The technofossil record of humans
As humans have colonised and modified the Earth’s surface, they have developed progressively more sophisticated tools and technologies. These underpin a new kind of stratigraphy, that we term technostratigraphy, marked by the geologically accelerated evolution and diversification of technofossils - the preservable material remains of the technosphere (Haff, 2013), driven by human purpose and transmitted cultural memory, and with the dynamics of an emergent system. The technosphere, present in some form for most of the Quaternary, shows several thresholds. Its expansion and transcontinental synchronisation in the mid 20th century has produced a global technostratigraphy that combines very high time-resolution, great geometrical complexity and wide (including transplanetary) extent. Technostratigraphy can help characterise the deposits of a potential Anthropocene Epoch and its emergence marks a step change in planetary mode.
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- 4407 Policy and administration
- 4406 Human geography
- 4104 Environmental management
- 1605 Policy and Administration
- 0502 Environmental Science and Management
- 0301 Analytical Chemistry
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Published In
DOI
EISSN
ISSN
Publication Date
Volume
Issue
Start / End Page
Related Subject Headings
- 4407 Policy and administration
- 4406 Human geography
- 4104 Environmental management
- 1605 Policy and Administration
- 0502 Environmental Science and Management
- 0301 Analytical Chemistry