A Milestone in Deep Time-- or-- Are We Paying Attention YET? (Part IV)

Eleventh century Chinese naturalist Shen Kuo (沈括) wrote about the concept of deep time-- what we now refer to as geologic time.

The geological or deep time of Earth's past has been organized into various units according to events which took place in each period. Different spans of time on the time scale are usually defined by major geological or paleontological events, such as mass extinctions. For example, the boundary between the Cretaceous period and the Paleogene period is defined by the  the demise of the dinosaurs and of many marine species. Each era on the scale is separated from the next by a major event or change.  Eras are measured in hundreds of millions of years.  An epoch, a subset of an era, is measured in tens of millions of years.

The National Academy of Science, in an expert consensus report, recently identified the beginning of a new epoch in deep time.  This epoch is one where where human activities will largely determine the evolution of Earth’s climate.  The report says, in part, that "because carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is long lived, it can effectively lock the Earth and future generations into a range of impacts, some of which could become very severe. Therefore, emissions reductions choices made today matter in determining impacts experienced not just over the next few decades, but in the coming centuries and millennia."

Are we paying attention yet?

photo: near Grindelwald, Switzerland, copyright Bruce Behnke, 2010

Pay Attention III

The over-use and pollution of Earth's natural resources have become so extreme that, at current rates, a second planet will be needed by 2030 to meet the world's needs, a new report warns.

The planet's 6.8 billion people were living 50% beyond Earth's sustainable means in 2007, the latest year for which figures are available, according to the biannual "Living Planet" report by WWF, a conservation group previously known as the World Wildlife Fund.

"Even with modest U.N. projections for population growth, consumption and climate change, by 2030 humanity will need the capacity of two Earths to absorb CO2 waste and keep up with natural resource consumption," the report says, adding that four and a half planets would be needed if everyone used as many resources as the average American.

Are you paying attention yet?


photo,  "Los Angeles on an August Day" by Bruce Behnke

Seeking or Finding II

I do not seek. I find.

~Pablo Picasso

found walking down a street in Hawaii yesterday

taken with my iPhone

Seeking or finding?

I do not seek. I find.

~Pablo Picasso

One more thought on convergence

Pearl Harbor's Middle and West Lochs

as seen from the foothils of the Ko'olau

Thinking a little more about convergence, the history of Pearl Harbor is worthy of consideration.

Convergence

                                                                                                                                                         Bernese Oberland, Switzerland

Convergence of solid, liquid and gas.
Convergence of weather systems.
Convergence of ideologies.
Convergence of political boundaries.
Convergence of races.
Convergence of social classes.
Convergence of seemingly random events.


Convergence-- what happens when...


Consider the concept.

Everyone is an artist

"Everybody is an artist in the sense that everybody can create something. It is a therapeutic process, but also a warmth generating process."  

This is how Joseph Beuys describes what differentiates his work from that of other artists. He does not paint pictures nor create sculptures in the traditional sense. Instead, he seeks to trigger processes. His works are the result of performances and actions during the course of which material is transformed through warmth and energy.

Beuys believes in the healing power of art and makes frequent references to an “art salve" and an “art pill”.

Have you had your art pill today?

photo by Bruce Behnke