Paleontological evidence to date the tree of life.

@article{Benton2007PaleontologicalET,
  title={Paleontological evidence to date the tree of life.},
  author={Michael J. Benton and Philip C. J. Donoghue},
  journal={Molecular biology and evolution},
  year={2007},
  volume={24 1},
  pages={
          26-53
        }
}
The role of fossils in dating the tree of life has been misunderstood. Fossils can provide good "minimum" age estimates for branches in the tree, but "maximum" constraints on those ages are poorer. Current debates about which are the "best" fossil dates for calibration move to consideration of the most appropriate constraints on the ages of tree nodes. Because fossil-based dates are constraints, and because molecular evolution is not perfectly clock-like, analysts should use more rather than… 
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