The study, published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B, suggests that Earth’s harsh physical conditions at the time, such as high ocean viscosity and nutrient deficiencies due to reduced photosynthesis in ice-covered oceans, played a critical role.
Researchers think these conditions favor the development of larger, more complex organisms rather than smaller, simpler organisms. This shift was driven by the need to obtain nutrients efficiently in an environment where “traditional nutritional strategies” were threatened.
“The world was then selecting for larger, more complex organisms rather than driving them to extinction or shrinkage,” explains lead author and MIT graduate student William Crockett.
The study’s findings challenge previous theories that link multicellularity solely to oxygen levels and suggest that environmental stress may be the catalyst.
Source: Ferra
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