Final answer:
The hypothesis that life emerged from amino acids in the presence of deep ocean vent gases is supported by laboratory experiments and fossil evidence. The primordial soup hypothesis suggests that lightning in Earth's atmosphere played a role in the formation of life. Both hypotheses have supporting evidence, but the amino acid hypothesis has more direct scientific evidence.
Step-by-step explanation:
The hypothesis that suggests life on Earth emerged from amino acids in the presence of large amounts of gases seeping from deep ocean vents is supported by the laboratory experiments conducted by scientists Stanley Miller and Harold Urey in the 1960s, which showed that organic compounds, including amino acids, could be formed under certain conditions from inorganic molecules and energy. Additionally, the discovery of fossilized evidence of microbial mats by deep sea hydrothermal vents that dates back 3.5 billion years further supports this hypothesis.
The process called primordial soup suggests that the formation of life was due to the effects of lightning in Earth's atmosphere. The energy provided by volcanic eruptions and lightning can drive chemical reactions between compounds present in the early atmosphere, leading to the formation of larger molecules and eventually to the emergence of life.
In conclusion, both hypotheses have supporting evidence, but the hypothesis of life emerging from amino acids in the presence of deep ocean vent gases has more direct scientific evidence, such as laboratory experiments and fossilized microbial mats.