Introducing the brain: a Cambrian brain (Introduction)

by David Turell , Thursday, August 01, 2024, 16:32 (112 days ago) @ David Turell

500 million years ago:

https://www.livescience.com/animals/my-jaw-just-dropped-500-million-year-old-larva-foss...

"Researchers have discovered how the brain of the largest animal group evolved after finding the remains of a microscopic, worm-like creature that lived half a billion years ago.

"The creature died while still in its early development, or larval stage, and belongs to a new species named Youti yuanshi, which combines the standard Chinese words "yòutǐ," meaning "larva," and "yuánshǐ," meaning "primitive," according to a new study published Wednesday (July 31) in the journal Nature.

"Y. yuanshi inhabited the Cambrian seas and helped give rise to living arthropods like insects, spiders and crabs. Despite being about the size of a grain of sand, the fossil is exceptionally well-preserved, revealing never-before-seen details that help explain how arthropods developed complex brains.

"While researchers aren't sure how the animal became such an exceptional fossil, at some point soon after death, its soft tissues were replaced with phosphate and preserved in rock. Smith told Live Science that there must have been higher levels of phosphorus in the water that provided the raw materials for the creature's cells to be converted into phosphate minerals.

"The exceptional preservation allowed researchers to see more of an early arthropod's anatomy than they normally would. This included signs that arthropod brains were becoming more sophisticated during Y. yuanshi's time. For example, the larva had an ancestral brain region that would become the nub of a more specialized arthropod head with antennae and various other appendages, according to the statement. These specialized heads meant the creatures could adopt a variety of lifestyles, including becoming sophisticated predators. "

Comment: the teleology is obvious. What drove this complex brain to appear so early? Only a designer fits. preparing for the future evolutionary developments.