Category Archives: planetary science
The (mad) science of geoengineering
Climate scientist Ken Caldeira begins with a discussion of ocean acidification, a term he helped coin. He follows with the story of how his name became attached to geoengineering, from his own skeptical beginnings to publishing a paper that basically … Continue reading
Extremophiles of the Anthropocene
If we’re looking for how life will respond to rapid environmental changes, we should probably look to bacteria adapted to live in extreme environments – what scientists call extremophiles. Astrobiologist Dirk Schulze-Makuch examines the Anthropocene with thought experiments of bacteria … Continue reading
Filed under apocalypse, biology, evolution, extinction, planetary science
Masters of the Anthropocene Boundary
It’s our 50th episode! To celebrate we sit down with four members of the Anthropocene Working Group: the scientists and experts who are deciding whether or not we formally adopt the Anthropocene into the geologic time table. We discuss what … Continue reading
Filed under climate change, extinction, geology, law, planetary science, population, sea level rise
A cosmic twin study
Astrobiologist David Grinspoon takes the anthropocene off-planet to our nearest cosmic neighbor Venus and discusses what we learn about climate change here on Earth from Venus’ catastrophic green-house effect. He also takes some time to address George Carlin’s environmental philosophy … Continue reading
