Fossil
hideFossils (from Latin fossus, literally "having been dug up") are the preserved remains or traces of animals, plants, and other organisms from the remote past. The totality of fossils, both discovered and undiscovered, and their placement in fossiliferous (fossil-containing) rock formations and sedimentary layers (strata) is known as the fossil record. The study of fossils across geological time, how they were formed, and the evolutionary relationships between taxa (phylogeny) are some of the most important functions of the science of paleontology. Such a preserved specimen is called a "fossil" if it is older than some minimum age, most often the arbitrary date of 10,000 years ago. Hence, fossils range in age from the youngest at the start of the Holocene Epoch to the oldest from the Archaean Eon several billion years old. The observations that certain fossils were associated with certain rock strata led early geologists to recognize a geological timescale in the 19th century. The development of radiometric dating techniques in the early 20th century allowed geologists to determine the numerical or "absolute" age of the various strata and thereby the included fossils.
Like extant organisms, fossils vary in size from microscopic, such as single bacterial cells only one micrometer in diameter, to gigantic, such as dinosaurs and trees many meters long and weighing many tons. A fossil normally preserves only a portion of the deceased organism, usually that portion that was partially mineralized during life, such as the bones and teeth of vertebrates, or the chitinous exoskeletons of invertebrates. Preservation of soft tissues is rare in the fossil record. Fossils may also consist of the marks left behind by the organism while it was alive, such as the footprint or feces (coprolites) of a reptile. These types of fossil are called trace fossils (or ichnofossils), as opposed to body fossils. Finally, past life leaves some markers that cannot be seen but can be detected in the form of biochemical signals; these are known as chemofossils or biomarkers.
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News tagged with fossil
Before 'Lucy,' there was 'Ardi': Oldest hominid skeleton provides new evidence for human evolution (w/ Video)
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Oct 01, 2009 |
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In a special issue of Science, an international team of scientists has for the first time thoroughly described Ardipithecus ramidus, a hominid species that lived 4.4 million years ago in what is now Ethiop ...
Bioengineers succeed in producing plastic without the use of fossil fuels
Nov 23, 2009 |
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A team of pioneering South Korean scientists have succeeded in producing the polymers used for everyday plastics through bioengineering, rather than through the use of fossil fuel based chemicals. This groundbreaking research, ...
BoarCroc, RatCroc, DogCroc, DuckCroc and PancakeCroc
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Nov 19, 2009 |
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A suite of five ancient crocs, including one with teeth like boar tusks and another with a snout like a duck's bill, have been discovered in the Sahara by National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence Paul Sereno. ...
Japanese researchers film rare baby fish 'fossil'
Nov 17, 2009 |
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Japanese marine researchers said Tuesday they had found and successfully filmed a young coelacanth -- a rare type of fish known as "a living fossil" -- in deep water off Indonesia.
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Study Pits Man v Machine in Piecing Together 425-Million Years Old Jigsaw
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Nov 16, 2009 |
3.9 / 5 (8) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- A new study pitting academic expertise against a computer in recreating a 425 million-year old jigsaw puzzle has discovered that there is no substitute for wisdom born out of experience.
Argonne 'homegrown' hybrid solar cell aims for low-cost power
Nanotechnology / Nanomaterials
Nov 10, 2009 |
4.3 / 5 (12) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory have refined a technique to manufacture solar cells by creating tubes of semiconducting material and then "growing" ...
Ancient penguin DNA raises doubts about accuracy of genetic dating techniques
Nov 10, 2009 |
4.7 / 5 (23) |
15
Penguins that died 44,000 years ago in Antarctica have provided extraordinary frozen DNA samples that challenge the accuracy of traditional genetic aging measurements, and suggest those approaches have been ...
Male sabertoothed cats were pussycats compared to macho lions
Nov 05, 2009 |
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Despite their fearsome fangs, male sabertoothed cats may have been less aggressive than many of their feline cousins, says a new study of male-female size differences in extinct big cats.
Solar power generation around the clock
Nov 05, 2009 |
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15
(PhysOrg.com) -- A Californian company, SolarReserve, is developing a solar power system that can store seven hours' worth of solar energy by focusing mirrors onto millions of gallons of molten salt, allowing ...
Bye bye 'Hogwarts dinosaur'? New analyses of dinosaur growth may wipe out one-third of species
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Oct 30, 2009 |
4.5 / 5 (11) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Paleontologists from the University of California, Berkeley, and the Museum of the Rockies have wiped out two species of dome-headed dinosaur, one of them named three years ago - with great ...
Giant Skull of 12m Pliosaur 'Sea Monster' Unearthed in England
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Oct 27, 2009 |
4.7 / 5 (12) |
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The fossilised skull of a pliosaur, the largest marine reptile that ever lived, has been discovered along the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site.
Geologist analyzes earliest shell-covered fossil animals
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Oct 22, 2009 |
4.6 / 5 (5) |
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The fossil remains of some of the first animals with shells, ocean-dwelling creatures that measure a few centimeters in length and date to about 520 million years ago, provide a window on evolution at this ...
Killer algae a key player in mass extinctions
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Oct 19, 2009 |
4.4 / 5 (17) |
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Algae, not asteroids, were the key to the end of the dinosaurs, say two Clemson University researchers. Geologist James W. Castle and ecotoxicologist John H. Rodgers have published findings that toxin producing ...
'Missing link' pterosaur found in China
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Oct 13, 2009 |
4.1 / 5 (12) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- An international group of researchers from the University of Leicester (UK), and the Geological Institute, Beijing (China) have identified a new type of flying reptile - providing the first ...
Researchers claim a third of dinosaurs might never have existed
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Oct 13, 2009 |
4.4 / 5 (20) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- A new ten-year study by US paleontologists suggests that up to a third of dinosaur fossils may have been incorrectly identified as new species, when they are actually juveniles of species ...
