Cambrian Explosion Example

First page Back Continue Last page Overview Graphics

Notes:

Now let’s change gears. Let’s look at the “evolution” of living things. Let’s for the sake of argument assume that primitive life existed on earth. Can it become progressively more complex and ultimately evolve into people?

At the Cambrian explosion, supposedly 500 million years ago, complex invertebrate life just appears without predecessors. Sponges, snails, worms, etc. just appear in the fossil record. A classic example is the trilobite. They are complicated creatures with complicated eye optics for seeing underwater.