Scribner Seminar Program
Course Description
Earth System Evolution: The First Four Billion Years
Instructor(s): Richard Lindemann, Geosciences
Are there golden threads permeating Earth’s history that could contribute to the optimization
of the human condition and the longevity of our species? If so, where are they preserved
and by what signs might we recognize them? The Earth System has evolved over the past
3.5 billion years through interactions among the planet’s solid surface, atmosphere,
hydrosphere, and biosphere. While changes in the planet’s inanimate components have
been predominantly cyclic in character, biospheric components ranging from bacteria
to ecosystems have evolved by adapting to global change through the development of
synergistic survival mechanisms. This course is a study of global evolution form prebiotic
times to the present to seek out modes of change and adaptation within the Earth System
that may be applicable to envisioning a sustainable future for Homo sapiens.
Course Offered