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Universal Perspectives

Universal Perspectives. Developed by Joe Naumann UMSL. The Historical Perspective. Compressing the geologic history of the Earth into one calendar year. Another way of looking at our place in the grand scheme of things. The Beginnings. Jan 1, 12:00:00 AM The planet takes shape

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Universal Perspectives

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  1. Universal Perspectives Developed by Joe Naumann UMSL

  2. The Historical Perspective Compressing the geologic history of the Earth into one calendar year. Another way of looking at our place in the grand scheme of things.

  3. The Beginnings • Jan 1, 12:00:00 AM • The planet takes shape • 4,600,000,000 years ago • Feb 9, 6:46:57 PM • The first single-cell life forms appear • 4,100,000,000 years ago

  4. The Formation of Earth

  5. Early Life Forms

  6. Biological Developments • Nov 17, 10:38:37 AM • shelled animals • Nov 21, 7:40:10 PM • fish • Nov 27, 6:53:13 PM • land plants • Dec 5, 5:50:37 PM • reptiles • 330,000,000 years ago

  7. Changes in the Land Surface • Dec 11, 7:30:47 AM • The Appalachian Mountains are formed – they approached the size of the Himalaya Mountains of today. • Dec 12, 2:36:31 AM • Pangaea (a single super-continent) Forms • 250,000,000 years ago

  8. Pangaea

  9. Further Biological Development • Dec 13, 4:48:00 PM • Dinosaurs appear • Dec 16, 2:05:13 AM • Mammals appear • 200,000,000 years ago

  10. Time Marches On • Dec 16, 2:05:13 AM • Pangaea Breaks Up • Dec 20, 1:33:55 AM • Sierra Nevada forms • Dec 20, 11:06:47 AM • Birds appear • 145,000,000 years ago

  11. Procession of Life Forms

  12. Continued Developments • Dec 26, 10:19:50 AM • Rockies are formed • Dec 26, 5:58:07 PM • Dinosaurs become extinct • Dec 28, 7:37:03 PM • Himalayas and Alps are formed • 40,000,000 years ago

  13. Rushing Toward the Present • Dec 31, 4:21:42 PM • Hominids appear • Dec 31, 8:10:51 PM • Oahu (Hawaiian Island) is formed • 2,000,000 years ago

  14. Arriving at Modern Times • Dec 31 11:55:25 PM • Modern man (homo sapiens) appears • Dec 31 11:59:19 PM • The historical period (written records) begins • 6,000 years ago

  15. Evolution to Homo Sapiens

  16. The Spatial/Demographic Perspective One way of looking at our place in the universe

  17. The Beginning of the Universe • The Big Bang • 15 Billion years ago

  18. An Expanding Universe

  19. Galaxies • There are probably more than one hundred billion (1011) galaxies in the observable universe.

  20. Galaxy Formation

  21. Typical Galaxy • Typical galaxies range from dwarfs with as few as ten million (107) stars up to giants with one trillion (1012) stars. Andromeda shown to the right.

  22. The Milky Way Galaxy • Our own galaxy, the Milky Way, sometimes simply called the Galaxy (with uppercase), is a large disk-shaped barred-spiral galaxy about 30 kiloparsecs in diameter and a kiloparsec in thickness. It contains about two hundred billion (2×1011) stars and has a total mass of about six hundred billion (6×1011) times the mass of the Sun.

  23. The Milky Way

  24. Sol (our sun) • Sol is the center of a solar system within the Milky Way. This solar system is composed of 9 or 10 planets (there’s been a recent reevaluation of what constitutes a planet).

  25. Our Solar System

  26. The Earth • The Earth is the third planet from Sol and supports a multitude of plant and animal species.

  27. Human Beings • Currently, 2007, Earth supports a little more than 6 billion human beings. • Each human being is a host to a multitude of living things.

  28. A Human

  29. The Human Ecosystem • Within each human there are approximately 100 trillion cells. Of those cells: • 10% are human cells • 90% are alien cells • Bacteria • Viruses • Fungi • Other microbes and parasites

  30. Bacteria • 500 species live in the human gut and weigh approximately 3.3 pounds. • Approximately one trillion bacteria live on the skin.

  31. Viruses • The virus that causes chicken pox remains within the nerves in a dormant state and can be reactivated later to cause the painful condition known as shingles. • Fossil DNA fragments of viruses exist within human DNA.

  32. Fungi • Many humans are hosts to fungi which may invade and grow on/in the skin, finger and toenails, lungs and other sites.

  33. Mites • A species of mites resides within the hair follicles of the eyelashes of most older persons.

  34. What does this all mean to 21st Century Homo Sapiens? What follows are: Reflections, Conclusions, Conjectures.

  35. From the perspective of the universe: • In the grand scheme of the universe, the earth and the homo sapiens living on it are less than an insignificant speck.

  36. From the perspective of the planet Earth: • Twenty-first century homo sapiens occupy an intermediate position within the vast, interconnected web of life in which the planet Earth is enmeshed.

  37. What is it about 21st century homo sapiens that we must consider? • Homo sapiens has achieved the highest levels of both knowledge and technology that have ever been possessed by homo sapiens. • Homo sapiens is capable of rendering the Earth uninhabitable by human beings. • Will homo sapiens find the wisdom with which to properly manage the knowledge and technology that it currently possesses?

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