"Yeah, theoretically there should be evolutionary intermediates, but it seems no one has ever heard of any?" Lu Geng's brows knitted tighter and tighter. "For example, if all bacteria in nature today were car bodies and all archaea were tires, would the two suddenly be cobbled together into a car?"
"Would complex things like engines, seats, and steering wheels just appear out of nowhere? Shouldn't some bacteria be steering wheels and some archaea be engines, with multiple types combining to form a car? But in nature today, there aren't any archaea or bacteria resembling steering wheels or engines—not even anything remotely close. Why?"
"Exactly! That's where the contradiction lies! You just touched upon the giant black hole surrounding the origin of eukaryotes. We don't know what happened inside that black hole." Antonio shrugged. "Do you really think you can solve this biological black hole? Give up!"
"Yeah, give up." Xi Yanfan advised them, "Think about some other project."
The three students lowered their heads sadly. They had discussed this all night and had completely fallen in love with the idea, only to have it successively rejected by the vice dean and a Nobel Prize-winning professor first thing in the morning. They were deeply shaken.
"Why give up?" Song He suddenly cut in.
The three students froze, then looked up at the dean blankly.
"If you want to do it, then do it!" Song He said casually. "Write up the project proposal and give it to me. I'll approve the funding."
The three students looked astonished.
"Dean, you... why are you supporting us?" Lu Geng stammered. "Our project does seem a little too ambitious. It's beyond what we're capable of."
"Your thinking is wrong from the start." Song He raised a hand and tapped his temple. "Don't use an archaeological mindset