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Early Americans faced late Pliestocene climate change
Eureka Alert! ^ | Feb. 19, 2006 | no author

Posted on 02/26/2006 3:50:38 PM PST by redpoll

Early Americans faced rapid late Pleistocene climate change and chaotic environments The environment encountered when the first people emigrated into the New World was variable and ever-changing, according to a Penn State geologist. "The New World was not a nice quiet place when humans came," says Dr. Russell Graham, associate professor of geology and director of the Earth & Mineral Sciences Museum.

Archaeologists agree that by 11,000 years ago, people were spread across North and South America, but evidence is building for an earlier entry into the New World, a date that would put human population of North and South America firmly in the Pleistocene.

"We want to know what it was like back then," says Graham. "What did they have to deal with?"

The Pleistocene Holocene transition took place about 11,000 years ago and caused the extinction of a large number of animal species including mammoths, mastodons and ground sloths. The Holocene looked very different from the Pleistocene.

"We now realize that climate changes extremely rapidly," Graham told attendees at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science today (Feb.19) in St. Louis, Mo. "The Pleistocene to Holocene transition occurred in about 40 years."

As a result, animals and plants shifted around and the people living in the New World had to adapt so that they could find the necessary resources to survive. Graham likened the change to the difference between shopping at a WalMart where there is great abundance and large variety – the Pleistocene – to suddenly having to shop at a corner convenience store – the Holocene. In human terms this means that what grandparents knew to be true about finding resources, could be untrue and not helpful to grandchildren.

During the Pleistocene large eastern coastal resources existed, including walruses, south, as far as Virginia, seals and a variety of fish. Mammoth, caribou and mastodons were plentiful across the continent as well as smaller animals. The situation was not identical in all places across North America because, during segments of the Pleistocene, large portions of the Eastern North American continent were covered in ice, while western locations were ice free much further north.

"The Holocene climate is much more stable than the Pleistocene – warmer but more stable," says Graham. "The environment, however, became more homogeneous, there was less variety."

Graham argues that the Pleistocene experienced a series of rapid climate changes that created patchiness in the environment, but that once the climate change that signaled the beginning of the Holocene occurred, the climate settled down. Humans coming into the New World during the late Pleistocene would have encountered an environment shaped by rapid changes creating variety in available food sources both animal and vegetable. The groups of people would have to adapt continually and find new resources, but the variety of resources was out there. After the Holocene took hold, there was less need to adapt constantly, but also fewer options in resources.

Archaeologists and geologists debate whether the climate change at the Pleistocene Holocene transition caused the extinction of the mega fauna or if the influx of humans did in the large animals. Graham believes that it was the unstable changing rapidly changing climate, not human predation that killed the large Pleistocene animals.


TOPICS: Culture/Society; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: clovisimpact; globalwarming; godsgravesglyphs; maunderminimum; pleistocene; solarflares; suvs; youngerdryas
"We now realize that climate changes extremely rapidly," Graham told attendees at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science today (Feb.19) in St. Louis, Mo. "The Pleistocene to Holocene transition occurred in about 40 years."
Gee... about the same amount of time that we're currently experiencing our "climate crisis," the difference being that there were no SUVs 11,000 years ago.
1 posted on 02/26/2006 3:50:40 PM PST by redpoll
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To: redpoll
Gee... about the same amount of time that we're currently experiencing our "climate crisis," the difference being that there were no SUVs 11,000 years ago.

Or, evidently, as many ignorant idiots.

2 posted on 02/26/2006 3:53:46 PM PST by Publius6961 (Multiculturalism is the white flag of a dying country)
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To: redpoll
"We want to know what it was like back then," says Graham. "What did they have to deal with?"

Well, has he considered just asking Joe Paterno? *rimshot*

3 posted on 02/26/2006 3:54:17 PM PST by NittanyLion
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To: SunkenCiv

ggg ping


4 posted on 02/26/2006 4:01:07 PM PST by Fractal Trader
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To: NittanyLion

I imagine most animals did not have a fear of humans when the early Indians arrived (slow moving small animal without the four legs of all predators.)

I'm sure as climate change made the great herds of no-extinct animals weaker, that made them easy prey for 10 foot spears with massive clovis spearpoints.

I wonder if 10 foot high ground sloths were tasty?


5 posted on 02/26/2006 4:02:55 PM PST by JustDoItAlways
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To: NittanyLion

I imagine most animals did not have a fear of humans when the early Indians arrived (slow moving small animal without the four legs of all predators.)

I'm sure as climate change made the great herds of now-extinct animals weaker, that made them easy prey for 10 foot spears with massive clovis spearpoints.

I wonder if 10 foot high ground sloths were tasty?


6 posted on 02/26/2006 4:03:46 PM PST by JustDoItAlways
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To: JustDoItAlways

I imagine most animals did not have a fear of humans when the early Indians arrived (slow moving small animal without the four legs of all predators.)

I'm sure as climate change made the great herds of now-extinct animals weaker, that made them easy prey for 10 foot spears with massive clovis spearpoints.

I wonder if 10 foot high ground sloths were tasty?


7 posted on 02/26/2006 4:17:14 PM PST by Jeff Chandler (Peace Begins in the Womb)
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===> Placemarker <===
8 posted on 02/26/2006 4:23:23 PM PST by Coyoteman (I love the sound of beta decay in the morning!)
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To: redpoll

Exactly.


9 posted on 02/26/2006 4:23:56 PM PST by BenLurkin (O beautiful for patriot dream - that sees beyond the years)
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To: JustDoItAlways
The eyes ~ just look at the eyes ~ on the front of the face ~ that's a predator, a really nasty sort of predator, every single time.

They don't count the legs.

Yup, they feared us ~ even if the bears and wolfes didn't.

10 posted on 02/26/2006 4:26:53 PM PST by muawiyah (-)
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To: JustDoItAlways
I wonder if 10 foot high ground sloths were tasty?

Taste like chicken, same as bald eagles and grizzly bears.

11 posted on 02/26/2006 4:57:22 PM PST by woofer (It is not necessary to understand things in order to argue about them.)
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To: redpoll
The U.S. was responsible for the global warming 11,000 years ago.

BUSH LIED! MAMMOTHS DIED!
12 posted on 02/26/2006 4:59:50 PM PST by atomicweeder
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To: redpoll

bump


13 posted on 02/26/2006 5:10:55 PM PST by VOA
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To: redpoll
wow, who knew ancient Indians drove SUV's !

what else could explain the rapid climate change?

*snicker*
14 posted on 02/26/2006 5:16:13 PM PST by conservative physics
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To: Fractal Trader; blam; FairOpinion; Ernest_at_the_Beach; StayAt HomeMother; 24Karet; 3AngelaD; ...
Thanks Fractal Trader. Beware this Graham fellow, and anyone saying that climate change is rapid -- this is just another head of the humans cause climate change hydra.

To all -- please ping me to other topics which are appropriate for the GGG list. Thanks.
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15 posted on 02/26/2006 5:51:43 PM PST by SunkenCiv (My Sunday Feeling is that Nothing is easy. Goes for the rest of the week too.)
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To: redpoll

Archaeologists and geologists debate whether the climate change at the Pleistocene Holocene transition caused the extinction of the mega fauna or if the influx of humans did in the large animals.

Like it has to be one or the other. Bunch of BS pseudo science.

16 posted on 02/27/2006 7:06:30 AM PST by elli1
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17 posted on 07/04/2010 6:10:18 PM PDT by SunkenCiv ("Fools learn from experience. I prefer to learn from the experience of others." -- Otto von Bismarck)
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The Cycle of Cosmic Catastrophes: Flood, Fire, and Famine in the History of Civilization The Cycle of Cosmic Catastrophes:
Flood, Fire, and Famine
in the History of Civilization

by Richard Firestone,
Allen West, and
Simon Warwick-Smith


18 posted on 07/05/2013 2:07:53 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (McCain or Romney would have been worse, if you're a dumb ass.)
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19 posted on 07/05/2013 2:08:18 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (McCain or Romney would have been worse, if you're a dumb ass.)
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To: redpoll
wait a minute....this caveman drawing would explain their climate change! it's all true!
20 posted on 07/05/2013 2:14:45 PM PDT by ZinGirl (kids in college....can't afford a tagline right now)
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