Week 9: Earth's Timeline

  

 Week 9: Earth's Timeline

Learning in Lab:

This week during lab we looked at the timeline of significant events that happened throughout Earth's existence. We started by hypothesizing five events, creation of the moon, dinosaurs roaming the Earth, first land plants, first land animals, human existence. We placed our hypothesis on the scaled timeline of Earth's existence to launch our lesson for the day. Then, each table was given a time period to look at significant events from Earth's beginning to today. I learned that 4.65 billion years ago Earth was formed and it was not until 4.3 billion years ago that the first water evidence existed. 4 BYA, was the Archean Eon, or the formation of Earth's crust. 3.5 BYA, microorganisms formed and then 2.5 BYA oxidation of the Earth began. 2.25 BYA the Ice Age occurred and Earth became a snow ball. 1.5 BYA land started to come together and 900 million years ago, Pangea, the super continent, formed. 750 MYA glaciers formed but 635 MYA, oxidation increases and those glaciers start to melt. 550 MYA, the Cambrian Explosion happened, and the first animals appear. My group studied 500 MYA-today, and we found that a lot occurred after the Cambrian Explosion. Some significant events include, beginning of invertebrates (500 MYA), The Great Dying (250 MYA), dinosaurs roam the Earth (165 MYA), mass extinction of dinosaurs (65 MYA), humans appear, (2.8 MYA) and human domination (11,000 YA). I thought it was interesting to see how long it took before there was even life on Earth. 


Evidence of Pangea

Learning in Lecture:

We had our exam in lecture this week 
 
Clock Model

Textbook Connections:

1. What did you learn?
This chapter starts with a recap of putting significant events during Earth's timeline into perspective. I like the clock representation because it allows me to think how little time humans have actually been on Earth. I thought the Snow Ball Earth was interesting as well, we have evidence that Earth was once a snow ball due to the sedimentary and glacier rocks. One connection I made from this section to my global environment class about albedo's. Snow and Ice have high albedo or reflectivity so it created a positive feedback loop which cooled the Earth down even further. The end of the snow ball Earth was because volcanos started erupting and melted the ice into water, which has a lower albedo, warmed the planet, and created a new positive feedback loop. Pangea formed due to plate tectonics where all of Earth's land mass was connected. As the plates started to move away from each other, and the continents that we know today, formed. Evidence that scientists have found from a continental drift was fossil evidence found in countries that, today, are not close to each other. For example, fossil remains from a Triassic reptile was found in areas of both South America and Africa. 

2. What was most helpful?
The most helpful part of this chapter was the clock representation of Earth's timeline. It helped me put into perspective the timing of each significant event, along with how little time humans have actually been on Earth. I also liked the key takeaway box that broke down a timeline of each event. It is a good reminder to look back on these certain events and when they occurred. 

3. What do you need more information on?
I would like more information on plate tectonics and how the Earth shifted from Pangea to the continents that we know now. I briefly learned about plate tectonics in my Global Environment class, but I would like to learn more about the science behind it. 

4. What questions, concerns, or comments to do you have? 
I appreciate the scaled models that we look at in class and in the pressbook, it helps me conceptualize these large events. 

Convection Cell Video is on ICON


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