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- Permanent Link:
- http://dpanther.fiu.edu/dpService/dpPurlService/purl/FI15061982/00001
Notes
- Abstract:
- Forty years ago, Lewis Binford (1968)
described postglacial sea level rise as one
of the key factors in the development
of agriculture and human civilizations.
With sea levels rising roughly 120 meters
over the past 20,000 years, the
effects were virtually global. As coastal
lowlands were inundated, shorelines in
some areas (e.g., Beringia, northern Australia)
migrated hundreds of kilometers,
Asia was separated from the Americas,
and the British Isles, Japan, Taiwan, Sri
Lanka, Tasmania, and many other lands
once connected to continents were
transformed into islands. Around the
world, ancient peoples living in coastal
areas were forced to adapt to major
and rapid ecological changes, shrinking
or disappearing territories, physical displacement
or higher population densities,
and rising tensions or conflicts with
neighboring peoples. This ‘rising tide’
may even have contributed to the nearly
universal flood myths of human cultures
worldwide.
Today, nearly half the world’s population
lives within 100 km of a coastline
and over 100 million people live in
coastal areas lying less than a meter
above sea level (Zhang et al. 2004:41).
Long-term climatic records show that rising
concentrations of carbon in earth’s
atmosphere are closely linked to rising
temperatures and that those concentrations
are headed for levels not seen in
at least the last two million years. With
global warming, average sea levels are
now expected to rise between 20 and
200 cm in the 21st century, estimates
that some fear may be too low. A rising
chorus of scientific, political, and media
voiceshaswarnedof thegrowing threats
global warming and climate change
pose to earth’s ecosystems, cultures,
and geopolitical stability. Warming climate
and oceans, melting glaciers, rising
seas, and collapsing marine ecosystems
are emblematic of the growing
impacts of humanity on our oceans and
coastlines. ( English )
Record Information
- Source Institution:
- Florida International University
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