Universal Perspectives
Developed by
Joe Naumann
UMSL
1
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.
2
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
3
The Formation of Earth
4
Early Life Forms
5
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
6
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
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Pangaea
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Further Biological Development
• Dec 13, 4:48:00 PM
– Dinosaurs appear
• Dec 16, 2:05:13 AM
– Mammals appear
– 200,000,000 years ago
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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
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Procession of Life Forms
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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
12
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
13
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
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Evolution to Homo Sapiens
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The Spatial/Demographic
Perspective
One way of looking at our place in
the universe
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The Beginning of the Universe
• The Big Bang
– 15 Billion years ago
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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.
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The Milky Way
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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).
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Our Solar System
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The Earth
• The Earth is the third planet from Sol and
supports a multitude of plant and animal
species.
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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.
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A Human
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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
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Bacteria
• 500 species live in the human gut and weigh
approximately 3.3 pounds.
• Approximately one trillion bacteria live on
the skin.
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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.
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Fungi
• Many humans are hosts to fungi which may
invade and grow on/in the skin, finger and
toenails, lungs and other sites.
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Mites
• A species of mites resides within the hair
follicles of the eyelashes of most older
persons.
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What does this all mean to 21st
Century Homo Sapiens?
What follows are:
Reflections,
Conclusions,
Conjectures.
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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.
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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.
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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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