The fossil record is basically a a collection or fossilized artifacts from all over the world. Many scientists hope to find more fossils to fill the missing "pieces" in the fossil record, which could help them greatly in discovering more of our past. However, this is difficult because only a very small fraction of the world's organisms have been fossilized, which makes it hard to study the fossil record. Organisms can only be fossilized in specific conditions, thus making fossilization very rare.
Furthermore, it is extremely challenging to interpret the fossil record, because often, the fossil can just be a blob that can not really be studied. Also, fossils from the same species are not guaranteed to survive equally well. Larger, lighter bones deteriorate quicker, while smaller more fragile bones are easily crushed, which makes it hard to even have a fossil to study at all. The different way the organism is preserved depends on the conditions it was in, therefore making it hard to interpret.
Sources:
http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-the-fossil-record.htm
http://anthro.palomar.edu/time/time_1.htm
No comments:
Post a Comment