Carboniferous Giants and Mass Extinction : The Late Paleozoic Ice Age World

Picture a world of dog-sized scorpions and millipedes as long as a car; tropical rainforests with trees towering over 150 feet into the sky and a giant polar continent five times larger than Antarctica. That world was not imaginary; it was the earth more than 300 million years ago in the Carboniferous period of the Paleozoic era. In__Carboniferous Giants and Mass Extinction__, George R. McGhee Jr. explores that ancient world, explaining its origins; its downfall in the end-Permian mass extinction, the greatest biodiversity crisis to occur since the evolution of animal life on Earth; and how its legacies still affect us today.McGhee investigates the consequences of the Late Paleozoic ice age in this comprehensive portrait of the effects of ancient climate change on global ecology.__Carboniferous Giants and Mass Extinction__examines the climatic conditions that allowed for the evolution of gigantic animals and the formation of the largest tropical rainforests ever to exist, which in time turned into the coal that made the industrial revolution possible--and fuels the engine of contemporary anthropogenic climate change. Exploring the strange and fascinating flora and fauna of the Late Paleozoic ice age world, McGhee focuses his analysis on the forces that brought this world to an abrupt and violent end. Synthesizing decades of research and new discoveries, this comprehensive book provides a wealth of insights into past and present extinction events and climate change. "Picture a world of dog-sized scorpions and millipedes as long as a car; tropical rainforests with trees towering over 150 feet into the sky and a giant polar continent five times larger than Antarctica. That world was not imaginary; it was the earth more than 300 million years ago in the Carboniferous period of the Paleozoic era. In Carboniferous Giants and Mass Extinction, George R. McGhee Jr. explores that ancient world, explaining its origins; its downfall in the end-Permian mass extinction, the greatest biodiversity crisis to occur since the evolution of animal life on Earth; and how its legacies still affect us today. McGhee investigates the consequences of the Late Paleozoic ice age in this comprehensive portrait of the effects of ancient climate change on global ecology. Carboniferous Giants and Mass Extinction examines the climatic conditions that allowed for the evolution of gigantic animals and the formation of the largest tropical rainforests ever to exist, which in time turned into the coal that made the industrial revolution possible--and fuels the engine of contemporary anthropogenic climate change. Exploring the strange and fascinating flora and fauna of the Late Paleozoic ice age world, McGhee focuses his analysis on the forces that brought this world to an abrupt and violent end. Synthesizing decades of research and new discoveries, this comprehensive book provides a wealth of insights into past and present extinction events and climate change" -- From the publisher 300 million years ago, dog-sized scorpions and millipedes walked the earth and tropical rainforests towered into the sky. George R. McGhee Jr. explores that ancient world, explaining its origins, its downfall in the end-Permian mass extinction, and its legacies, to offer insight into past and present extinction events and climate change. A fully searchable collection of articles by scientists and historians in the fields of biochemistry and physiology, cell biology, developmental biology, ecology, evolution, genetics, immunology, molecular biology, neuroscience, microbiology and virology, plant science, structural biology, science and society Contents Preface 1. Harbingers of the Late Paleozoic Ice Age 2. The Big Chill 3. The Late Carboniferous Ice World 4. Giants in the Earth . . . 5. The End of the Late Paleozoic Ice Age 6. The End of the Paleozoic World 7 .The Legacy of the Late Paleozoic Ice Age Notes References Index Concentrates primarily on the molecular and cellular life sciences, including biochemical topics, methods and techniques. Applied areas of science are also included on a selective basis, as are biographies and general interest articles on ethics and the history of science Articles In The Fields Of Biochemistry And Physiology, Cell Biology, Developmental Biology, Ecology, Evolution, Genetics, Immunology, Molecular Biology, Neuroscience, Microbiology And Virology, Plant Science, Structural Biology, Science And Society. Includes Index. An illustrated encyclopedia with articles on agriculture, anatomy, biochemistry, biology, genetics, medicine, and molecular biology