Uploaded September 2020 | Updated September 2026, 1 hour ago
The origin and rise to dominance of animals - the Cambrian Explosion - from about 575 to 520 Million years ago was a revolutionary event on Earth. But why, and how, this happened at this time remains unresolved. Here I will explore two possible triggers for this event - a rise of oxygen in the atmosphere and in the oceans, and changes in the chemistry of sea water. I will explore these using examples from insight gained from fieldwork in Siberia and Namibia. We have made great strides over the last decade in understanding how changes in the earth system itself may have enabled the rise of complex life, but there is still much we have left to understand about this extraordinary event.
Rachel Wood has been Professor of Carbonate Geoscience at the University of Edinburgh since 2012. She has a first degree in Geology/Zoology, and a PhD in Geology. She held research fellowships at the Free University, Berlin, and the University of Cambridge, and worked in industry for 5 years before returning to academia in 2006. She was awarded the Lyell Medal of the Geological Society of London in 2020.
Visit our website: oumnh.ox.ac.uk
Visit the First Animals exhibition online: oum.ox.ac.uk/firstanimals
Our First Animals models are available on the Sketchfab app, and are available for use under Creative Commons. Discover them here: sketchfab.com/morethanadodo
Your generous donations help to keep our public programmes running. Donate to the Museum: oxgive.info/3gObNNl
The origin and rise to dominance of animals - the Cambrian Explosion - from about 575 to 520 Million years ago was a revolutionary event on Earth. But why, and how, this happened at this time remains unresolved. Here I will explore two possible triggers for this event - a rise of oxygen in the atmosphere and in the oceans, and changes in the chemistry of sea water. I will explore these using examples from insight gained from fieldwork in Siberia and Namibia. We have made great strides over the last decade in understanding how changes in the earth system itself may have enabled the rise of complex life, but there is still much we have left to understand about this extraordinary event.
Rachel Wood has been Professor of Carbonate Geoscience at the University of Edinburgh since 2012. She has a first degree in Geology/Zoology, and a PhD in Geology. She held research fellowships at the Free University, Berlin, and the University of Cambridge, and worked in industry for 5 years before returning to academia in 2006. She was awarded the Lyell Medal of the Geological Society of London in 2020.
Visit our website: oumnh.ox.ac.uk
Visit the First Animals exhibition online: oum.ox.ac.uk/firstanimals
Our First Animals models are available on the Sketchfab app, and are available for use under Creative Commons. Discover them here: sketchfab.com/morethanadodo
Your generous donations help to keep our public programmes running. Donate to the Museum: oxgive.info/3gObNNl
