THE END OF THE ANTHROPOCENE - HOMO SAPIENS VS AMMONITES

Description

The work is inspired by the image of man, who salutes as a sign of peace, placed on the plaque positioned on the US space probes Pioneer 10 and 11 (1972, 1973), which were first shipped out of the solar system with the intent not only to explore the universe, but also to communicate the existence of humanity to extraterrestrial civilizations.

For 335 million years the ammonites, a species of cephalopod molluscs characterized by the spiral shell, colonized the Earth, then, about 66 million years ago, when there was one of the largest mass extinctions in history (famous above all for the disappearance of the dinosaurs), they literally disappeared without leaving any living descendants. They were very widespread creatures everywhere, therefore in any area of the planet it is possible to find their fossil remains. Homo sapiens or the early modern human is appeared on Earth only 300,000 years ago and, like the ammonites, has spread rapidly and pervasively across the globe. In recent decades, the impact of the human species on the terrestrial ecosystem has been so strong and invasive that scientists even speak of a new geological era, called the Anthropocene, characterized by man-made environmental changes.

Who knows if the man, who defines himself as "wise" and presents himself to extraterrestrial civilizations with the greeting of peace, will be able to do better than simple ammonites, to posterity or to aliens the arduous sentence.

Theme:  PLAYING WITH THE ATOMIC BOMB