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Re: Large animal extinctions: extinction-ex-astra
p3voices (p3voices@earthlink.net)
Fri, 05 Jul 1996 01:07:29 -0400
To Timo Noruma:
I am a great fan of the idea that meteoric impacts have affected the earht's
climate and have caused some key extinction events. However, the end of the ice
age is not one. not. not. No evidence!
It has become all to much of a fad recently to ascribe all unexplained climcatic
changes/extinction events to extraterrestrial happenings. The list goes on:
comets, cometary nuclei, stony meteors, iron meteors, meteor swarms, small black
holes (as in Tunguska), etc. The newest extinction-ex-astra fad seems to be,
(after the comet impact on Jupiter), multiple comet/meteor impacts. I hate to say
it, but this smacks all to much of a post-modern-Creationist view of history/
evolution; rather than a "God-miracle explanation" (of unexplained extinction/
climatic changes) we now conveniently, and seriously, credit wandering comets (et
al) with every poorly understood historical happening. {By the way do not
misinterpret that I am a creationist..I'm not}
I plea that we allow data to drive explanations rather than wild speculation.
For Brian Fagan, I clumped him together with you earlier simply because of the
emphasis you placed on his supporting statements. I also do wish to preserve
Fagan's statements in their proper context, and understand he did not claim the
extinction event came from space, and I agree to fully dissociate him from your
hypothesis. Sorry Brian. Perhaps we could call the extinction-ex-astra theory the
"Timo Niroma hypothesis". (You brought it up).
Cordially,
P3 :)
<I knew exticntions could become an interesting thread!>
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