The Sixth Extinction Essay

Earth’s Sixth Massive Extinction? After many scientific studies about a sixth mass extinction on Earth, people have begun to doubt about our existence on Earth after this immeasurable extinction. Things like the possible beginning of a new epoch called Anthropocene, the high amount of lost species due to extinctions, climate change, deforestation and contamination could be the main reasons of this gigantic event which could lead to our disappearance on Earth. Species are disappearing at a rate

of decimation have totaled to five individual instances throughout the existence of life on Earth. Many scientists agree in saying that, humans as species are the main cause for current sixth mass extinction. Some opponents to this theory claim that label of our worldwide ecological state as a ‘sixth mass extinction’, is just an “emotional charge that makes the problem seem cosmic and overwhelming” (Brand). This however is not a legitimate statement when taking into account the sheer magnitude of human

Citizenship What impact are you having on the sixth extinction? After reading the novel The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History, written by Elizabeth Kolbert, one wonders if indeed the sixth extinction is the result of actions taken by Homo sapiens. Kolbert describes the scientific theories supporting the five mass extinctions that took place in the past and provides a disturbing theory regarding the sixth extinction period. Kolbert writes, “. . . we are deciding, without quite meaning to, which

killing our planet and our co-habitants at such a high rate that some say we are responsible for the sixth mass extinction. In the book The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History author Elizabeth Kolbert an American journalist and professor at Williams College travels to different parts of the world to search for evidence that the sixth extinction is in fact happening now. In The Sixth Extinction Kolbert demonstrates the many ways in which humans are speeding up the loss of so many species. The question

In chapter 11 of The Sixth Extinction, Elizabeth Kolbert finds herself at the Cincinnati Zoo where she is told by Dr. Terri Roth that the Sumatran rhinos are going extinct. This also explains Dr. Roth’s numerous attempts to inseminate Suci, a Sumatran rhinoceros, artificially, but ultimately fails. Kolbert proceeds to talk about the history of the Sumatran rhinoceros, which were very common in the Himalayas, Borneo, and Sumatra. Apparently, a small number of rhinos were sent to American zoos in hopes

The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History by Elizabeth Kolbert is a nonfiction book about the mass extinction happening around us. Kolbert proclaims that we are currently living in the middle of a sixth, man made extinction. During the last half a billion years the Earth has experienced multiple mass extinctions, where accelerated rates of change altered and contracted the diversity of life on Earth. While the past five extinctions have been caused by nature, this time, however, the sixth extinction

In The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History, Elizabeth Kolbert discusses past mass-extinction events and argues that we are currently in the midst of another—this time caused by anthropogenic activity. Each chapter focuses on a different species and analyzes how they serve as evidence of this extinction. Kolbert explores both extinct and living species in an effort to show how the past provides an indication of what may occur in the future if humans continue to conduct “business as usual”. In doing

The Sixth Extinction is a chapter found in a book titled, “The Sixth Extinction An Unnatural History by Elizabeth Kolbert”. This chapter addresses extinction or the termination of a group. The story takes place in The Panamanian town of El Valle de Anton. The story focuses on the toxic species called the golden frog. For some unknown reason(s), the golden frogs began to disappear. In an effort to save the golden frogs a woman by the name of Kolbert decided that she would rescue them to save

currently faces a sixth mass extinction due to the rising extinction rates that are growing far beyond ever before. The sad truth is that we as humans are one of the main reasons for the loss of all these species. There has never been so many different kinds of organisms to coexist and through deforestation, pollution release, and over harvesting we begin to see a decline in biodiversity. (Ehrlich and Ehrlich, 1981; Hughes et al., 1997; Vitousek, et al., 1997) This is referred to as the sixth mass extinction

provides almost a directly opposite tone of “the sixth extinction” by Elizabeth Kolbert. The short poem expresses one main thought which is that hope will always exist no matter where you are. In “The Sixth Extinction,” the overlying thought is how five major extinctions have occurred and now humans will cause another. The sad reality is that humans are just like another animal and ultimately with how the trend is going humans will be the 7th extinction. This thought demoralizes everyone and leads to