The Great Farting Oxygen Event

[ysabetwordsmith]

This is the earliest mass extinction we know of on Earth, and it may well have been the worst.  However, it usually doesn't appear on the standard lists of major mass extinctions.

Currently we are in the Anthropocene, whether people want to admit it or not.  We are also in the midst of the Anthropocene Extinction, whether people want to admit it or not.  See the insect apocalypse, amphibian apocalypse, and bird apocalypse. 

Despite these grim statistics, humanity is not the most destructive species the Earth has ever known.  That honor goes to whatever organism first discovered fire, harnessed the power of the Sun, and farted so much oxygen that almost everything else died.  

Comments

[grimmrow]

I have no words for what I just read. Wait. What?

Yes ...

[ysabetwordsmith]

The first mass extinction that we know of was caused by farting. Really. :D

The Earth started out with a reducing atmosphere, but life eventually changed that to an oxidizing atmosphere -- and then had to cope with the consequences.

Re: Yes ...

[grimmrow]

This makes me wonder just how much we're ruining the Earth by farting today. Damn.

Re: Yes ...

[ysabetwordsmith]

*laugh* Worry more abut cows.

Re: Yes ...

[grimmrow]

lmao you can't ask cows to stop farting, damn it. They'll just hurt themselves. However this is going to be an issue the more our population grows. Cows will just be around until we don't need them anymore. I doubt that'll ever happen. There's so much different types of milk alternatives though, that it's not all being used. Idk, I'm not asking cows to stop farting.

Re: Yes ...

[ysabetwordsmith]

But we can encourage people to use less cow products. Cut the demand, and people will stop raising so many cows.