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UID:1498@westonmedia.org
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260505T131500
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260505T143000
DTSTAMP:20260421T145322Z
URL:https://westonmedia.org/hub/events/global-warming-extinctions-evolutio
 ns-with-the-local-global-discussion-group/
SUMMARY:Global Warming\, Extinctions\, Evolutions with the Local Global
 Discussion Group
DESCRIPTION:Global Warming\, Extinctions\, Evolutions\nThe Local and Global
 Discussion Group of the Weston Public Library will welcome Dr. Alan Rice
 from 1:15 to about 2:30 pm on Tuesday\, May 5\, in the Community Room of
 the Library for a lively presentation of these topics\, which are still
 relevant to today’s world.\nSince the Cambrian Period some 530 million
 years ago\, there have been five mass extinctions of life on the\nplanet.
 All of them have now been attributed to global warming brought about by
 massive volcanic activity\nyielding lava flows kilometers thick and
 covering vast areas of the surface of the earth. A major effluent
 from\nthese volcanic events is carbon dioxide (CO2)\, a greenhouse gas that
 is known for its contribution to global\nwarming even in this day.\nTwo of
 these extinctions are particularly notable. The first took place in Russia
 about 250 million years ago and\nled to the disappearance of 90% of all
 life on earth\; the second was in India some 65 million years ago and
 has\,\nalong with the Meteor Impact Theory\, been accorded the
 responsibility for dinosaur extinction.\nLife is more sensitive to
 temperature than one might think\, with large animals having greater
 sensitivity to heat\nthan smaller ones.  Hence\, downsizing seems to be an
 evolutionary trick to save the species. For example\, during\nthe
 Paleocene/Eocene Thermal Maximum 55 million years ago\, horses shrank to
 the size of cats.\nParticularly sensitive to overheating throughout much of
 the animal kingdom is the Central Nervous System. If\nthe current global
 warming trend continues\, what will become of primates like us whose brains
 have exploded in\nsize over the past 2 million years\, during which the
 earth has cooled down considerably. \nStudies of the environment have led
 to the recognition that evolution has not proceeded in a linear trend\,
 but\noccurs as sharp jumps following an extinction. There is\, after all\,
 little reason to evolve in an unchanging\nenvironment.\nDr. Rice has a
 number of advanced degrees from Columbia University in subjects such as
 applied\nphysics\, applied mathematics\, and engineering. He has taught
 geophysics\, geology\, sustainability issues\, physics\,\nengineering\, and
 oceanography.\nThe meeting will be both in person and via Zoom. It is open
 to all who wish the discuss the issues in civil discourse with a wide
 variety of participants.\n\nZoom link\n\nQuestions? Comments? Contact Susan
 Wagner at 508-314-5341 or susanwgnr@gmail.com
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://westonmedia.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/
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CATEGORIES:Community,Discussion Group,Nature, Environment, Science
LOCATION:Weston Public Library\, 87 School Street\, Weston\, MA\, 02493\,
 United States
X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=87 School Street\, Weston\,
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