Evolutionary timescales can be inferred from molecular sequence data using a Bayesian
phylogenetic approach. In these methods, the molecular clock is often calibrated using fossil …

Tip dating, a method of phylogenetic analysis in which fossils are included as terminals and
assigned an age, is becoming increasingly widely used in evolutionary studies. Current …

Time-stamped historical observations are required for scaling phylogenetic estimates to
absolute time and, as a consequence, genomic data alone are not sufficient for dating the …

Placing evolutionary events in the context of geological time is a fundamental goal in
paleobiology and macroevolution. In this Element we describe the tripartite model used for …

Molecular sequence data provide information about relative times only, and fossil-based
age constraints are the ultimate source of information about absolute times in molecular …

Heterochronous data sets comprise molecular sequences sampled at different points in
time. If the temporal range of the sampled sequences is large relative to the rate of mutation …

Calibrating the molecular clock is the most contentious step in every dating analysis, but the
emerging total-evidence dating approach promises increased objectivity. It combines …

Fossil calibrations are the utmost source of information for resolving the distances between
molecular sequences into estimates of absolute times and absolute rates in molecular clock …

Although taxon sampling is commonly considered an important issue in phylogenetic
inference, it is rarely considered in the Bayesian estimation of divergence times. In fact, the …

The molecular clock is the only viable means of establishing an accurate timescale for Life
on Earth, but it remains reliant on a capricious fossil record for calibration.'Tip …