Topic awaiting preservation: Supervolcanoes, Ice Ages, and Modern Human population reduction (Page 1 of 1)

New research into the area of Super Volcanoes (like the Toba Super Volcanic Eruption that occureed in Sumatra around 73,000 years ago) seem to have caused a drastic reduction in the population of Modern Humans according to http://www.as.ua.edu/ant/bindon/ant275/presentations/Distribution_of_human_differences1.pdf

Figures of a few thousand (up to 10,000) humans survived the catastrophy, world-wide (suggested).

Other research tentatively shows either directly or indirectly that the same eruption triggered the last Ice Age.

Now, around 14,000 years ago, the last Ice Age ended. It is after this, that we see a pretty rapid advancement in Human Population numbers.

One does tend to wonder (well, at least I do!) what would have happened, had this not happened?

Thoughts, anyone?

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New research into the area of Super Volcanoes (...) seem to have caused a drastic reduction in the population of Modern Humans according to...

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I guess they better stop the research before they wipe us all out!

The Discovery Channel did a show about Supervolcanos. Apparently there's a supervolcano under Yellowstone. Was pretty interesting.

Incidentally, here's a screenshot of my search on Discovery channel:



OOooo...maybe it's a sign?!

(Edited by Lacuna on 07-25-2005 15:14)

It is all neeedless fear-mongering.

The earth is only 6000 years old, god said so.

Never let your sense of morals get in the way of doing what's right.
Isaac Asimov
US science fiction novelist & scholar (1920 - 1992)

Oh! if God said so, why bother then.

Well, this type of catastrophe (something that hasn't been experienced since the Ice Age) killed just about every human on the planet - I would think that would stick in the minds of the survivors, like nothing else. I can see a link between that and many of the beginning/creation stories of many ur-folk.

Could this information have been preserved in verbal form, passed on, from generation to generation?

And what would the world be like today, if such a calamity hadn't of happened to our ancestors?

Thanks for the link.

A couple of thoughts:

1. The best ice core data shows Toba happened after the end of the warm period OIS 5 during the slide down to OIS 4 (the last glacial maximum). We see an increase in vulcanism during these transitions probably due to loaidng and unloading of the lithosphere changing stresses. Toba created a brief spike of cold (a nuclear winter) which wouldn't have been pleasant but the LGM was colder and longer and would have had a large impact on population.

2. Toba while being bigger than Krakatoa is not really in the same legue as Yellowstone (the Discovery feature sounds like the show the Beeb screened earlier this year - the fictional part was done better than I expected) which itself is weaker and unusual for a supervolcano.

It would be bad (see the contemporary accounts of the Laki eruptions) but it seems more like a way for scientists to scare up funding (wish I'd thought of that many moons ago as I applied to do a PhD on flood basalts) - the big threat is another Ice Age.

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poi said: Oh! if God said so, why bother then.

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Yup. I mean who needs science anyways!

Lacuna, I saw that show a couple of years ago and found it fascinating and a bit scary. They said that if the one under Yellowstone blows, we here in North America wouldn't fair too well

WS, yes, these possibilities get me thinking along the same lines as you. I have always wondered, for instance, whether or not there were advanced civilizations here on earth before modern history. The lack of physical evidence makes it unlikely but it is still quite possible we just haven't found it yet.

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Emperor said:

...more like a way for scientists to scare up funding...

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Come on, Emps, that could never happen!

: . . DHTML Slice Puzzle : . . .

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(the Discovery feature sounds like the show the Beeb screened earlier this year - the fictional part was done better than I expected)

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I too saw the discovery feature. It was good.

Scientist have obviously misinterpreted the data here! *blink*
Supervolcanoes! Pheh ...absurd... there can be no such thing!

After all

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The earth is only 6000 years old, god said so.

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On a serious note tho ... i think it would be possible that without toba
our technology could be a bit more advanced ... maybe say 5000 years
ahead of what it is right now. People are like rolling dice the more you have
the more you'll get.

Hmm, maybe that is when Atlantis disappeared?

Seriously though, I went to Christian boarding school, and in order to support Noah's flood that had these list of archeological evindence showing that Pre-Flood societies may have had the same technologies as the societies from the 300-500 a.d. time frame. Maybe instead of pre-flood, they are pre-super volcanoe, which sounds much cooler. I wouldn't really trust too much of the evidence, as it is the only time, (I have seen)that christians use carbon-dating to support a biblical fact.

Too bad science is for sinners.

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Quidquid Latine Dictum Sit, Altum Viditur ~
Whatever is said in Latin sounds profound

I only got to see part of the supervolcano special, but what I saw was pretty good. Scary thought, about how a volcano could just end life in most of the US, though.

Perhaps, WS, if humans lived past that period, they would be smart enough to realize that if Pompeii was previously a bad spot to farm in, and the ground warms up so crops can grow better and hot springs manifest themselves, then maybe there is something going on in the volcano. But then, maybe not...

"For reason is a property of God's...moreover, there is nothing He does not wish to be investigated and understood by reason." ~Tertullian de paenitentia Carthaginian Historian 2nd century AD

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Perhaps, WS, if humans lived past that period, they would be smart enough to realize that if Pompeii was previously a bad spot to farm in, and the ground warms up so crops can grow better and hot springs manifest themselves, then maybe there is something going on in the volcano. But then, maybe not...

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Actually Gid, before Science came along, most peoples contributed such to Gods, Evil Spirits, etc

So, either whip out the sacrifices...to placate the Gods (who are surely angry - how to placate them?) or placate and drive out the Evil Spirits, if possible. If not, make the place taboo, and stay away from it (and don't you dare ask about it...Evil!).

Point was, maybe they would have had technology then enabling themselves to detect the volcanic activity, and thus save thousands of lives...Maybe not though. They may have even had more tech than we do now and have been able to stablize the volcano. Isn't the if game fun?

"For reason is a property of God's...moreover, there is nothing He does not wish to be investigated and understood by reason." ~Tertullian de paenitentia Carthaginian Historian 2nd century AD