On the other hand, our effect just on what goes into and out of rivers is making a significant impact on the shape of the terrain. And it's hard to dispute that humanity has a BIG impact on the planet...exactly how big is up for grabs, but things like the BosWash corridor or visible-from-orbit agriculture are definitely alterations in the planet. Are humans as big a deal as, say, the evolution of flowering plants? Probably not, but we're not too many orders of magnitude behind.
Sure, if we suddenly vanished, most aboveground signs of our presence would be gone in 10000 years or so, but it's not like it's patently obvious that the dinosaurs ever existed either...you have to dig a bit.
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Date: 2008-01-29 03:15 pm (UTC)Sure, if we suddenly vanished, most aboveground signs of our presence would be gone in 10000 years or so, but it's not like it's patently obvious that the dinosaurs ever existed either...you have to dig a bit.