YNU project wins State Natural Science Award

The "special preservation of fossils and early evolution of arthropods in the Cambrian" project led by a scientific research team from Yunnan University (YNU) won second-place in the State Natural Science Award, the nation's highest academic accolade for basic sciences.

The award ceremony for the 2020 State Science and Technology Award was held on Nov 3. The ceremony included the State Natural Science Award, the State Technological Invention Award and the State Scientific and Technological Progress Award.

The scientific research team of the Institute of Palaeontology at YNU poses for a group photo in Beijing on Nov 3. [Photo/ynu.edu.cn]

The scientific research team led by Zhang Xiguang, Hou Xianguang, Ma Xiaoya, Cong Peiyun and Liuyu is from the Institute of Palaeontology at YNU.

Over the course of 15 years, the team has carried out outstanding multidisciplinary research on Cambrian soft-body fossils in South China, focusing on long-term unresolved questions in the evolution of the basic body structure of arthropods in the fields of epimorphology and developmental biology.

In addition, the team discovered the behavior of the oldest arthropod colony, revealing the complexity of the ecological behavior of arthropods during the Cambrian outbreak. It has also explored a new method for studying the process of building a prototype of the early Cambrian marine ecosystem.

This research has not only made important contributions to understanding nature, but also greatly improved the reputation of Chinese paleontology research on the global stage and played an important role in the popularization of the natural sciences.