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A seemingly simple question with an answer I can't seem to find. How were the colors for the Geologic Time Scale decided? Recently I created a quick Geologic Time Scale to scale, shown below, and got curious as to how those colors were decided. Who decided yellow and orange would represent the Cenozoic or purple to represent the Triassic. Were they all decided at the same time by the same person or were they chosen over time? Did a single paper attempt to standardize all geologic maps by creating the color code we know today? And for how long have these colors been decided? There are probably many different color systems but the one I'm most interested in, is the one the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS) has here.

The latest version of the International Chronostratigraphic Chart/Geologic Time Scale is now available! (v 2018/07), which contains significant updates to the Quaternary and Cambrian System, is now formally released. Download available in link New Holocene subdivisions: Greenlandian (11,700 yr b2k) Northgrippian (8326 yr b2k) Meghalayan (4200 yr before 1950) http://www.stratigraphy.org/index.php/ics-news-and-meetings/120-ics-chart-containing-the-quaternary-gssps-and-new-stages-v-2018-07-is-now-released

Virtually every book on paleontology includes a picture or table on the geologic time scale of some sort. But have you ever noticed that virtually none of them is drawn in true proportions? As a result, many of us have no good, from the top of the head insight in the true propotions of the geologic periods and epochs. Who truly realizes that the Cretaceous for example, represents a larger time span than the whole of the Cenozoic? In any case, for a long time I did not, and the drawings I devoured as a kid did not really help me to grasp the true dimensions of each of the geological periods. Obviously, drawing such a chart poses quite some challenges in terms of layout. In 2015, admittedly a bit frustrated by the lack of such diagrams in literature (I might simply overlooked them), I made a first effort to overcome these challenges and draw a truly proportional infographic of the geologic timeline. It was published in a simplified form in a Belgian book on local geology. Still I kept finetuning it and adding some basic information and then it was resting on a digital shelf for over a year. Today I decided that was rather pointless, so I translated the infographic to English and shared it under the creative commons license for all to use: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Geologic_Time_Scale.png I hope it can be useful for educators. Feel free to provide me with feedback so I can further improve it. From the moment I'm completely satisfied with the infographic, I plan on releasing the original layered vector file, so everyone can use, edit, adapt and reshare the work in complete freedom.

Dear TTF Members, I was wondering if you experts on the forum could provide a more in depth explanation of time periods such as the Mesozoic Era and what kinds of creatures dwelled at these times. I would like to learn more about the evolutionary timeline to help me become a better fossil enthusiast and helper in this forums' community. Sincerely,