The world may not feel any different, but – for the first time in more than 11,500 years – we are living in a new epoch, scientists believe. Our impact on the planet has now become so significant that it has pushed us into the Anthropocene epoch, meaning that human activity is now the dominant influence on climate and the environment. The search is now on to find what geologists call a “golden spike”, a physical reference point that can be dated and taken as a representative starting point for the Anthropocene epoch. It is affecting the functioning of the whole earth system.”The concept of an Anthropocene epoch was first proposed by Nobel-prize winning chemist Paul Crutzen and colleague Eugene Stoermer in 2000. Geological time Epochs since extinction of the dinosaurs:Late Jurassic Starts 163.5 million years ago, ends 145 million years ago.

Source: National Post August 30, 2016 13:01 UTC