Anthropology
Related: About this forum12,800 years ago proof of a major cosmic impact: Journal of Geology
In a new study published this week in the Journal of Geology, Kennett and an international group of scientists have focused on the character and distribution of nanodiamonds, one type of material produced during such an extraterrestrial collision. The researchers found an abundance of these tiny diamonds distributed over 50 million square kilometers across the Northern Hemisphere at the Younger Dryas boundary (YDB). This thin, carbon-rich layer is often visible as a thin black line a few meters below the surface.
Kennett and investigators from 21 universities in six countries investigated nanodiamonds at 32 sites in 11 countries across North America, Europe and the Middle East.
"We conclusively have identified a thin layer over three continents, particularly in North America and Western Europe, that contain a rich assemblage of nanodiamonds, the production of which can be explained only by cosmic impact," Kennett said. "We have also found YDB glassy and metallic materials formed at temperatures in excess of 2200 degrees Celsius, which could not have resulted from wildfires, volcanism or meteoritic flux, but only from cosmic impact."
That debris field studied is enormous
Read more at: http://phys.org/news/2014-08-year-old-nanodiamonds-multiple-continents.html#jCp
This cosmic impact would have rapidly influence the catastrophic melting of the ice caps, never mind obliterating any ancient beginnings of civilizations. I wonder if there is an on going study
on this impact to south america? I wonder if the ancient world wide pictograph of the squatting man is related?
We now have two archaeological sites proven to be built right after this disaster, Tell Qaramel Syria 10,650 BC and Gobekli Tepe (Turkey)
Ichingcarpenter
(36,988 posts)The Late Pleistocene extinction event saw the extinction of many mammals weighing more than 40 kg.
In North America around 33 of 45 genera of large mammals became extinct. die off same time as the event
In South/Central America 46 of 58.. die off same time
In Australia 15 of 16..46,000 years ago die off
In Europe 7 of 23 die off same time
In Sub Saharan Africa only 2 of 44
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quaternary_extinction_event#The_Pleistocene_or_Ice_Age_extinction_event
I find it curious that Sub Saharan Africa only lost 2 of 44
The North American animals that went extinct were enormous whom had survived hundreds of thousands if not millions of years through numerous repeated geological glacial advances and retreats of major ice caps or ice sheets which changed habitats
As far as a band of humans killing off the megafauna in North America consider the following:
American Lion:
Eight feet long stood 4 feet tall at its shoulder.The most recent fossil, from Edmonton, dates to 11,355 ± 55 years ago.Found in a cave
Giant Sloth:
12 feet tall ate yuka plants and had a foot long claw it used for defense best specimen
found in a cave in New Mexico, died out same time
Short Face Bear:
It stood 810 feet (2.43.0 m) tall on hind legs[7] while a large specimen would have been 1112 feet (3.43.7 m) tall with a 14 foot (4.3 m) vertical arm reach, and 56 feet (1.51.8 m) high at the shoulder when walking on all fours, it was tall enough to look a man in the eye.
it became extinct about 11,600 years ago. Its fossils were first found in the Potter Creek Cave,
At Riverbluff Cave, Missouri a series of claw marks up to 15 feet (4.57 m) high have been found along the cave wall indicating Short-faced bears over 12 feet (3.65 m) tall
Smilodon :
It stood 4 feet tall at its shoulder and 7 feet long.
It is perhaps the best known saber-toothed cat and lived in North America during the Pleistocene epoch (2.5 mya10,000 years ago
Homotherium
another big Cat
Reached 1.1 m (3.6 ft) at the shoulder and weighed an estimated 150225 kg (331496 lb) One of the most famous sites of Homotherium remains is Friesenhahn cave in Texas, where 30 Homotherium skeletons were found, along with hundreds of juvenile mammoths and several dire wolves.Died 11,000 years ago
Also the die off of
3 species of Elephants
plus numerous other species such as giant camels, giant beavers giant llamas, Giant Bison all died out at the same time at this event....etc
North America would have been a tougher place to survive for humans as compared to other continents.......
Myself? I would have chosen some large isolated island somewhere in the Atlantic to settle....LOL
Meanwhile humans from what we know so far from this time ....
Tell Qaramel Syria 10,650 BC 5 Stone Towers 6 metres in diameter
http://www.democraticunderground.com/12291650
and before that
Göbekli Tepe built right after the cosmic hit.
and if you notice the debris field Turkey was on the border of the the area as was northern Syria.
Anyway just doing some weekend pondering.
Judi Lynn
(160,621 posts)It could plunge you into far deeper thought!
Hope more and more is soon to follow on this. We'll gobble it up.