"Can life develop on an earth-sized moon of a jovian planet that orbits in the habitable zone of its parent star's system?"
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Question
I need to evaluate the impact of increased understanding of the fossil record on the development of ideas about the history of life on Earth.
This is a big question. Much of what we know about the history of life comes from the study of fossils. (Other sources include the genetic make-up of life that exists today and various computer simulations). Fossils are especially important for revealing the evolutionary history of approximately the past 600 million years, since in this span of time (called the Phanerozoic Eon) there were many multi-celled creatures that left innumerable fossils. More recently scientists have begun to identify microbial fossils from before this period, going back more than 3 billion years. To research your question, you will need co read a lot about both fossils and the evolutionary history of life. Good luck.
David Morrison
NAI Senior Scientist
August 15, 2005
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