Geosciences 106 - EXTRAORD EVENT:EARTH, LIFE,CLM

A journey through the 4.6 billion-year history of global change, with a focus on extraordinary events that have shaped the evolution of Earth and life through time. These events include the earliest development of life, the buildup of oxygen in the atmosphere, the devastation of the living world by catastrophic mass extinctions, the tectonic rearrangement of continents, the alternation of ice ages and eras of extreme warmth, and the evolution of modern humans. We also examine ways in which humans are changing our climatic and biologic environment and discuss potential consequences for the future of our planet.