The Anthropocene is defined as the “Earth’s most recent geologic time period,” marked by the fact that “atmospheric, geologic, hydrologic, biospheric and other Earth system processes are now altered by humans,” (The Anthropocene). With such a vast expanse of influence, humans have essentially become able to modify the Earth intentionally and unintentionally. As regarded by many as the current epoch of Earth, the Anthropocene and the effects of it are a subject greatly touched upon by scientists, historians, and academics globally. Though, it does not go undisputed.
An article published by The New York Times states “95 percent of the vertebrate biomass on land consists of ourselves, our pets and livestock bred to our specifications and raised mostly in enormous industrialized monocultures,” (Yang, 2017). This alarming statistic highlights the extent of human influence as the perceived “natural world,” or species other than humans, heavily consist of vertebrates for human use. Additionally, the article illustrates various technologies and possible future advances that display the extent of humanity’s ability to alter the world and the genome: the sixth great extinction, efforts of de-extinction, gene manipulation, and changes in the ice core, fossils, and sediment, (Yang, 2017). The mere acceptance of the term itself has been heavily debated in recent years. An article published by The Atlantic reveals that the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS) announced that the current stretch of geological time, the Holocene Epoch, [the term used to describe the last 12,000 years until now,] would be split into three subdivisions.” (Meyer, 2018). The most recent of these three divisions is regarded by many as the Meghalayan Age and dates back 4,250 years ago. The decision to officially regard it as the time period following the Holocene occurred in 2015. However, the ICS has yet to establish “a boundary in the sedimentary rock record where the Anthropocene clearly begins;” This means that “Officially, the Holocene is still running today.” Currently, “the Anthropocene working group’s members strongly imply that they will propose starting the new epoch in the mid-20th century.” (Meyer, 2018). The very presence of this debate illustrates the varying perspectives of the effect of humans on the planet and the severity of that effect in the geologic time-scale in creating an entire new epoch. The labs conducted in my Environmental Analysis class (ENVS-220), focus on the effects of the Anthropocene on the areas surrounding Lewis & Clark College, River View Natural Area, and Collins View, in Portland Oregon. We expect that many changes have occured over time, specifically over the last century with the rapid industrialization of the United States and the increase of the national population. The aim of these labs is to look at these changes spatially and temporally, assessing the effects of human influence overtime. Though the Anthropocene stretches across a much larger time-scale, our approach focuses on the time between 1939 and 2018. SOURCES: Meyer, Robinson. "Geology's Timekeepers Are Feuding." The Atlantic. July 22, 2018. Accessed October 16, 2018. https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2018/07/anthropocene-holocene-geology-drama/565628/. Stromberg, Joseph. "What Is the Anthropocene and Are We in It?" Smithsonian.com. January 01, 2013. Accessed October 16, 2018. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/what-is-the-anthropocene-and-are-we-in-it-164801414/#3Kt5eOluZusBs8MM.99. "The Anthropocene | Welcome." Welcome to the Anthropocene. Accessed October 16, 2018. http://anthropocene.info/. Yang, Wesley. "Is the 'Anthropocene' Epoch a Condemnation of Human Interference - or a Call for More?" The New York Times. February 14, 2017. Accessed October 16, 2018. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/14/magazine/is-the-anthropocene-era-a-condemnation-of-human-interference-or-a-call-for-more.html.
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