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ysabetwordsmithDiscovery overturns long-held assumptions about Earth's earliest complex lifeforms
Life on Earth became complex very slowly. Before forests, fish, or dinosaurs existed, tiny cells called eukaryotes appeared. These cells later gave rise to plants, animals, and fungi.
Scientists have long wondered where these early cells lived. A new study from Australia suggests they remained near the seafloor in oxygen-rich waters rather than floating near the ocean surface.
Note that this means "complex single-celled organisms" not "complex multicelled organisms." The eukaryotes did eventually expand into larger creatures, and this does show some of the background behind clusters like the Ediacaran biota.
Life on Earth became complex very slowly. Before forests, fish, or dinosaurs existed, tiny cells called eukaryotes appeared. These cells later gave rise to plants, animals, and fungi.
Scientists have long wondered where these early cells lived. A new study from Australia suggests they remained near the seafloor in oxygen-rich waters rather than floating near the ocean surface.
Note that this means "complex single-celled organisms" not "complex multicelled organisms." The eukaryotes did eventually expand into larger creatures, and this does show some of the background behind clusters like the Ediacaran biota.
