Master Timeline
After about 320 million years, the next significant leap in egg evolution came with reptiles, which developed amniotic eggs. These eggs have a protective shell and specialized membranes to support development outside of water, enabling reptiles to lay eggs in terrestrial environments.
Reptile Amniotic Eggs Read More »
The evolution of egg-laying evolved before fish. It is thought to have developed with or shortly after the emergence of the first multicellular animals, around 640 million years ago. Kingdom: Animalia > Phylum: Porifera (sponges) and Cnidaria (jellyfish, corals, etc.)
All life today are either Prokaryote or Eukaryote. Around 2 billion years ago, Eukaryotes evolved from Prokaryotes. The evolutionary leap to eukaryotes introduced cells with a nucleus and membrane-bound organelles, a complex architecture derived from prokaryotic predecessors through endosymbiosis. This process, crucial for eukaryotic evolution, involved the incorporation of prokaryotic cells into the cytoplasm of
The First True Eukaryotes Read More »
First Prokaryotes: They evolved from replicating molecules and before LUCA (also a prokaryote). Prokaryotes lack a nucleus and organelles. Although research continues identifying when the first true prokaryotes evolved, it is believed they evolved sometime between 3.8 to 4 billion years ago. While the earliest prokaryotes are part of our direct-line ancestors, today we know
76,000 Generations Ago Homo erectus is a direct ancestor of modern humans and represents a key point in human evolution where evidence of a truly omnivorous diet becomes clear, including the use of tools for hunting and processing both plant and animal foods. This species shows significant brain enlargement and other adaptations indicative of complex
Homo erectus: A True Omnivore Read More »
Both reptiles and our ancestor synapsids evolved from amphibians. While reptiles evolved better amniotic eggs, synapsid eggs were like amphibian eggs. Synapsid’s birthing process eventually led to mammalian live births. These are the animals that evolved Complex Sentience, the ability to feel various emotions. While it is unknown when this complex spectrum fully evolved, it
Early Complex Sentience Emerges: Dimetrodon Read More »
Morganucodon is an example of a plant eater likely similar to our direct-line ancestors around this time. It is not a direct human ancestor but is among the early mammaliaforms, close to the lineage leading to true mammals. It likely had a varied diet, but its inclusion here highlights the transition towards more specialized mammalian
Morganucodon: An Early Mammalian Herbivore Read More »
Plesiadapis, a proto-primate, is an example of a fruit-insect eater likely similar to our direct-line ancestors around this time. Class: Mammal; Early Primate (Plesiadapiformes) Time Period: Late Paleocene Diet: Likely Frugivorous/Insectivorous
Plesiadapis: First fruit-insect eaters. Read More »
30 Phil, Chapter 17, Alhazen, Touchstone 42: Senses. How we perceive an external world starts to become clear about 1020 CE. Since Alhazen and his pioneering work around 1020 CE, we have made significant advancements in understanding our senses. Our direct impressions of the world. Prior to Alhazen, most people on Earth believed in strange
The Five Senses of Humans Read More »
It’s clear: neanderthals created art. The discovery of cave paintings in Spain, dated to over 64,000 years ago, marked a profound shift in our understanding of Neanderthals. This corrected the longstanding perception that Neanderthals lacked symbolic thought and artistic expression. To learn more, check out Beyond Human Bias: Reassessing Neanderthal Intelligence.
Discovery: Neanderthal Symbolic Thought Read More »
It’s clear: neanderthals created art. The discovery of cave paintings in Spain, dated to over 64,000 years ago, marked a profound shift in our understanding of Neanderthals. Found in sites such as La Pasiega, Maltravieso, and Ardales, these artworks — comprising abstract symbols, geometric patterns, and hand stencils — are attributed to Neanderthals, predating the
Neanderthal Art: Symbolic Thought Read More »
Invented by Newton in the 1660s (pub. 1687) and independently by Leibniz in the 1680s (pub. 1684). Both built on Galileo’s popularizing the idea of the infinitesimal. Calculus, the mathematical study of continuous change, introduced the concepts of differentiation and integration, providing tools to model and analyze motion, growth, and the infinitesimal. Newton, working primarily
The Invention of Calculus Read More »
From Baroque music and paintings to sculptures and archicture. The dawn of the 17th century witnessed the birth of the Baroque era, marking a transformative period in the history of art that spanned from circa 1600 to 1750 CE. Originating in Italy and spreading across Europe, the Baroque movement represented a significant evolution in artistic
The Birth of Baroque Art Read More »
In the vibrant intellectual climate of Ancient Greece, the 6th century BCE marks the embryonic stage of formal logic, attributed to the philosopher Thales of Miletus (around 624-546 BCE). Thales, recognized as the first of the Seven Sages of Greece, embarked on a quest that laid the foundational stones of logical thought. He shifted the
The Birth of Logic Read More »
In 1975, Italian archaeologist Paolo Matthiae and his team unearthed the remarkable Library of Ebla at Tell Mardikh, Syria, revealing a trove of around 20,000 clay tablets and fragments. This discovery dramatically expanded our understanding of ancient Near Eastern civilizations, introducing Eblaite as a previously unknown Semitic language and providing unprecedented insights into the culture,
Rediscovery of the Library of Ebla: circa 2350 BCE Read More »
17,000 fragments totally maybe 2,500 tablets, discoved in the 1970s, only a few hundred have been translated. The library of Ebla, located in the ancient city of the same name was located in modern-day Syria. This library dates back to the 24th century BCE and contained thousands of clay tablets written in Sumerian and Eblaite,
Oldest Known Library: Ebla Read More »
Creatures of this time evolved into fish (us), jellyfish, cephalopods, and arthropods. In the deep waters of the late Precambrian era, the seeds of sentience were sown with the evolution of the earliest common ancestors to later cephalopods and fish. These primordial creatures, equipped with the most basic nervous systems, embarked on the path toward
Presentient Animals Emerge: The Ediacaran Prelude Read More »
First Brains: By about 520 million years ago, hunters roamed the seas. In the Cambrian explosion, a period of rapid evolutionary development that began around 541 million years ago, the earliest known animals with structures recognizable as brains made their debut in the Earth’s oceans. They possessed rudimentary beginnings central nervous systems, including a brain.
Earliest Known Hunter Read More »
44 Generations From Now The transformation or emergence of beings that have transcended current human biological and cognitive limitations. This could be achieved through advanced genetic engineering, cybernetic enhancements, or the development of entirely new forms of consciousness within AI systems. A group of our descendants are likely to attain God-like abilities over matter and energy
Post Human Evolution Read More »
Geological and astronomical models predict that Earth is due for another glacial period within the next 100,000 years, possibly plunging much of the planet into ice. This event will significantly impact ecosystems, sea levels, and potentially human civilizations, depending on technological advancements and societal adaptations.
Next Global Ice Age Read More »
