Quote:
Originally Posted by Brian Allgar
It was only when primitive algae came along about a billion years ago that large quantities of oxygen were created as a consequence of photosynthesis.
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This is actually my favorite fact in the universe. In the beginning, there was no oxygen. Everything was anaerobic. Then cyanobacteria started taking advantage of the situation. They ate everything they could, and pooped out oxygen. For like a billion years, life was good. They partied like it was 1999. Then, the oxygen levels started pushing 20%. They literally poisoned themselves.
Everything does this. I could take some sugar water, put it in a jar, and pour in some yeast. Party time! I can just hear the little organisms saying "Pay no attention to all that gloom and doom. What do the experts know? I'm having fun, and they're just a bunch of condescending progressives anyway!" And they'll go on partying, all the while pooping out alcohol, until they drown in their own excrement.
But we're way smarter than that, aren't we? We tell ourselves we're more thoughtful than yeast or cyanobacteria. We tell ourselves we've been given dominion over the earth, and we've been told to take care of the garden. But who cares? It's more fun to party!
Thanks,
Bill