Both the passage and the lecture discuss whether bees existed on Earth 200 million years ago or not. The writer refutes this idea by providing skeptics’ reasons. On the other hand, the speaker claims that it is perfectly possible that bees may have existed at that time and skeptics’ arguments are not convincing.
First, the passage suggests that no bees’ fossils were found related to that date. Conversely, the lecturer claims that if fossils are not found, it does not mean that there were no bees. Bees usually preserve inside a special chemical matter called resin that is produced by some trees, but back then, these trees were very rare, and they became common later. Therefore, there was not an apt environment to preserve bees’ fossils.
Second, the skeptics claim that almost all bees need to feed on flowering plants, but it was not until 125 million years ago that they emerged. However, the speaker asserts that it is correct that there was not any flowering tree in that era, but bees could have fed from some other plants like fir and pine trees. Then, when flowering plants emerged later, they fed on them.
Third, the passage suggests that the fossilized structure does not resemble the current bees’ nests. On the contrary, the lecturer agrees about the differences between the structures, but she asserts that bees use a special chemical material to make their nest waterproof, and when the fossilized structure was analyzed, they discerned that this waterproof chemical material is also present in this fossil record.
Both the text and the lecture discuss whether or not there were bees on Earth 200 million years ago. The author refutes this idea by citing the arguments of the skeptics. On the other hand, the speaker claims that it is quite possible that bees existed at that time, and that the skeptics’ arguments are not convincing.
First, the text points out that no bee fossils have been found from this time. In contrast, the lecturer claims that the absence of fossils does not mean that there were no bees. Bees usually reside in a special chemical substance called resin produced by some trees, but at that time these trees were very rare and became common only later. Therefore, there was no suitable environment for preserving bee fossils.
Secondly, skeptics claim that almost all bees must feed on flowering plants, but that they appeared only 125 million years ago. However, it is true that there were no flowering trees at that time, but bees may have fed on other plants such as firs and pines. Then later, when flowering plants appeared, they fed on them.
Third, the text suggests that the fossilized structure does not resemble today’s bee nests. On the contrary, the lecturer agrees that there are differences between the structures, but she claims that bees use a special chemical material to make their nest watertight, and when the fossilized structure was analyzed, it was found that this watertight chemical material is also present in this fossil record.