The rapid diversification of animals over 500 million years ago—often referred to as the Cambrian Explosion—saw the appearance of the first large swimming predators in our oceans. Amplectobelua symbrachiata, a member ...
Evolution
Nov 30, 2023
0
83
In many blocks on the Earth, the boundary between the Phanerozoic and Precambrian is consistently characterized by a huge sedimentary gap—the Great Unconformity.
Earth Sciences
Oct 25, 2023
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25
In searching for life in the universe, a field known as astrobiology, scientists rely on Earth as a template for biological and evolutionary processes. This includes searching for Earth analogs, rocky planets that orbit within ...
Astrobiology
Oct 19, 2023
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15
There are estimated to be nearly 8 million species of animals living today, making up the majority of Earth's documented biodiversity and inhabiting almost all of its environments. However, for most of Earth's history animals ...
Evolution
Oct 16, 2023
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5
A team of scientists led by researchers from the University of Leicester have discovered that the genes required for learning, memory, aggression and other complex behaviors originated around 650 million years ago.
Evolution
Jul 14, 2023
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2433
Karma Nanglu says his favorite animal is whichever one he's working on. But his latest subject may hold first place status for a while: a 500-million-year-old fossil from the wonderfully weird group of marine invertebrates, ...
Paleontology & Fossils
Jul 6, 2023
0
169
Every so often, life on Earth steps onto a nearly empty playing field and faces a spectacular opportunity. Something major changes—in the atmosphere or in the oceans, or in the organisms themselves —and the existing species ...
Evolution
May 31, 2023
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364
A new study has revealed that a group of prehistoric sea creatures is not as ancient as we thought—their earliest fossils are actually seaweeds.
Evolution
Mar 8, 2023
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234
Some 540 million years ago, diverse life forms suddenly began to emerge from the muddy ocean floors of planet Earth. This period is known as the Cambrian Explosion, and these aquatic critters are our ancient ancestors.
Astronomy
Feb 4, 2023
5
77
Ancient fossils have shed new light on a type of sea worm linking it to the time of an evolutionary explosion that gave rise to modern animal life.
Evolution
Jan 31, 2023
0
124
