Anthropocene

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Anthropocene
Over time, people learn that humans have significantly altered the environment, and these changes will have lasting influences on the environment and biodiversity. The changes occurring in the environment are beneficial to some organisms, while others suffer devastating effects that have led to the extinction of some animals. Anthropocene refers to the geological age regarded as the most recent time in history when human activities started bringing significant changes to the world climate (Ruddiman 7). Anthropocene is a Greek word where anthropo means human while cene means new. The impacts of human activities are evident everywhere. Many people refer to the modern age as the Anthropocene. The reason behind this is because humans have become the most influential beings on Earth. In the past 60 years, the impacts of human activities have unfolded at a significant rate. Many people refer to the past 60 years as the Great Acceleration. With an increase in technology use and the development of nuclear energy, the rate of carbon dioxide emissions has increased dramatically. Global warming is all around the environment; oceans and other water bodies are becoming acidified at a worrying rate. Destruction of habitats is high, and this is leading to the extinction of several species. Understanding Anthropocene is vital in the modern age to ensure people understand the impact of their activities on the environment and develop alternative ways for the better.
Atmospheric chemist Paul J. Crutzen and Eugene F. Stoermer, a diatom researcher, coined the word Anthropocene in the 1980s, but it became popular in 2000. According to the researchers, modern society is living in a new geological epoch. Based on scientific studies, the history of Earth dates to about 4.5 billion years back. On the other hand, humans came to exist on Earth about 200,000 years back. Even though humans have existed for a few years compared to the age of the Earth, they have greatly altered the planet in multiple ways. There is a theory that states that Anthropocene began during the 1800s when Industrial Revolution began. During this time, human activities started having a significant influence on the environment, where there was a rise in carbon and methane in the atmosphere (Ruddiman 20). Another theory states that Anthropocene began in 1945 when there was the first test of the atomic bomb. Additionally, it was in 1945 when an atomic bomb was dropped in Nagasaki and Hiroshima in Japan. The radioactive particles from the atomic bomb spread through the world, which was confirmed through soil sample testing. Anthropocene Working Group in 2016 concluded that Anthropocene differs from Holocene. Due to this, the group agreed that Anthropocene started in 1950 during the Great Acceleration.
Considering the various changes in the modern climate, it is clear that the climate is no longer stable. Earth is becoming warmer at a significant rate. According to research, the primary cause of Anthropocene is human activities. Multiple human activities lead to global warming through the emission of greenhouse gases. Humans produce energy from coal, oil, and natural gases, which are the leading sources of greenhouse gases. Th...