The Physics of Cold Water May Have Jump-Started Complex Life

Quick Summary:

When seawater gets cold, it gets viscous.

This fact could explain how single-celled ocean creatures became multicellular when the planet was frozen during "Snowball Earth,” according to experiments.

This suggested that if there were already multicellular organisms when Snowball Earth occurred—or at least organisms with the ability to take on multicellular forms—the thicker fluid could have given them a reason to get bigger.

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Article Details

Author / Journalist: Veronique Greenwood

Category: TechnologyEconomy

Markets: United StatesAustraliaNamibia

Topics: Science Science / Physics and Math

Source Website Secure: Yes (HTTPS)

News Sentiment: Neutral

Fact Checked: Legitimate

Article Type: News Report

Published On: 2024-08-11 @ 11:00:00 (14 hours ago)

News Timezone: GMT +8:00

News Source URL: wired.com

Language: English

Article Length: 2994 words

Reading Time: 17 minutes read

Sentences: 139 lines

Sentence Length: 22 words per sentence (average)

Platforms: Desktop Web, Mobile Web, iOS App, Android App

Copyright Owner: © Wired

News ID: 22015002

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Official Website: wired.com

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