Deep Time

Another semester has started, which means back to the books for me.  But three weeks in, I'm pretty excited about the course I'm taking, the material I'll be learning, and the discussions I'll be a part of with my class and professor.  Last week we talked a little about deep time (in relation to some other topics I'm going to be covering in greater detail soon), and I realized how difficult of a concept it can be to wrap your head around, even for someone like myself who spends a great deal of time thinking about it.  I know the Earth is 4.54 ± 0.05 billion years old, but what does it mean when we all live in a timescale of years, hours, or even minutes? When most people think about time, this is probably not what comes to mind.

The GSA Geologic Time Scale, not actually to scale, from http://www.geosociety.org/science/timescale/timescl.pdf.

All those numbers and colors can be intimidating, so I find it's helpful to try and explain deep time to people in a way they can relate to.  Some use a 12 or 24 hour clock as an analogy.  Others use a calendar year.  I swear one time in ELT we used a role of receipt paper.  But my favorite analogy is one I always have on hand...

Birds Over the Bay

A nesting pair of osprey,  reunited after separating for the winter and living it up down ol' South America way.

It's no secret that I love the Chesapeake Bay. And while nothing beats getting out on the water, sometimes there are a lot of exciting things happening right above it as well. Back in March while on an Alternative Break trip with the University of Maryland, I was lucky enough to catch a brief encounter that took place over Parrish Creek in Shady Side, Maryland. The resident osprey (Pandion haliaetus) couple had returned from their winter vacation, and made their way to their regular nesting platform. Lucky for me, they weren't the only raptors around that day.