A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE EARTH

Brent Anderson

In comparison to the other inner solar system planets Earth is a little larger than average and it orbits an average star. The Sun orbits the center of a slightly larger than average galaxy, which in turn orbits "the Great Attractor". It is not evident to us, but we travel through space-time at amazing speeds on our little world. The Earth revolves at approximately .3 mile per second at the equator, and orbits the Sun at about 18.5 miles per second, while the sun orbits the galaxy center at about 125 miles per second. The Galaxy’s velocity with respect to the Great Attractor is approximately 370 miles per second. The sum of these, which does not take into account the speed of the Great Attractor or the expansion of the universe, is over 500 miles per second, or in somewhat more understandable terms, over 1.8 million miles per hour. Every day, we travel at least 43.2 million miles and in 65 years we travel at least 719 trillion miles (or about 1/8 of a light year), yet we have no feeling of movement on our protected little sphere. To us, this planet is important, because it is our home. However, in our galaxy there are probably millions of planets that are similar to our Earth, while in the universe there must be Trillions. The planet Earth is slightly larger than Venus but is unique in that it could very well be classified as a double planet with its rather large moon. When we are able to observe other planetary systems it is probable that we will find that it is rather average for planets that are relatively close to a star. Those earth-sized planets that are approximately one astronomical unit from their star will be, in most cases, rocky with moderate gaseous atmospheres. Such planets are on occasion suitable for life, as we know it.

The evolution of this planet from its sterile hot beginnings to the point at which we find ourselves was very time consuming. The age of the Earth is currently estimated at 4.5 Billion years, or approximately one third, the age of the universe, which is really an incomprehensible period of time for beings whose life spans are on the order of 65 years. Initially the surface of the Earth was furnace hot, and would have precluded any carbon-based life. Perhaps as long as 500 million years passed before temperatures reached the point that liquid water and organic molecules precipitated and remained in depressions as permanent bodies of water. The accumulation of water was vital to the genesis of the first self-replicating organic molecules.

This creation was and is primarily an uncontrolled chaotic combining of atoms within a hydrous environment to form molecules. The intricacies of chaotic systems have always been a challenge for science, and even today with our highly advanced computers it is just becoming possible to make somewhat accurate predictions a few days in advance for the Earth’s chaotic weather system. It is well known that even very small perturbations can alter such a system in very big ways, so it is no surprise that we can make very small (molecular) genetic changes and cause very significant changes in organisms.

There are few subjects that ignite controversy more than does the genesis of life, with some taking the position that scientific knowledge of life precludes a divine creation, while a vast majority of mankind still believes in a creation guided by God. However, as we gain knowledge of the actual creation there is nothing that precludes that it was a divine creation. Considering the history of Earth’s life genesis, which is based upon a chaotic quantum probability driven system, we find that it would have been relatively simple for an intelligent being to apply the subtlest pressure at any number of crucial moments. Such action could warp the whole system in any desired direction. Even man is approaching the point when such interventions will be commonplace. These nudges could have been very infrequent, because once begun this type system proceeds by itself. In fact, such a creation is the least complicated method and most easily managed. Hence evolutionary creation in no way disproves the divine creation. Quite the contrary, it could be argued with just as much validity that it proves the existence of a guiding force.

With this in mind, then let us consider the first puddles, lakes and seas where we would expect to see progress marked by larger and more complex self replicating molecules that eventually began to congregate, or clump together, in symbiotic partnerships. Eventually, the first primitive organisms were born. The only law for the system was that of survival or not. The process itself was/is very slow, because it depends on probability-driven chemical reactions that are the source of the changes that birth new more successful (for the time) variants. Obviously, under these circumstances, the ratio of successful to unsuccessful variants is a very small fraction.

The early atmosphere of Earth would have been poisonous to most, if not all, modern life forms. The source of energy for the first organisms would undoubtedly have been the chemicals present in the newly formed oceans and atmosphere. The ecological pressure for evolution came from the gradual depletion of the chemicals that were the source of energy, or if you will the food of the first life forms. New variants therefore exploited chemicals that had not been used as food in the past, and thus became very successful until the process reduced those food sources. This continuing evolution caused the atmosphere of the nascent Earth to become more and more like that of the present. At some point in this very gradual process organisms began capturing solar energy and using it to convert the very abundant atmospheric carbon dioxide into organic molecules of life and releasing free oxygen as a byproduct. This was a time, in which there was acceleration in the cooling of the Earth, because carbon dioxide, which readily absorbs infrared radiation slowing the escape of energy into space, was being depleted. However, with the proliferation of organisms that used carbon dioxide increasing amounts of trapped heat would escape the Earth. The advent of these new life forms ushered in an era of boom, for they reduced the Earth’s atmosphere from one with a very high percentage of atmospheric carbon dioxide to one with much lower levels in a fairly short period of time, geologically speaking.

The boom and bust cycle for life is an ever present and natural condition that has shaped all life. Each bloom of new success brought with it eventual collapse and each collapse brought opportunity for new life forms. This process continues to the present with the great proliferation of mankind representing the current boom. Liquid water on the surface of the Earth brought with it a natural separation of what used to be atmosphere and rock to a three-part system of atmosphere, dry rock or land, and liquid water. As the Earth cooled further, ice became the fourth physical condition that had great influence on life.

Dry land was not colonized by the life forms of the seas for many years. In fact, it took life approximately 3.9 billion years to reach the point that the first multi-cellular organisms began to appear. The late advent of terrestrial life forms was due to the fact that all carbon-based organisms are totally dependent on water to exist. In the ocean this dependence was not a factor to be overcome since early life forms were surrounded by water. To leave the water for dry land requires a living organism to build the equivalent of a traveling aquarium to accompany it onto the land. This was not an inconsequential challenge, because the cell walls of aquatic life forms were not easily adapted to the extraordinarily harsh conditions of land life. That this was not an insurmountable barrier is obvious from our perspective in time. About 400 million years ago plants began to invade the land. At that time in history the pace of evolution became a crescendo with, life invading almost every available biological niche. The complexity of life, both plant and animal, increased very rapidly from that point on as the Earth became more like the present.

The pace of evolution was frenetic with the advent of the Carboniferous age. If a film had been made of the advancement of life with the first 3.9 billion years as the metronome, then the last part of the film would appear to be a wild gyrating dance in which only quick movements could be seen. This explosion reflects the fact that the difficult steps in the creation of life were the early ones. The diversity of life as seen from the carboniferous to the present may not be much less than we see in today’s world. Once all the unfilled niches had been occupied new variants had to seize control of a niche from the current occupants, or at least achieve a joint tenancy.

We have arbitrarily named the various ages of the past to reflect our attempt to organize, and thus gain understanding of the beautiful dance of life to the present. The one constant was the boom and bust cycles of life forms competing for their places in the sun. With each passing age, the face of the Earth changed and became ever more like the Earth of the present. Each step was necessary, each change in the geography and environment important; if you accept as I do the premise that the focus of this creation was man and woman.

Now, at the dawn of a new age, the last boom in the life cycles of the Earth must of necessity flow into a future in which man and woman will literally manage and direct the creation of the life forms of the future. This will take all the wisdom that mankind can cumulatively bring to bear. Each new step initially will be fraught with possible mistakes, but with the continuing growth of knowledge the pace of man-made creation will expand exponentially. Each life form, including man and woman, will be optimized with the goal of perfection always luring us on. There will be booms and busts in this future, but the distance from peak to valley will decline with passing time and increasing ingenuity. Each of us participate in this drive to achieve with our thoughts and words in the few short years allotted to us, and as we fall, the next generation will seize the torch of knowledge and carry it forward. We, the children of the Earth, as a whole are striving to become like the Creator (whether we know it or not), and perhaps in a timeless future we will reach this noble goal.