Fossil record supports evidence of impending mass extinction

www.physorg.com...

The research team has, for the first time, discovered a close association between Earth climate and extinctions in a study that has examined the relationship over the past 520 million years – almost the entire fossil record available.

Matching data sets of marine and terrestrial diversity against temperature estimates, evidence shows that global biodiversity is relatively low during warm ‘greenhouse’ phases and extinctions relatively high, while the reverse is true in cooler ‘icehouse’ phases.

Moreover, future predicted temperatures are within the range of the warmest greenhous

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[edit on 7-29-2009 by rogerstigers]

Very interesting article. I for one do not subscribe to the idea that this current change cycle is 100% man-caused. I think that while we have certainly made an impact (may have accellerated it by a century or so), this train is too big to stop.

What really got me was the diversity evidence. Speciation seems to occur more often in the colder climes allowing for a blooming effect when the temperatures become mile. This then allows for a huge flora of life that buffers the die out when temperatures become less hospitable. All really fascinating stuff.


(visit the link for the full news article)

[edit on 7-29-2009 by rogerstigers]