The Earth's age in measurements you can understand - Joshua M. Sneideman
-
Not SyncedHow old is the Earth?
-
Not SyncedWell, by counting the number of isotopes
-
Not Syncedin a sample of rock
-
Not Syncedthat's undergone radioactive decay,
-
Not Syncedgeologists have estimated the Earth's birthday,
-
Not Syncedwhen it first formed from a solar nebula,
-
Not Syncedto be 4.6 billion years ago.
-
Not SyncedBut just how long is that really?
-
Not SyncedHere's some analogies
-
Not Syncedthat might help you understand.
-
Not SyncedFor example, let's imagine the entire history of Earth
-
Not Synceduntil the present day
-
Not Syncedas a single calendar year.
-
Not SyncedOn January 1st, the Earth begins to form.
-
Not SyncedBy March 3rd, there's the first evidence
-
Not Syncedof single-celled bacteria.
-
Not SyncedLife remains amazingly unicellular until November 11th
-
Not Syncedwhen the first multicellular organisms,
-
Not Syncedknown as the Ediacaran fauna, come along.
-
Not SyncedShortly thereafter, on November 16th at 6:08 p.m.
-
Not Syncedis the Cambrian Explosion of life,
-
Not Synceda major milestone,
-
Not Syncedwhen all of the modern phyla started to appear.
-
Not SyncedOn December 10th at 1:26 p.m.,
-
Not Syncedthe dinosaurs first evolve
-
Not Syncedbut are wiped out by an asteroid
-
Not Syncedjust two weeks later.
-
Not SyncedOn December 31st, the mighty Roman empire
-
Not Syncedrises and falls in just under four seconds.
-
Not SyncedAnd Columbus sets sail
-
Not Syncedfor what he thinks is India
-
Not Syncedat three seconds to midnight.
-
Not SyncedIf you try to write the history of the Earth
-
Not Syncedusing just one page per year,
-
Not Syncedyour book would be 145 miles thick,
-
Not Syncedmore than half the distance
-
Not Syncedto the international space station.
-
Not SyncedThe story of the 3.2 million year-old
-
Not SyncedAustralopithecine fossil known as Lucy
-
Not Syncedwould be found on the 144th mile,
-
Not Syncedjust over 500 feet from the end of the book.
-
Not SyncedThe United States of America's Declaration of Independence
-
Not Syncedwould be signed in the last half-inch.
-
Not SyncedOr if we compared geologic time
-
Not Syncedto a woman stretching her arms
-
Not Syncedto a span of six feet,
-
Not Syncedthe simple act of filing her nails
-
Not Syncedwould wipe away all of recorded human history.
-
Not SyncedFinally, let's imagine the history of the Earth
-
Not Syncedas your life --
-
Not Syncedfrom the moment you're born
-
Not Syncedto your first day of high school.
-
Not SyncedYour first word,
-
Not Syncedfirst time sitting up,
-
Not Syncedand first time walking
-
Not Syncedwould all take place while life on Earth
-
Not Syncedwas comprised of single-celled organisms.
-
Not SyncedIn fact, the first multicellular organism
-
Not Syncedwouldn't evolve until you were 12 years old
-
Not Syncedand starting 7th grade,
-
Not Syncedright around the time
-
Not Syncedyour science teacher is telling the class
-
Not Syncedhow fossils were formed.
-
Not SyncedThe dinosaurs don't appear
-
Not Synceduntil three months into 8th grade
-
Not Syncedand are soon wiped out right around spring break.
-
Not SyncedThree days before 9th grade begins,
-
Not Syncedwhen you realize summer is over
-
Not Syncedand you need new school supplies,
-
Not SyncedLucy, the Australopithecine, is walking around Africa.
-
Not SyncedAs you finish breakfast
-
Not Syncedand head outside to catch your bus
-
Not Synced44 minutes before school,
-
Not Syncedthe Neanderthals are going extinct throughout Europe.
-
Not SyncedThe most recent glacial period
-
Not Syncedends as your bus drops you off
-
Not Synced16 minutes before class.
-
Not SyncedColumbus sets sail 50 seconds before class
-
Not Syncedas you're still trying to find the right classroom.
-
Not SyncedThe Declaration of Independence is signed
-
Not Synced28 seconds later
-
Not Syncedas you look for an empty seat.
-
Not SyncedAnd you were born 1.3 seconds before the bell rings.
-
Not SyncedSo, you see, the Earth is extremely,
-
Not Syncedunbelievably old
-
Not Syncedcompared to us humans
-
Not Syncedwith the fossil record
-
Not Syncedhiding incredible stories to tell us about the past
-
Not Syncedand possibly the future as well.
-
Not SyncedBut in the short time we've been here,
-
Not Syncedwe've learned so much
-
Not Syncedand will surely learn more
-
Not Syncedover the next decades and centuries,
-
Not Syncednear moments in geological time.
- Title:
- The Earth's age in measurements you can understand - Joshua M. Sneideman
- Description:
-
View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/the-earth-s-age-in-measurements-you-can-understand-joshua-m-sneideman
The Earth is 4.6 billion years old -- but how can humans relate to a number so colossal, and where do we fit on the geologic timeline? Comparing the Earth's lifetime to one calendar year, events like the extinction of dinosaurs and Columbus setting sail took place relatively recently. Joshua M. Sneideman reminds us of our time and place in the universe.
Lesson by Joshua M. Sneideman, animation by Powerhouse Animation Studios Inc.
- Video Language:
- English
- Team:
- closed TED
- Project:
- TED-Ed
- Duration:
- 03:45
TED edited English subtitles for The Earth's age in measurements you can understand - Joshua M. Sneideman | ||
Jessica Ruby approved English subtitles for The Earth's age in measurements you can understand - Joshua M. Sneideman | ||
Jessica Ruby accepted English subtitles for The Earth's age in measurements you can understand - Joshua M. Sneideman | ||
Andrea McDonough edited English subtitles for The Earth's age in measurements you can understand - Joshua M. Sneideman | ||
Andrea McDonough edited English subtitles for The Earth's age in measurements you can understand - Joshua M. Sneideman | ||
Andrea McDonough edited English subtitles for The Earth's age in measurements you can understand - Joshua M. Sneideman |