The Great Ice Age - Climate Change and Life

Documents and explains the natural climatic and ecological changes that have occurred during the past 2.6 million years. It also outlines the emergence and global impact of humans during this period.

List of contents

Cycles of Climate Change: Evidence and Explanations. 1. The Great Ice Age. 2. Understanding Present and Past Climates. 3. Understanding the Cryosphere. 4. The Deep Sea Record. 5. Revealing the Milankovich Pacemaker. 6. Evidence for Rapid Climate Change. 7. Explanations. Human Origins, Evolution and Environmental Change 8. Climate Change and Life On Land. 9. The Record of Humanity. 10. Changing Environments and Changing Habits. 11. Human Impact During the Holocene.

About the author

Chapman, J.A.; Drury, S.A. all at The Open University; Wilson, R.C.L.

Summary

The Great Ice Age documents and explains the natural climatic and palaeoecologic changes that have occurred during the past 2.6 million years, outlining the emergence and global impact of our species during this period. Exploring a wide range of records of climate change, the authors demonstrate the interconnectivity of the components of the Earths climate system, show how the evidence for such change is obtained, and explain some of the problems in collecting and dating proxy climate data.
One of the most dramatic aspects of humanity's rise is that it coincided with the beginnings of major environmental changes and a mass extinction that has the pace, and maybe magnitude, of those in the far-off past that stemmed from climate, geological and occasionally extraterrestrial events. This book reveals that anthropogenic effects on the world are not merely modern matters but date back perhaps a million years or more.

Product details

• Authors: J.A. Chapman, S.A. all at The Open University Drury, S.A. all at The Open University ury, R.C.L. Wilson
• Publisher: Taylor and Francis
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Released: 11.11.1999
• EAN: 9780415198417
• ISBN: 978-0-415-19841-7
• No. of pages: 288
• Weight: 690 g
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > History > General, dictionaries; Natural sciences, medicine, IT, technology > Geosciences > Geography; SCIENCE / Life Sciences / Ecology, HISTORY / World, SCIENCE / Earth Sciences / Meteorology & Climatology, SCIENCE / Paleontology, HISTORY / Historical Geography, General & world history, Applied ecology, General and world history, Meteorology & climatology, Meteorology and climatology, Palaeontology, Historical Geography