The Ocean Project has coordinated the June 8 World Oceans Day for the past 17 years. It’s a crucial environmental issue. We get food and medicines from the deep blue, which helps keep the climate in check. Oh, and there’s this thing about water being the “lungs of the earth” — as it turns out, most oxygen we breathe comes from the ocean. We always felt that the waves breathed some life into us. (Alright, once or twice it was the lifeguard, but that doesn’t diminish the worth of one of our most valuable resources.) However, if we don’t take the steps to conserve it, we’ll lose a lot more than a spot for a weekend getaway. So dive in and do your part to keep Big Blue going strong.
“We did not inherit the Earth from our ancestors; we borrow it from our children.”
~ Native American Proverb ~
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The idea for Earth Day was originally born in 1969, when a US Senator named Gaylord Nelson, witnessed the effects of a massive oil spill in Santa Barbara, CA. He called to action all Americans to take a stand for the environment in 1970, and thousands of colleges and universities across the United States organized protests for a healthy, sustainable Earth. This included air pollution from factories and freeways, as well as the loss of habitats for animals and animal extinction. Because of these national rallies, the first Earth Day helped create the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the Clean Air, Clean Water, and Endangered Species Act into law.
Today, we have similar concerns, and unfortunately, they are even messier than that original oil spill. Increasing natural disasters, extreme weather, and rising global temperatures may seem impossible for one human, let alone millions or even billions of humans, to slow down, or stop. It has been reported that coral reefs are dying, we see pictures of animals on land and in the ocean with trash in their bellies or around their body, and corporate factories and large companies around the world continue to pollute our air and our living spaces. But a small action, like picking up litter on the sidewalk that may have otherwise ended up around the neck of an animal or in the ocean, still makes an impact — a step in the right direction, and an important change.
The study of rocks was first introduced by the Ancient Greek Theophrastus in his work, “Peri Lithon” (“On Stones”), and became the cornerstone of geology for other interested scientists. The study was advanced by Pliny the Elder, who recorded numerous minerals and metals in great detail, with a particular focus on their practical use. Although working without the tools we use today, Pliny correctly identified amber’s origin as fossilized tree resin.
It wasn’t until 1603 that the word ‘geology’ was used for the first time by Italian naturalist Ulisse Aldrovandi. It took a further 150 years for the first geological maps to be drawn by British geologist William Smith, whose work began ordering rock layers by examining the fossils contained in them.
Then, in 1785, James Hutton wrote and presented a paper to the Royal Society of Edinburgh called ‘Theory of the Earth’, which outlined his belief that the world was far older than previously thought. His breakthroughs make him widely considered the first modern geologist.
In 1809 William Maclure produced the first geological map of the USA, a task he completed thanks to two painstaking years spent personally traversing the country. With the invention of radiometric dating in the early 20th century, scientists could finally provide an accurate figure for the age of the earth by tracing the radioactive impurities found in rocks. It helped scientists to see that the Earth is one ancient rock indeed!
Tanja's Little Corner of The World 