We are a charity and we rely on your support. Understanding and protecting life on our planet is the greatest scientific challenge of our age. To reverse the damage we've done and protect the future, we need the knowledge that comes from scientific discovery. People tell us they 'still get shivers walking through the front door', and thank us for inspiring the next generation of scientists. We must act on scientific evidence, we must act together, and we must act now.įor many, the Natural History Museum is a place that inspires learning, gives purpose and provides hope. But if we don't look after nature, nature can't look after us. This is the first time in Earth's history that a single species - humanity - has brought such disaster upon the natural world. Climate change is creating deserts and dead zones, and hunting is driving many species to the brink of extinction. Pollution has caused toxic air in our cities, and farming and logging have wreaked havoc on our forests. Our future depends on nature, but we are not doing enough to protect our life support system.

Now we're wondering if you can help us.Įvery year, more people are reading our articles to learn about the challenges facing the natural world. or that it helped you learn something new. The fossil record tells us that this took billions of years.' 8. 'Larger organisms require even more specialised and integrated cellular systems. The evolution of these basic building blocks and their integration took time.

'To make tissues and organs, cells need to multiply, specialise in function, and co-operate. Animals and plants are all made of cells, so cells had to evolve first. Paul, explaining why it took complex life so long to form, said: 'The key building block of life is the cell, with its complex genetic and biochemical systems. It is possible that life exists on other planets - but it is likely such life would have a lot of evolutionary catching up to do.

It took a long time to evolve plants and animals from single-celled organisms. The oldest fossil evidence of life comes from rocks that are 3.4 billion years old. The development of complex life takes billions of years, and there’s no shortcut in the journey from single-celled organisms to complex life.Įarth is 4.5 billion years old, but in its earliest stages it was far too hot to support life.

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