[metmom]

srweaver:What is the prototype insect from which all others descended?

srweaver what is the prototype mammal, from which all others descended?

dim: Why do you expect there to be a determined answer to these questions?

Because that's what science is supposed to be about. That's what you guys claim to have.
What? Can't the ToE answer those questions?

[Dimensio]

Because that's what science is supposed to be about.

Please provide a reference stating that the aforementioned questions should be answered by now.

[spinestein]

[What is the prototype insect from which all others descended? what is the prototype mammal, from which all others descended?]
...
[[Because that's what science is supposed to be about. That's what you guys claim to have. What? Can't the ToE answer those questions?]]

The theory itself is not capable of making predictions about exactly what organisms would look like at any given time and to expect it to is to completely misunderstand the theory. It's as if one was presented with some basic theory of weather which was well understood and accepted such as:

The sun heats the Earth's surface which causes the heated air to rise and cooler air moves in to replace it. This is the explanation for wind, and because the Earth rotates on its axis from west to east the wind blows predominantly from east to west at the equator. When warm air mixes with cold air, water precipitates out of the atmosphere and causes rain or snow.

Hypothetically, if one were to disbelieve this theory because a revered book leads him to believe that God creates all weather at His whim, he might ask the question "Well if your 'weather theory' is so good, why don't you know what the weather was in New York on January 10th, 1648?"

It's self evident that the theory itself isn't going to provide the answer (though an examination of the historical record plausibly might) and for the same reason, the theory of evolution isn't going to automatically spit out the answers to the questions "What is the prototype insect from which all others descended? and what is the prototype mammal, from which all others descended?" If these specific fossils happened to be found that would be fortunate, but to expect such an occurrence is unrealistic considering just how rare fossil formation really is.