We Exaggerate the Magnitude of Ice Ages

The history of Earth's climate is one of the more compelling arguments in favour of Gaia's existence. We know from the record of the sedimentary rocks that for the pst three and a half aeons the climate has never been, even for a short period, wholly unfavorable for life. Because of the unbroken record of life, we also know that the oceans can never have either frozen or boiled. Indeed, subtle evidence from the ratio of the different forms of oxygen atoms laid down in the rocks over the course of time strongly suggest that the climate has always been much as it is now, except during glacial periods or near the beginning of life when it was somewhat warmer. The glacial cold spells--Ice Ages, as they are called, often with exaggeration--affected only those parts of the Earth outside latitudes 45 degrees North and 45 degrees South. We are inclined to overlook the fact that 70 per cent of the Earth's surface lies between these latitudes. The so-called Ice Ages only affected the plant and animal life which had colonized the remaining 30 per cent, which is often partially frozen even between glacial periods, as it is now.

Notes:

Ice Ages did not encroach on over 70 percent of the Earth's surface, meaning they were not as significant of an event as we tend to imagine them.

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Gaia: A New Look at Life on Earth

Books, Brochures, and Chapters>Book: Lovelock, James (2000-11-23), Gaia: A New Look at Life on Earth, Oxford University Press, USA, Retrieved on 2011-04-11

Folksonomies: evolution gaia environmentalism earth ecology