November 12, 2014 - 17:01
The Luck of the Ammonities focused on Cretaceous period beginning with research done on the meteor found in Gola del Bottaccione. What was interesting about this chapter for me was the focus on how this mass extinction did not derive from human action and instead how human involvement such as further studying of foraminifera, served as index fossils and the locating of irdium led us to the meteor actually assisted us more in understanding the adaptations of plants and animals over long periods of times.
In the Sea Around Us there was a shift in responsibility. Here humans are identified as being one of the major influences in the increase of CO2 concentration leading towards the global temperature increase. Although they are not causing an immediate extinction such as the meteor, humans are causing a gradual deterioation, but for a large amount of species. This chapter focuses more on marine life, particularly ocean acidification's impacts on the coral reefs.
It was surprising to read these two chapters and realize how impacting it is to consider an immediate mass extinction, but how there almost seems to be little to no effect when one thinks about human action and its effects on the enviornment. Maybe it has to do with the comparison of how gradual disappearces or effects blend in unlike immediate change.