Essentials of Geology (13th Edition)
Essentials of Geology (13th Edition)
13th Edition
ISBN: 9780134446622
Author: Frederick K. Lutgens, Edward J. Tarbuck, Dennis G. Tasa
Publisher: PEARSON
Question
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Chapter 1, Problem 1GST
To determine

To calculate: The percentage or fraction of geological timescale that is represented by the recorded history of human kind.

Expert Solution & Answer
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Answer to Problem 1GST

The percentage of geological timescale represented by the recorded history of human kind is 0.000100 .

Explanation of Solution

Given info:

The length of recorded history for humankind is about 5000years and the age of the Earth is 4.5billionyears that can be approximated as 5billionyears .

We know that 1billion=109years , therefore 5billionyears=5×109years .

The expression for calculating the fraction of geological timescale represented by the recorded human history,

Fractionoftimescaledenotedbyrecordedhumanhistory=LengthofrecordedhumanhistoryAgeoftheEarth

Substitute 5000years for the length of recorded human history and 5×109years for the age of Earth in the above expression.

Fractionoftimescaledenotedbyrecordedhumanhistory=5000years5×109years=0.000001

The expression for calculating the percentage of the fraction denoted by recorded human history, Percentage of the fractionoftimescaledenotedbyrecordedhumanhistory=Fractionofhumanhistory×100

Substitute 0.000001 for the fraction of human history in the above expression.

Percentage of the fractionoftimescaledenotedbyrecordedhumanhistory=0.000001×100=0.000100

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