Researchers might have found some of the oldest evidence of an oxygen-producing lifeform in rocks, from samples that are at least 2.5 billion years old, as well as biological signatures in 3.3 billion-year-old material, among the oldest known. This fresh chemical evidence found in these rocks was discovered thanks to machine learning algorithms that have uncovered what scientists are calling chemical “whispers” in the rock. The rest of this article is behind a paywall. Please sign in or subscribe to access the full content.

The original biological molecules have long since degraded, but their effect on the surrounding fossilized rocks can be found, even after the rocks have been changed by the several eons between their formation and their discovery.

“Ancient rocks are full of interestin

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