What do fossils prove?

Fossils prove that some animals have lived and died in certain areas during certain periods of time in the course of history. That's it, nothing more. read more

Fossils prove that some animals have lived and died in certain areas during certain periods of time in the course of history. That's it, nothing more. But from this information, we can be derive so much other new data that makes studying fossils worthwhile. read more

Even if we grant that every fossil looks the way it is reconstructed and that sequences demonstrating evolution really do exist, fossils cannot count as evidence for evolution. read more

When I do offer evidence (for example, Ambulocetus natans, a transitional fossil between ancient land mammals and modern whales), they respond that there are now two gaps in the fossil record. This is a clever debate retort, but it reveals a profound error that I call the Fossil Fallacy: the belief that a "single fossil"--one bit of data--constitutes proof of a multifarious process or historical sequence. read more