As precise dates (in millions of years) are not available for these calibration points, the dates used are the most recent dates associated with the geological time intervals from which the fossils were collected.
In studies of marine organisms that employ molecular dating, it is common practice to apply the most recent dates suggested in the geological literature to date divergence events considered to have resulted from the closure of a seaway [ 30, 60, 61].
The two most recent splitting events among the lineages coincided with recent geological events (including the intense uplift of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, QTP and the subsequent movements of the Yun-Gui Plateau, YGP) and the Pleistocene glaciations.
Geological evidence indicates that the most recent formation of this lagoon system occurred after the last marine ingression ca. 5,000 to 7,000 years ago [ 67].
Studying different fossil species of coral and ammonites obtained from sequential geological strata, he concluded that the most recent taxonomic categories could not have arisen by slow, intermediate steps, generally thought to characterize evolution, but rather by large, single transformations.
U.S. Geological Survey scientists have released the most recent earthquake hazard assessments for the country.
