaneously from dead matter; and the readiness with which such appear, in circumstances in which one might suppose no germs of them could be present, gives some countenance to the belief. Thus even during the late 19th century and beginning of the 20th century authorities were found who still declared their adherence to the doctrine of spontaneous generation. Research Spontaneous Generation
Biogenesis is a biological term coined in 1870 by Huxley to express the hypothesis that living matter always arises by the agency of pre-existing living matter. The opposite idea, that of spontaneous generation or abiogenesis, which states that living things may arise from non-living matter was generally held previously. Research Biogenesis
Abbreviations
Research Spontaneous Generation
