It is fascinating and special to discover the remains of ancient creatures buried in stones for millions of years. So, is there a way to increase our chances of becoming fossils and be discovered by our future generations in the distant future. Trilobites are tide like creatures with globular eyes, slender legs and a head like a horseshoe crab. They first appeared in the Cambrian and became extinct at the end of the Permian 250 million years ago. If they were alive now, they might scare a lot of people. Trilobite fossils have been found all over the world. Many people have been fascinated by fossil creatures such as trilobites since childhood. They collect ammonites, ancient fish and even dinosaur bones, as well as fossils of various other ancient creatures. The fascinating thing about these fossils is that they can take people's thoughts away from the present: each fossil is a window to distant time and space; The time and place of their existence have long become history. Looking at these ancient creatures, we will try to imagine how they live, move and behave. In the distant future, how will paleontologists view the fossils formed by organisms in the 21st century: blue whales, elephants, grizzly bears... And even today's humans. This raises an interesting question: will we eventually be preserved and mineralized like trilobites and become veritable fossils? So if someone is going to become a fossil, how should he increase his chances of success? Where should he go? Which part of his body can be preserved the longest, bones, skin, muscles, or toenails? Is there any way to accelerate or artificially adjust the process of fossilization? Jacob Wensel is a professor of paleontology at the University of Bristol, UK. He is mainly engaged in the study of macro evolution. His research involves many highly delicate and rare specimens, such as feathered dinosaurs and the pigments they left behind. In fact, Wensel has thought a lot about how to turn himself into a fossil. In his opinion, this is a serious problem, which is worth exploring, not just to satisfy morbid curiosity. Thinking more deeply about how our bodies become fossils can help people understand what they will lose in the process. If we can make ourselves look like fossils, this may be a way for us to better reverse engineer another creature to become a living creature that once existed. After all, fossils themselves do not provide a complete biological picture. Many dinosaur restoration images look very strange because they are "shrink wrapped". We only have some skeletons, and then add a little meat outside the skeletons. Therefore, the restoration of paleontology includes bold guesses about external appearance and behavior. Fossils do not provide a complete picture of biology. For example, we must make many speculations about the behavior of trilobites. However, no one today is likely to be lucky enough to become a fossil that can be found by future generations, which requires extraordinary methods. If we are completely buried in typical soil, our bones can be preserved for about a hundred years. Better conditions are often needed if you want to keep bones for longer. In fact, most of the species that once existed are not preserved in the fossil record - here we are talking about species, not simple organisms. This means that there were some complete animal populations on earth without leaving any traces. Fossils provide us with an unusual perspective, but at the same time, it is also a very incomplete perspective on species diversity in the past. Finally, even if we are lucky enough to become fossils, we are unlikely to be discovered by future humans. If you want to "see the sun again" after becoming a fossil, you not only need intelligent life with a stone hammer and interested in fossils, but also need to consider the factors of timing and geography. Trillions of fossils are still buried deep underground and will only be found when the rocks containing them rise and expose. More importantly, before being discovered, it is also necessary to ensure that fossils will not be eroded and damaged by the ocean, weather or other natural factors. But in any case, becoming a fossil is not completely impossible. So what needs to be done to maximize the chance of becoming a fossil? The Iceman Oz is preserved in glaciers in the Alps, but if it is not found, it may not be completely fossilized. Place, place, or place One of the options to achieve this goal is the so-called "subfossil" route. In several places on earth, biological remains are expected to be preserved for a longer time - at least long enough to interest future archaeologists. First, we can find a cold and stable climate place to freeze ourselves. After all, prehistoric humans have been found in the glaciers of the Alps, such as the "Iceman Oz" who lived more than 5000 years ago. Or we can lie in a desert cave and isolate our bodies from scavengers. In Peru's dry caves, archaeologists have found ancient remains 10000 years ago. In addition, peat swamp is also very suitable for long-term preservation of human body. It is occasionally reported that a "swamp mummy" - sometimes an unfortunate victim of sacrificial rituals - was found in peat swamps thousands of years ago, such as the Lindow man found in northwest England in the 1980s: he lived at the same time as the ancient Romans, and his soft tissue was preserved due to the unique chemical environment of peat moss and acid peat swamps. The special environment of strong acidic water quality, low temperature and hypoxia makes the epidermis of swamp mummies blackened, and the skin and internal organs can often be well preserved, but the bones can not be preserved. But the "sub fossil" route also has disadvantages. Although these methods have the opportunity to enter future museums or accept the research of archaeologists in the laboratory, the preservation time of both "Iceman" and "swamp mummy" is far less than that of mineralized fossils embedded in rocks. There is no ice that can last billions of years: if so, we may be able to find frozen dinosaurs and extract their DNA. At the same time, they are more like fossils that have never been mineralized, because they are more dry than fossils. The preservation of acid peat swamps can last for thousands of years, but the swamp itself is likely to eventually be eroded unless it is buried under thick sediments in some way. So, are there other possibilities? How about the famous labria asphalt pit in the United States? For centuries, the remains of various prehistoric giant animals have been found in these pits. Due to the shelter of leaves, dust or water on the asphalt pit, it is easy for animals to fall into the pit. Asphalt pits may fossilize the human body, but the soft tissue of the human body will not be preserved. In the living environment of asphalt pits, human bones may be mixed with other objects and scattered. How about the landfill? Landfill is not very good because it is a highland. Generally speaking, if you want to become a fossil, your location needs to be below the water table. This is the rule of thumb. Everything above the water table will eventually be eroded. If we really want to become fossils in millions of years, we need to consider different locations. Rather, we need to be buried where there is enough humidity to avoid being eaten by animals. The key point is to enter these places soon. In the case of hypoxia, macro organisms will not easily find you. Some anaerobic bacteria can still digest you, but the efficiency is low. The waste produced by these bacteria may even help preserve some tissues in your body. So, what kind of place can provide such conditions? Really ancient fossils are kept in windows, and humans usually don't end their lives in Windows unless it's really unfortunate. Fossils are usually formed in rivers, lakes and oceans, so you only appear there by chance: by drowning. Unfortunately, things are not as simple as drowning. Most of the creatures falling into the river will not become fossils. Due to the existence of water flow and scavengers, there is little organic energy to remain intact in the water for a long time. The same is true of the sea near the coastline. Low circulation lakes may be permitted - as is the case with many well preserved feathered dinosaurs found in China - but specific conditions are still required. Many of these rare fossils were wrapped in volcanic ash from nearby volcanoes and finally preserved until now. Usually, you need to be washed into the sea and buried deeper. The seabed away from land is a more "reassuring" burial place, which can avoid being stirred by waves and animals, but not so deep that there is not enough sediment to bury you quickly. In fact, some people may have begun to become fossils in this way. After all, humans have sailed many times and suffered many shipwrecks. In such a marine environment, the possibility of becoming a "gold" fossil is also very small. If buried in iron rich seabed mud and the sea contains enough sulfate - and sulfate reducing bacteria - the human body will turn into pyrite. Your soft tissue will be replaced more or less in all three dimensions. Admittedly, being a shiny specimen sounds attractive - although it will be "fool's gold", not real gold. The La Brea asphalt pit offers a possible path to fossilization, but it could be discovered in advance - where Los Angeles police searched for clues to the murder. Which parts are more likely to become fossils? The second type of question relates to our body parts: which part of the human body is most likely to become a fossil? From the fossils of prehistoric ancient humans, teeth and bones are obviously the best candidates. But some soft parts may become fossils. The more melanin in the skin and hair, the better, because the imprint of this pigment can be preserved for millions of years. Unlike keratin in skin, nails and soft tissue, melanin is not easy to decompose. This is why paleontologists often find dark dinosaur feathers but not light ones. Therefore, people with darker skin and hair are more likely to become the perfect fossils in the eyes of future paleontologists. However, melanin containing organs in the human body may also appear in fossils, such as the liver. In addition, genitalia may also appear in future human fossils, because the skin color of this part of the human body is deeper than that exposed to the sun every day. Another question is, can muscles be preserved? Under appropriate conditions, muscle tissue can be preserved by releasing phosphate. If calcium is present in the environment