Evolutionary tree of life

[Dominatus]

http://www.texscience.org/reports/tree.jpg

This is a link to an image depicting a "tree of life" which appears to trace species back to our common single-celled ancestors. I want to know if this is the most accurate image available, and if not then where can I find an image that encompasses all life we have known to exist? This is to serve as a resource I'm future debates. Thank you.

[Kryten]

'All life we have known to exist' is going to be a tall order; phylogenies of extinct animals have to use morphological data, phylogenies for unicellular ones pretty much have to use molecular data, and merging the two is extremely difficult.

[KerikBalm]

I don't think thats a very good graphic, it lacks many labels, and is rather hard to interpret.

From the look of it, you'd assume most like was Eukaryotic...

I prefer tolweb - although its not kept as up to date as it should be - some of the phylogenies are perhaps a bit wrong (like the earyl tetrapod phylogenies), and some which it displays as unresove may be resolved now.

http://tolweb.org/Life_on_Earth/1

(click on each branch to follow the phylogeny)

It also has text discussing the incertainties.

[Dispatcher]

http://www.texscience.org/reports/tree.jpg

This is a link to an image depicting a "tree of life" which appears to trace species back to our common single-celled ancestors. I want to know if this is the most accurate image available, and if not then where can I find an image that encompasses all life we have known to exist? This is to serve as a resource I'm future debates. Thank you.

Future debates? Do you mean that you are on a debate team, or do you mean "future arguments" with family or neighbors or friends or classmates or coworkers or just anonymously online? If its the former, an image will always be secondary to your debate skills. If its the latter, arguing will never prove anything. However, people who discuss things in earnest will be willing to listen (and this must be true for people who have opposite points of view too). This implies a respect for each other's viewpoints also. Unless a discussion environment possesses both showing respect and being willing to listen to the opposite point of view, there will be no teaching or proving anything to anyone, regardless of point of view.

However, since you are sharing a resource which you find useful and are seeking yet another more complete one, I prefer this reference page at Wikipedia; its a small but comprehensive collection of graphs and charts. It appears to be occasionally updated also, thus it tends to be fairly current.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geologic_time_scale

Since our knowledge of past life on Earth is mostly due to what we learn from geological strata and fossils, referring to a geologic time scale seems to be a proper course.

I hope you'll find it useful.

Edited February 2, 2015 by Dispatcher
Grammar.