Have you ever heard of the ‘early anthropocene hypothesis’? Well neither had I until this morning when I came across its glory after scouring Wikipedia aimlessly.
It’s generally assumed that human CO2 emissions began in earnest after the industrial revolution brought us the factory line & coal based power. The Early Anthropocene Hypothesis suggests however that the human race first started to have a significant impact on climate much earlier than previously thought. Beginning as early as 8,000 years ago our ancestors participated in destructive farming activities, along with widespread deforestation particularly in Europe.
I’m sure the hypothesis has many detractors, people have a hard enough time wrapping their head around the concept that we can affect the climate in this 21st century let alone that we could have thousands of years ago. Nonetheless I find myself very intrigued. I wonder if being destructive to our environment is innate in our nature, and if we’ll ever be able to correct our actions.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Early_anthropocene
