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Eric Hiatt "A Story Written in Stone"

Dr. Eric Hiatt, Department of Geology, highlights the critical importance of creating climate-literate students in his talk “Climate Change From a Geologic Perspective: A Story Written in Stone.”
Eric Hiatt  "A Story Written in Stone"

A photo of Dr. Eric Hiatt speaking at a Dean's Symposium

Dr. Eric Hiatt Portrait

Dr. Eric Hiatt, an professor in the Department of Geology at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh, shared his research with colleagues at the Dean's Symposium in December, 2011.

This is a description of his talk “Climate Change From a Geologic Perspective: A Story Written in Stone” :

The Earth has an immense history that is recorded in sediments and rocks.  This four billion-year record represents all but the first half billion years of Earth history, and includes changes that the Earth has undergone during the co-evolution of the geosphere and biosphere.  Evolution of life has led to many major changes in the atmosphere and oceans—some catastrophic, and others more subtle.  The biosphere and geosphere continue to be intimately involved in the global climate system.  Both, in combination with changes in insolation, play fundamental roles in controlling the global climate system of Earth.  The public has an awareness of global climate through debates in the media and sweeping generalizations that are regularly made, which are centered on the role humans are playing in the global climate system.  Recent scientific studies, however, have elucidated the relative roles that natural processes relative to human activity play in current climate change.  These findings further dispel the misleading perception that human-influenced climate change is a matter of debate among scientists.  This presentation will provide an introduction to the importance of the geosphere and biosphere in the global climate system, and highlight the critical importance of creating climate-literate students.

Video Podcast

The following is Dr. Hiatt's presentation. (Shot by Wayne Abler of UW Oshkosh Learning Technologies.)

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Photos by student multimedia reporter Brad Beck.