Some of the world’s most mysterious fossils, soft-bodied creatures preserved in coarse sandstone, owe their survival to an unusual chemical process on the ancient seafloor. Fossils Saved by GeochemistryFor years, researchers assumed that these fossils survived because the organisms were unusually tough or chemically resistant. “The Ediacara Biota look totally bizarre in their appearance. Fossil of Dickinsonia, a soft-bodied Ediacaran organism, preserved in sandstone by ancient clay cement. The First Life Surge… and Its CollapseThese findings change the way scientists understand the Ediacara Biota and early evolutionary trends more generally.