Who came first hen or egg?

The Scientific Answer:

* Eggs came first. Eggs, in the form of amniotic eggs, predate birds by millions of years. Reptiles, dinosaurs, and other ancient creatures laid eggs long before chickens evolved.

The Philosophical Answer:

* It's a bit of a trick question. The "hen" and "egg" we think of are specific to the chicken species. To get a chicken egg, you need a chicken. But to get a chicken, you need a chicken egg! It's a circular argument.

The More Interesting Answer:

* Evolution is the key. The question focuses on a single, specific instance, but evolution is a gradual process. There wasn't a sudden "chicken" that popped into existence. Instead, there were countless generations of birds, each with slightly different traits. At some point, a bird existed that we'd consider close enough to a modern chicken to be called one, and it laid an egg that hatched a true "chicken" offspring. So, it wasn't a single, clear-cut moment, but a gradual transition.