Trees aren’t basic just because they don’t move.
this post was submitted on 10 Mar 2026
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Maybe it feels counter-intuitive to some that sharks were there before trees...
But I hope it is intuitive that there was water long before there was soil? Then it's just a small step to realize life in water has had a much longer time to develop.
Mosses were likely already there though alongside the first sharks
Or at least lichens.
It’s such a shame that all of human knowledge isnt readily available to this person. Oh it is, on the very device he’s using to post this, how embarrassing
"If a tree is so basic, then why aren't there trees growing in the middle of the ocean?" seems like the sort of argument that would impress Ray.
Bull kelp:
The oldest shark teeth are from the Early Devonian, about 410 million years old. These are without a doubt sharks, although different species than exist currently. The earliest fossil of a plant engaging in this evolutionary strategy is a 12 meter tall palm-like plant from China. It dates back, again, to the Early Devonian, but less than 400 million years ago.
Which means the first toothed sharks predate the first plant which could be called a tree by 10 million years.
Sharks are older than the rings of Saturn!
Huh. Yeah I never knew. Never really thought about it but knew not nonetheless.