Hi Fern! There is debate about just when the Holocene ended and the Anthropocene began (the Holocene, a period marked by climate stability, began ~11,600 ybp). Some say when agriculture began, some say at the start of the industrial revolution, some say when industrialization really took off ~1945. The upshot is this: we now have CO2 lev…
Hi Fern! There is debate about just when the Holocene ended and the Anthropocene began (the Holocene, a period marked by climate stability, began ~11,600 ybp). Some say when agriculture began, some say at the start of the industrial revolution, some say when industrialization really took off ~1945. The upshot is this: we now have CO2 levels present in the atmosphere not seen for the last 800,000 years. The rate of CO2 rise is unprecedented in geologic history. Up to now, human caused extinctions have mainly been via habitat degradation, habitat loss, or over hunting. Soon, very rapid warming may take over as the main cause of extinction. That human civilization emerged during the climatically stable Holocene is no accident. The Anthropocene will not have such climatic stability, I fear. If you want an informative, entertaining background to the geo-science behind some of this, start with 'Prehistoric Road Trip', a 3 part series on PBS.
Hi Fern! There is debate about just when the Holocene ended and the Anthropocene began (the Holocene, a period marked by climate stability, began ~11,600 ybp). Some say when agriculture began, some say at the start of the industrial revolution, some say when industrialization really took off ~1945. The upshot is this: we now have CO2 levels present in the atmosphere not seen for the last 800,000 years. The rate of CO2 rise is unprecedented in geologic history. Up to now, human caused extinctions have mainly been via habitat degradation, habitat loss, or over hunting. Soon, very rapid warming may take over as the main cause of extinction. That human civilization emerged during the climatically stable Holocene is no accident. The Anthropocene will not have such climatic stability, I fear. If you want an informative, entertaining background to the geo-science behind some of this, start with 'Prehistoric Road Trip', a 3 part series on PBS.
So glad to have prompted you out and through the CO2 to serve up some more. Thank you Steve, I fill my cup. A hug and Salud!
Great recommendation re "Prehistoric Road Trip". Anyone who is a PBS member can watch the episodes on their own time: https://www.pbs.org/show/prehistoric-road-trip/