Abstract
The main directions and results of the Paleontological Institute’s activities over the past 40 years are considered. The demand for paleontological research conducted by the Institute’s scientists has shifted from stratigraphy and geological surveying towards the study of the evolution of the biosphere and evolutionary developmental biology. It is shown that the rapidly developing biological aspect of paleontological research continues to be largely based on a detailed analysis of the stratigraphic and geographic distribution of fossil organisms.