This new paper was so way out that Antony posted it at https://wattsupwiththat.com/2018/07/02/claim-worlds-first-animals-caused… … alarmists can blame virtualy anything for global warming, and they do, but one wonders what lies behind the writing of this one. Are the authors the recipients of dosh – or are they really so obsessed with the subject that they feel able to write just about anything, even at a point in earth history that very little is known about. Apparently, it is hypothesized that the evolution of animal life forms, 500 million years ago, caused global warming – in the eyes of Exeter University researchers (well known for the grade of alarmist in the faculty). Animal life evolved in the oceans, we are told – but is that because most fossils have a marine origin and appear to have been buried rapidly in order to preserve them. One might think in terms of a tsunami wave washing marine creatures inland – and then burying them in silt and sediments.
The idea being presented is that burrowing creatures began digging down organic material on the sea floor – leading to more carbon dioxide and less oxygen in the atmosphere. Once again the co2 hypothesis is central to the findings – but none of the alarmists look at the Arrhenius theory in a critical fashion – let alone question its veracity. Like worms in garden soil tiny mrine creatures disturb, mix, and recycle dead organic material – a proces known as bioturbation. This fact is central to the paper. Apparently, there was an increase in oxygen levles 520 million years ago – but evidence from the rocks show that sediment was only a little disturbed (on the assumption sediments are laid down very slowly). This is said to imply the animals living on the sea floor at the time were not very active. However, they concluded that the first bioturbators had an immediate impact – a few million years later. They went on to construct various models and simulations of what might have been going on – with the assumptions fully embedded and ignoring catastrophism altogether.
The same story was sent in by Gary form www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-5908703/Evoltuion-animals-Earth-… … and we learn that the research involved data from the so called Cambrian Explosion event – which may have possible similarities with other catastrophic events (such as lots of marine life dumped on the continental masses). The Cambrian explosion was a period when a wide variety of life burst on to the evolutionary scene. Prior to this event life is thought to have involved mostly simple forms – very often single cells. This has of course been challenged by recent research so even that assumption may be an error.The Cmbrian in turn ended in disaster (at the boundary with the Ordovician).