The Neoproterozoic Record of the Origin of Eukaryotes and Biogeochemical Change

真核生物起源和生物地球化学变化的新元古代记录

• 批准号: 9017747
• 负责人: Andrew Knoll
• 金额: $ 13.63万
• 依托单位: Harvard University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 1991
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 1991-03-01 至 1993-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=9017747&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Neoproterozoic; Record; Origin; Eukaryotes; Biogeochemical

The history of life is recorded in the fossil record. Because significant episodes of global-level environmental change have recurred in the earth's history, it is feasible to predict the effect of current levels of change on the earth's biota, by studying the fossil record before and after those important episodes. Three types of information are necessary to interpret this record effectively: (1) a sound systematic framework (that is, a consistent and biologically meaningful set of names and categories that are based on phylogenetic relationships) for discussing the fossils; (2) reliable stratigraphic placement (that is, a framework for ordering fossil occurrences in space and time); and (3) an independent record of environmental change that allows placement of the biological record in the context of a dynamic planet (lithosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere). Although such data are routinely available for fossils deposited during the past 540 million years, there is at present no comparable framework for interpreting older fossils, which constitute about 90% of life's history. In this project, the PI proposes to provide detailed systematic, stratigraphic, and environmental data for the fossils of organisms that lived 900-540 million years before the present. This will almost double the period for which the life history of the planet can be studied in detail. More importantly, it is clear that the interval under consideration was a time of profound environmental change that had a major influence on the subsequent course of evolution and, hence, the diversity of life. The derived data will help refine our understanding of a critical period in the Earth's environmental and biological development. The research is also of practical value in that the establishment of a reliable stratigraphic and environmental framework will facilitate resource exploration in rocks containing under exploited petroleum and ore deposits.

生命的历史记录在化石记录中。 因为 全球一级的重大环境变化事件 在地球的历史上，它是可行的预测， 目前的变化水平对地球生物区系的影响， 研究那些重要的化石记录之前和之后， 情节。 三种类型的信息是必要的解释 这一记录有效地：（1）一个健全的系统框架（ 是一组一致的、有生物学意义的名字， 基于系统发育关系的类别） 讨论化石;（2）可靠的地层位置（ 是一个在空间和时间上对化石出现进行排序的框架）; 以及（3）独立的环境变化记录， 生物记录在动态环境中的位置 地球（岩石圈、大气圈、水圈和生物圈）。 虽然这些数据通常可以用于沉积的化石 在过去的5.4亿年里，目前没有 解释古老化石的类似框架， 构成了生命历史的90% 在这个项目中，PI 建议提供详细的系统，地层， 900-540年生物化石的环境数据 一百万年前的今天。 这几乎将使 这是一个可以研究地球生命史的时期。 详细 更重要的是，很明显， 考虑是一个深刻的环境变化的时间， 对随后的进化过程产生了重大影响，因此， 生命的多样性。 衍生数据将有助于完善我们 对地球环境的关键时期的认识 生物发展。 本研究具有一定的实用价值 价值在于建立可靠的地层和 环境框架将促进资源勘探， 含有未开发的石油和矿床的岩石。