The Anthropocene biosphere
@article{Williams2015TheAB, title={The Anthropocene biosphere}, author={Mark Williams and Jan A. Zalasiewicz and Peter Haff and Christian Schw{\"a}gerl and Anthony D Barnosky and Erle C. Ellis}, journal={The Anthropocene Review}, year={2015}, volume={2}, pages={196 - 219} }
The geological record preserves evidence for two fundamental stages in the evolution of Earth’s biosphere, a microbial stage from ~3.5 to 0.65 Ga, and a metazoan stage evident by c. 650 Ma. We suggest that the modern biosphere differs significantly from these previous stages and shows early signs of a new, third stage of biosphere evolution characterised by: (1) global homogenisation of flora and fauna; (2) a single species (Homo sapiens) commandeering 25–40% of net primary production and also…
140 Citations
The Anthropocene: a conspicuous stratigraphical signal of anthropogenic changes in production and consumption across the biosphere
- Environmental Science
- 2016
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The Anthropocene is functionally and stratigraphically distinct from the Holocene
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- 2016
C climatic, biological, and geochemical signatures of human activity in sediments and ice cores, Combined with deposits of new materials and radionuclides, as well as human-caused modification of sedimentary processes, the Anthropocene stands alone stratigraphically as a new epoch beginning sometime in the mid–20th century.
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- Environmental Science
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The Anthropocene concept arose within the Earth System science (ESS) community, albeit explicitly as a geological (stratigraphical) time term. Its current analysis by the stratigraphical community,…
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- Environmental ScienceNature Communications
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- Environmental Science
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This article argues that the early modern period plays a pivotal role in global ecological history. It makes the case for a long “Organic Anthropocene” emerging from the Neolithic and gathering…
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- Environmental Science
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A range of published arguments against formalizing the Anthropocene as a geological time unit have variously suggested that it is a misleading term of non-stratigraphic origin and usage, is based on…
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