The paper by Niklas Wikström, Vincent Savolainen, and Mark W. Chase explores the evolution of angiosperms and the calibration of their family tree. They argue that the timing of early angiosperm cladogenesis is older than previously indicated by fossil evidence. To address this, they use non-parametric rate smoothing (NPRS) to estimate divergence times based on DNA sequence data from a three-gene dataset covering approximately 75% of angiosperm families. The results suggest that the crown group of extant angiosperms originated in the Early to Middle Jurassic (179–158 Myr), and eudicots in the Late Jurassic to mid-Cretaceous (147–131 Myr). These estimates are older than those based on fossils. The authors also discuss the limitations and potential improvements of their methods, emphasizing the need for a more rigorous hierarchical framework to evaluate the fossil record and the assumptions underlying molecular dating techniques.The paper by Niklas Wikström, Vincent Savolainen, and Mark W. Chase explores the evolution of angiosperms and the calibration of their family tree. They argue that the timing of early angiosperm cladogenesis is older than previously indicated by fossil evidence. To address this, they use non-parametric rate smoothing (NPRS) to estimate divergence times based on DNA sequence data from a three-gene dataset covering approximately 75% of angiosperm families. The results suggest that the crown group of extant angiosperms originated in the Early to Middle Jurassic (179–158 Myr), and eudicots in the Late Jurassic to mid-Cretaceous (147–131 Myr). These estimates are older than those based on fossils. The authors also discuss the limitations and potential improvements of their methods, emphasizing the need for a more rigorous hierarchical framework to evaluate the fossil record and the assumptions underlying molecular dating techniques.