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If another advanced civilization lived on Earth before us, would we know?
- In 2018, University of Rochester professor Adam Frank and NASA scientist Gavin Schmidt proposed the "Silurian hypothesis," investigating whether an advanced civilization could have existed on Earth long before humans.
- Examining if past civilizations left geological traces, the study explored mysteries like the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum 55 million years ago, when global temperatures spiked up to 15 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Because only around 1% of Earth's surface is urbanized, finding evidence is difficult; dinosaurs roamed for about 180 million years, yet only a few thousand near-complete fossils have been discovered.
- Geologist Jan Zalasiewicz of the University of Leicester argues modern human civilization leaves a unique, massive footprint, noting that while pre-human societies cannot be ruled out, modern waste would be detectable.
- Atmospheric scientist Katharine Hayhoe of Texas Tech University calls the theory a thought experiment that exposes our potential vulnerability, prompting inquiry into whether technological civilizations are destined to burn out.
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When astrobiologist Adam Frank entered the office of NASA scientist Gavin Schmidt, he had what he believed to be the strangest question: Do aliens experience climate change? It just took a few moments for Schmidt to...
If another advanced civilization lived on Earth before us, would we know?
Two scientists explored the idea that there was another civilizaton before humans, which harnessed energy and wiped itself out. To investigate, they looked deep into the Earth’s past but also far into its future
·Atlanta, United States
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Scientists are investigating whether Earth would have preserved traces of a technological society - and whether it's possible we weren't the first to "change the planet."
Coverage Details
Total News Sources15
Leaning Left1Leaning Right0Center13Last UpdatedBias Distribution93% Center
Bias Distribution
- 93% of the sources are Center
93% Center
C 93%
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