The Economic Times

A fossil reanalysis just blew up everything we thought we knew about the origins of animal life

A new fossil study from Brazil is reshaping scientific discussions about the earliest forms of life on Earth. Researchers reexamined microscopic structures preserved in 540-million-year-old rocks and discovered they were likely formed by ancient bacteria and algae rather than tiny animals as previously believed. Using advanced imaging technology and chemical analysis, the team found preserved cellular details that point toward microbial communities living in shallow oceans during the Ediacaran period.