Final answer:
The origin of life is a separate scientific theory from the theory of evolution. Evolution explains life's diversification and species' origins but not life's initial emergence.
Step-by-step explanation:
The statement that best describes the relationship between the theory of evolution and the origin of life is that b) The origin of life is a separate scientific theory from the theory of evolution.
The theory of evolution explains how life diversifies and how populations change over time—it is the foundation for understanding the origin of species. However, it does not provide explanations for the beginnings of life on Earth, including the formation of the first cells. The question of how life originally began is more aligned with the fields of abiogenesis and astrobiology, which are distinct from evolutionary biology.
While evolution is a central and unifying principle in biology, addressing questions like the development of Earth's variety of life-forms, it is not designed to unveil the exact process that initially sparked life. Biologists are mindful that the origin of life occurred under conditions that are vastly different from those present on Earth today, making it a separate area of research from evolutionary studies.