Although Crane’s hypothesis was embraced relatively quickly by electrophysiologists and epithelial physiologists, the biochemical community found Mitchell’s hypothesis not only unacceptable, but repulsive primarily because some of the most well recognized biochemists in the world were convinced that a high-energy phosphate intermediate which could be isolated and identified must be involved in oxidative phosphorylation. Furthermore, rather than use standard physical chemical nomenclature, Mitchell preferred to improvise his own terms which put off biochemists and physiologist alike. Finally, the whole idea that an ion gradient might drive a covalent reaction like ATP synthesis seemed absolutely ridiculous to most.