Free app empowers public to locate, recognize ancient fossils | The University of Kansas

LAWRENCE — Imagine shoveling soil to create a backyard garden plot and unearthing a rock embossed with the fossil remnant of a creature you’ve never seen before. It looks like something out of the ocean, but you live in the Midwest.

Is it a rare fossil from hundreds of millions of years ago or just the trash from a previous homeowner 50 years back?

Now, a free app developed at the University of Kansas with support from the National Science Foundation will enable anyone with an iPhone or iPad to discover and classify fossils with the eye of a scientist. The Digital Atlas of Ancient Life is available now at no cost for download from iTunes.