Final answer:
Francesco Redi, Theodor Schwann, and Louis Pasteur conducted experiments to refute spontaneous generation, with Pasteur's swan-neck flask experiment providing conclusive evidence that life cannot spontaneously arise from non-life.
Step-by-step explanation:
Francesco Redi, Theodor Schwann, and Louis Pasteur all performed experiments to disprove the theory of spontaneous generation, which was the belief that living organisms could arise from nonliving matter. Redi's experiment in the 17th century was one of the first to refute spontaneous generation by showing that maggots on meat came from flies rather than appearing spontaneously. Schwann's contributions were more adjacent, as he is credited with developing cell theory, which supports the idea that all life comes from preexisting life. However, it was Louis Pasteur who conclusively disproved spontaneous generation with his famous swan-neck flask experiment. He showed that sterilized broth would remain free from microbial life unless it was exposed to microorganisms carried in the air, leading to his statement that "life only comes from life."
In the context of your specific questions:
- Francesco Redi experimented with raw meat, maggots, and flies in an attempt to disprove the theory of spontaneous generation.
- Louis Pasteur is credited for definitively refuting the theory of spontaneous generation using broth in swan-neck flasks.
- The assertion that "life only comes from life" was stated by Louis Pasteur in regard to his experiments that definitively refuted the theory of spontaneous generation.