Clay key to Bible's Adam.THE Bible story Bible stories, Judeo-Christian parables retelling some portions of the Bible, have long had a place in family religious worship, spiritual instruction, literature, and the cultural underpinnings of many Christian and Jewish societies. of how Adam was fashioned from clay may have a ring of scientific truth about it, say researchers. They believe an increase in the rate of clay formation boosted oxygen levels in the atmosphere, making complex life possible. Scientists say this lit the fuse for an outburst of diverse forms of animal life 530million years ago, known as the Cambrian Explosion Cambrian Explosion n. The rapid diversification of multicellular animal life around the beginning of the Cambrian Period, resulting in the appearance of almost all modern animal phyla. . They have puzzled over the dramatic increase in oxygen levels on the planet in the Precambrian period, between one billion and 540 million years ago. And their new theory suggests thicker layers of clay caused organic carbons to be buried at a faster rate, liberating oxygen. Analysis of sedimentary rock showed evidence of an increase in clay mineral clay mineral Any of a group of important hydrous aluminum silicates with a layered structure and very small (less than 0.005 mm or microscopic) particle size. They are usually the products of weathering. deposition in the oceans during the Precambrian. Scientists from the University of California The University of California has a combined student body of more than 191,000 students, over 1,340,000 living alumni, and a combined systemwide and campus endowment of just over $7.3 billion (8th largest in the United States). at Riverside believe colonisation of the land by primitive plant life accelerated clay formation. The clay helped to preserve large amounts of organic matter in marine sediments. A short time later, in geological terms, the first animals appeared about 600million years ago. Dr Martin Kennedy, who led the research, said: "One of the things we least understand is why animals evolved so late in Earth history. "One of the best bets is an increase in oxygen in the atmosphere, which is necessary for animal life, and was likely too low through most of Earth's history." CAPTION(S): ADAM: Salt of the Earth |
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