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Can We Be Sure We're the First Industrial Civilization on Earth?
In a new paper, Gavin Schmidt of the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies and Adam Frank from the University of Rochester ask a provocative question [open, DOI: 10.1017/S1473550418000095] [DX]: Could there have been an industrial civilization on Earth millions of years ago? And if so, what evidence of it would we be able to find today?
The authors first considered what signs of industrial civilization would be expected to survive in the geological record. In our own time, these include plastics, synthetic pollutants, increased metal concentrations, and evidence of large-scale energy use, such as carbon-based fossil fuels. Taken together, they mark what some scientists call the Anthropocene era, in which humans are having a significant and measurable impact on our planet.
The authors conclude, however, that it would be very difficult after tens of millions of years to distinguish these industrial byproducts from the natural background. Even plastic, which was previously thought to be quite resistant, can be degraded by enzymes relatively quickly. Only radiation from nuclear power plants—or from a nuclear war—would be discernible in the geological rock record after such a long time.
Anonymous Coward says "I told you so!" and starts babbling about megaliths.
Related: Homo Sapiens Began Advanced Toolmaking, Pigment Use, and Trade Earlier Than Previously Thought
(Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Thursday April 19 2018, @09:16PM (3 children)
If the technological civilization had the drive to expand (which is pretty much inbred in all of our DNA, from algae through dinosaurs and up), they would have left a visible mark.
If they were mammals ~10M years ago, they would have abundant skeletal remains (unless they were fastiduous cremators...), and with technology come signs of medicine...
Now, if they're just a little clique with a hydro-electric dam and they never left the valley - yeah, we could be missing that.
🌻🌻 [google.com]
(Score: 2) by NotSanguine on Thursday April 19 2018, @09:30PM (2 children)
Sure. Everything you wrote is plausible. However, you have no evidence to support your assertions.
I don't have any evidence to disprove them either. But that doesn't make you correct. My assertion (in the absence of contrary evidence), that a pre-human civilization *could* have existed is just as plausible.
The most reasonable answer is that it's unlikely but possible. And that's probably the best answer we'll ever get unless some actual evidence of a terrestrial, pre-human technological civilization is found.
No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday April 20 2018, @09:09PM (1 child)
Nah man. The more extraordinary the claim, the more burden of proof there is. You have no proof I didn't eat meat/gunk from an green alien with huge eyes for breakfast. Just because I equally have no proof I did eat an alien, doesn't mean people are going to believe me.
Lots of stuff has been preserved from the long distant past of this planet. To say an intelligent civilization, which would likely be able to make more durable materials (like we can), left no trace is unlikely.
(Score: 2) by NotSanguine on Friday April 20 2018, @10:24PM
Thanks for agreeing with me. As I said in the comment to which you replied:
Now what, exactly, was your point, other than to agree with my amazing analytical skills?
No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr