Aleksandr Ivanovich Oparin was a prominent biochemist best known for his theory that life on earth originated from inorganic matter. Although a belief that life formed through spontaneous generation was prevalent up to the nineteenth century, that theory was disputed by the development of the microscope and the experiments of French scientist Louis Pasteur. Oparin's materialistic approach to the subject was responsible for a renewed interest in how life on earth originated. His book The Origin of Life outlined his basic theory that life originated as a result of evolution acting on molecules created in the primordial atmosphere through energy discharges. In addition to his work on the origin of life, he played a major role in the development of technical botanical biochemistry in the Soviet Union.

Oparin was born near Moscow, the youngest child of Ivan Dmitrievich Oparin and Aleksandra Aleksandrovna. He had a sister, Aleksandra, and...