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To: Gargantua
The fossil record, however, contains only the former (simple, single celled) and the latter (complex, multi system) with no fossil evidence of the billions of missing "developmental" stages.

The best modern take on this development is that multi-cellulars came about as a conglomeration of co-operative multi-cellulars. And, in fact, "fossils" of this circumstance are abundant in, for example, the similarities between the DNA's of certain still-freedwelling prokariotes and their productive counterparts in multi-cellular creatures, such as our mitocondria and plant cell's chlorophyl.

Amongst the reasons you can't find much mineral imprint fossil evidence before multi-cellulars is that there were no mountains rising above the ocean floor, and hence no significant leaching of calcium into the ocean. No calcium, no bones, Sherlock.

1,500 posted on 05/29/2003 9:22:15 AM PDT by donh (/)
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To: donh
conglomeration of co-operative multi-cellulars.

"co-operative single-cellulars", I meant to say. Sorry.

1,503 posted on 05/29/2003 9:25:42 AM PDT by donh (/)
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