Podcast
Questions and Answers
What has Shubin spent many summers in the Arctic doing?
What has Shubin spent many summers in the Arctic doing?
Looking for fossil fish
What are fossils the only way to see? Because of this, what are they a key part in understanding?
What are fossils the only way to see? Because of this, what are they a key part in understanding?
What life was like on Earth in the distant past; How life developed into human life
What do fish give fundamental clues for?
What do fish give fundamental clues for?
Understanding the human body
Although other scientists might think that fossils are a dead area of science, what does Shubin draw connections from the ancient fossils to?
Although other scientists might think that fossils are a dead area of science, what does Shubin draw connections from the ancient fossils to?
Where is Ellesmere Island located (latitude)? Here, what does Shubin find?
Where is Ellesmere Island located (latitude)? Here, what does Shubin find?
Why is this fossil fish with a flat head important?
Why is this fossil fish with a flat head important?
Why are fossils in some ways easier to find than they once were?
Why are fossils in some ways easier to find than they once were?
Because fossils are still fragile, digging must be laborious and _____ by hand in landscape with _____ conditions.
Because fossils are still fragile, digging must be laborious and _____ by hand in landscape with _____ conditions.
What are the three things that fossil sites depend on?
What are the three things that fossil sites depend on?
To look for fossils from the transition between water animals and land animals, what rocks does Shubin have to find?
To look for fossils from the transition between water animals and land animals, what rocks does Shubin have to find?
What does the arrangement of rock layers on Earth leave?
What does the arrangement of rock layers on Earth leave?
In the timeline of fossil layers, what is _____? What is deep? What is in the middle?
In the timeline of fossil layers, what is _____? What is deep? What is in the middle?
What can help paleontologists predict which type of animal will be in each age of rock layer?
What can help paleontologists predict which type of animal will be in each age of rock layer?
What argument does Shubin make regarding which animals are the oldest?
What argument does Shubin make regarding which animals are the oldest?
What does everything in a zoo have?
What does everything in a zoo have?
Where does Shubin expect to find fossils with a head and two eyes in relation to fossils with a head, two eyes and limbs?
Where does Shubin expect to find fossils with a head and two eyes in relation to fossils with a head, two eyes and limbs?
For the first fossils with limbs, what is the critical time period in rocks?
For the first fossils with limbs, what is the critical time period in rocks?
What do 360 million year old rocks already show?
What do 360 million year old rocks already show?
What are found at rock layers 385 million years old?
What are found at rock layers 385 million years old?
What is the best type of rock for finding fossils?
What is the best type of rock for finding fossils?
What have sedimentary rocks all over the world shown has changed significantly over time?
What have sedimentary rocks all over the world shown has changed significantly over time?
How do sedimentary rocks form?
How do sedimentary rocks form?
Where do sedimentary rocks typically form?
Where do sedimentary rocks typically form?
What is the last step for choosing a fossil site?
What is the last step for choosing a fossil site?
What do desert winds help do?
What do desert winds help do?
When Shubin starts his fossil-finding expedition researching the origin of limbs in PA, what does he discover the Catskill Formation of PA holds?
When Shubin starts his fossil-finding expedition researching the origin of limbs in PA, what does he discover the Catskill Formation of PA holds?
What did Shubin and one of his students, Ted Daeschler, check sites of?
What did Shubin and one of his students, Ted Daeschler, check sites of?
When was the Devonian Period?
When was the Devonian Period?
What does the hynerpeton have?
What does the hynerpeton have?
When looking at a geology textbook, what do Shubin and his student notice that rocks from the Devonian Period are also in?
When looking at a geology textbook, what do Shubin and his student notice that rocks from the Devonian Period are also in?
Where did Shubin and his student decide to go?
Where did Shubin and his student decide to go?
What do the rocks from the Devonian period show about Arctic areas such as Greenland and Alaska?
What do the rocks from the Devonian period show about Arctic areas such as Greenland and Alaska?
What do Shubin and his student maximize for mounting a fossil expedition?
What do Shubin and his student maximize for mounting a fossil expedition?
What three dangers come with an expedition to the Arctic?
What three dangers come with an expedition to the Arctic?
What does Shubin spend the first few weeks at the dig site worrying about?
What does Shubin spend the first few weeks at the dig site worrying about?
In 1999, what do Shubin and his team find?
In 1999, what do Shubin and his team find?
In 2000, where do Shubin and his team move their dig site?
In 2000, where do Shubin and his team move their dig site?
Where does Shubin's whole team go?
Where does Shubin's whole team go?
What are found at rock layers 365 million years old?
What are found at rock layers 365 million years old?
Even though the fish fossils they found were already catalogued, why is finding something better than nothing?
Even though the fish fossils they found were already catalogued, why is finding something better than nothing?
In 2004, what do Shubin and his team do?
In 2004, what do Shubin and his team do?
What does Shubin find?
What does Shubin find?
Over the next two months, what do fossil preparators do?
Over the next two months, what do fossil preparators do?
What did Shubin and Gatesy's discovered animal have that relates it to a fish?
What did Shubin and Gatesy's discovered animal have that relates it to a fish?
Why is Shubin and Gatesy's fish special?
Why is Shubin and Gatesy's fish special?
What is Shubin and Gatesy's fish an indirect ancestor for?
What is Shubin and Gatesy's fish an indirect ancestor for?
What idea is Shubin and Gatesy's fish a huge success for?
What idea is Shubin and Gatesy's fish a huge success for?
Who did Shubin and his team decide to thank?
Who did Shubin and his team decide to thank?
What were the two potential names for Shubin and Gatesy's fish?
What were the two potential names for Shubin and Gatesy's fish?
When Shubin takes the Tiktaalik fossil to his son's show and tell, and one child asks if the fossil is a fish or a crocodile, what does another child respond with?
When Shubin takes the Tiktaalik fossil to his son's show and tell, and one child asks if the fossil is a fish or a crocodile, what does another child respond with?
What does how the Tiktaalik shows human's history as fish compare to?
What does how the Tiktaalik shows human's history as fish compare to?
What does human anatomy result from?
What does human anatomy result from?
Why does Shubin stress that Tiktaalik is just as important in the entire story of human development?
Why does Shubin stress that Tiktaalik is just as important in the entire story of human development?
Flashcards are hidden until you start studying
Study Notes
Fossil Discoveries in the Arctic
- Shubin spends summers in the Arctic searching for fossil fish, specifically in Ellesmere Island, located at 80 degrees north latitude.
- Fossils serve as the only means to visualize ancient life and are crucial for understanding the evolution of species, including humans.
- A significant fossil fish with a flat head indicates adaptation from deep water habitats to shallow waters, which is essential for the transition to land.
Fossil Excavation Techniques
- Advanced technology allows paleontologists to scan potential sites, making it easier to locate fossils despite their fragile nature.
- Fossils are often found in sedimentary rock layers that preserve them from destructive forces encountered in volcanic or metamorphic rock.
- The fossilization process involves sediment compacting and mineral-rich water filling spaces in deteriorating biological materials.
Geological Context of Fossils
- Fossil timelines are generally stable, with older rocks at the bottom, but can be disrupted by events like earthquakes.
- Fossils reflect a progression from simple organisms to complex ones, often encompassing a timeline of millions of years.
- Specific rock ages provide context for the evolution of limbs, showing the gradual transition from aquatic to terrestrial life.
Expedition Challenges
- Expeditions to the Arctic present risks, including local wildlife and unpredictable weather, requiring expert guidance.
- Shubin's team had to navigate vast and challenging landscapes, using previous discoveries as clues to optimize their fossil search.
Key Discoveries and Significance
- In 2000, the team discovered fish fossils in layers indicative of shallow-water species, critical for bridging the evolutionary gap to land-dwelling animals.
- The team found a partial fish fossil (Tiktaalik) with features linking it both to fish (scales) and land animals (limbs, neck), highlighting transitional evolution.
- The discovery of Tiktaalik provides insight into the evolutionary shift to land, paving the way for the development of all terrestrial creatures.
Recognition and Impact
- Tiktaalik symbolizes success in the search for intermediate species, affirming the theory of evolutionary transition during the Devonian Period (420-358 million years ago).
- Shubin and his team honored the Inuit people by naming the fossil Tiktaalik, reflecting respect for the territorial heritage of the area.
- The importance of fossils like Tiktaalik lies in their demonstration of shared anatomical features between aquatic and terrestrial organisms, essential for understanding human ancestry.
Studying That Suits You
Use AI to generate personalized quizzes and flashcards to suit your learning preferences.
