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History in The Development of The Concept of Life

The document outlines the major events in the history of life on Earth from the formation of the planet 4.6 billion years ago to the evolution of modern humans 130,000 years ago. Some of the key events include the appearance of the first life forms around 3.85 billion years ago, the rise of oxygen in the atmosphere around 1.5 billion years ago, the evolution of animals 530 million years ago, dinosaurs evolving 225 million years ago, and dinosaurs going extinct 65 million years ago.

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Nikaela Xanne R. Altarejos
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83 views

History in The Development of The Concept of Life

The document outlines the major events in the history of life on Earth from the formation of the planet 4.6 billion years ago to the evolution of modern humans 130,000 years ago. Some of the key events include the appearance of the first life forms around 3.85 billion years ago, the rise of oxygen in the atmosphere around 1.5 billion years ago, the evolution of animals 530 million years ago, dinosaurs evolving 225 million years ago, and dinosaurs going extinct 65 million years ago.

Uploaded by

Nikaela Xanne R. Altarejos
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Sequence of Events of the History of Life on Earth

4600 mya (million years ago)


Planet Earth formed. Dust left over from the birth of the sun clumped together to form planet Earth. The other planets in
our solar system were also formed in this way at about the same time.

4500 mya
Earth’s core and crust formed. Dense metals sank to the center of the Earth and formed the core, while the outside layer
cooled and solidified to form the Earth’s crust.

4400 mya
The Earth’s first oceans formed. Water vapor was released into the Earth’s atmosphere by volcanism. It then cooled, fell
back down as rain, and formed the Earth’s first oceans. Some water may also have been brought to Earth by comets
and asteroids.

3850 mya
The first life appeared on Earth. It was very simple single-celled organisms. Exactly how life first arose is a mystery.

1500 mya
Oxygen began to accumulate in the Earth’s atmosphere. Oxygen is made by cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) as a
product of photosynthesis. For 2,200 million years this oxygen was removed from the atmosphere as it reacted with iron,
sank to the bottom of the sea and became trapped in rock layers. 1,500 million years ago the free iron ran out and
oxygen began to be released into the atmosphere.

700 mya
The first animals evolved. These were simple single-celled animals.

530 mya
The first vertebrates (fish) evolved.

400 mya
The first land plants evolved. Oxygen in the atmosphere reacted to form ozone, which formed a layer. This served as a
protective barrier to the harmful rays coming from space and which allowed plants to colonize the land.

350 mya
The first land vertebrates evolved. With plants present on the land to provide a food source, animals rapidly followed.
The first to venture onto the land were primitive amphibians, and reptiles evolved soon afterwards.

225 mya
The first dinosaurs evolved from lizards.

65 mya
The dinosaurs went extinct. The dinosaurs, and many other species with them, were wiped out by the after-effects of a
meteorite impact, or perhaps several impacts. The impact(s) set off chains of earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanic
eruptions, which threw lots of dust and acid into the atmosphere, creating an impact winter. The dust blocked out the
sunlight so plants could no longer photosynthesis, and food chains collapsed. After the extinction of the dinosaurs,
mammals evolved rapidly and filled the evolutionary niches they left behind.

130,000 years ago (0.13 mya)


Modern humans evolved. Homo sapiens evolved in Africa from earlier humans. They left Africa around 35,000 years
ago and spread around the globe. Human evolution is still pretty mysterious, due to gaps in the fossil record.
Evidence on the first form of life
Fossils

 One of the strongest pieces of evidence that show many life forms existed in
earth in the past 3.5 billion years.
 Among the oldest known fossils are those found in the Fig Tree Chert from
the Transvaal, dated over three billion years ago. These organisms have been
identified as bacteria, including oxygenic photosynthetic bacteria
(cyanobacteria)

Microfossil
Bone Shell Plant Footprint
Fossil Fossil Fossil Fossil
 A fossil or fossil fragment that can be seen only with microscope.
 Existed in mats and formed layered structures called stromatolites.

Stromatolites

 A calcareous mound built up of layers of lime secreting prokaryotes, or


single-celled organism, called cyanobacteria (the blue-green algae) and
trapped sediment, found in Precambrian rocks as the earliest known fossils,
and still being formed in lagoons in

Australasia.
Cyanobacteria

 Believed by scientists to be the first oxygen producing organisms that helped


evolve the Earth’s early atmosphere into one that can support early life forms.
 As these microorganisms continue generating oxygen, other photosynthetic
organisms evolved and increased the level of oxygen in the atmosphere.

A rapid increase of life occurred aftrer oxygen


become abundant
 There are organisms in soil, air, and even in freezing waters or deep sea thermal vents
 This diversity of life constitutes many and varied lineages of organisms.
 Some lineages have gone extinct due to geological events brought by tsunamis, volcanic
eruptions, extreme fluctuations in temperature, and rising Water levels.

Importance of Knowing History of Life


 Studying the history of life helps us understand how events in the past made things the
way they are today.
 Helps us understand why the Earth became habitable and why terrestrial life has
persisted for billions of years.
 Puts an end to many questions in our heads relating to the history of life.
 Be able to explain the theory of evolution and define species and identify how species
form

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