Thursday, June 08, 2006

Extinction

Story in the AP:

BANGKOK, Thailand - A massive crater in Antarctica may have been caused by a meteor that wiped out more than 90 percent of the species on Earth 250 million years ago, an American geologist said Wednesday.

The 300-mile-wide crater lies hidden more than a mile beneath a sheet of ice and was discovered by scientists using satellite data, Ohio State University geologist Ralph von Frese said.
I do wish I had a time machine. First I would go back in time and video tape all the bullshit that is the foundation of religion - but really, wouldn't it be super cool to see what the species looked like prior to mass extinction? Think about it, 90% of the species were different then what we have today. What really oddball creatures could have existed? It would be so freaking amazing.

If you figure that we have an asston of different species, and oddball creatures, multiply that by 90% and just imagine what kind animals you'd find.

250 million years really isn't that long in cosmic terms. Suppose some sort of extinction event happens again - then in 250 million years or so in the future, you'd see a completely different set of creatures roaming the earth.

1 comment:

John in Atlanta said...

Did you ever see the film version of his 1953 story A Sound of Thunder? I've loved that story since high school. The movie REALLY sucked but the premise was quite interesting. It strayed from Bradbury's tale quite a bit. It showed evolution on the fast track. That bit was very entertaining.

The next time you're sick in bed, check it out. It isn't a total waste of time. Close though :-)