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> When it comes to direct evidence of an industrial civilization—things like cities, factories, and roads—the geologic record doesn’t go back past what’s called
by amvalo 8y ago
> When it comes to direct evidence of an industrial civilization—things like cities, factories, and roads—the geologic record doesn’t go back past what’s called the Quaternary period 2.6 million years ago.
What a nonsense argument, unless they managed to build an industrial civilization without iron (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banded_iron_formation https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banded_iron_formation). It would be glaringly obvious if these ores had already been mined.
- Jarb 8y agoMaybe, but stuff tends to erode and shift a lot over millions of years, possibly smoothing over evidence to a degree where we wouldn't be able to recognize it today... on Earth. However, AFAIK the moon is fairly stable, so if there were prior civilizations, they would have to have been far less advanced than we are. Otherwise they would have surely left evidence of their existence on the moon.
- throwaway5752 8y ago... Do you know about the iron catastrophe (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iron_catastrophe https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iron_catastrophe), banded iron formations (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banded_iron_formation https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banded_iron_formation), and the oxygen catastrophe (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Oxygenation_Event https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Oxygenation_Event) and how they are related? Would it really be possible for us to not notice prior large-scale industrial mining of iron? Your point about lunar exploration is great, but it's also very likely there has never been industrialized life like us in Earth's history.
- tabtab 8y agoBeing that animals did not even appear until about 600 million years ago, It's quite unlikely industrial beings evolved before that. And any industrial civilization after 600m would leave sufficient fossils/evidence. If there were civilization before 600m, it would likely have to be aliens.
- CalRobert 8y agoWhat evidence of us will exist in 600 million years? Some of the combusion products of engines are distinct as I understand it, perhaps some materials are stable that long (and if so, they could pose large pollution problems)?
- tabtab 8y agoI'm sure there's plenty of junk in landfills that will make for interesting fossils. The material doesn't have to be "stable", it just has to make an imprint. Most existing fossils don't comprise the original material, but are rather "mineral shadows" of what was there before.
- 08-15 8y agoNever mind iron; we'd probably find evidence of the mining of oil, coal, lignite, peat. More likely, we wouldn't find oil.