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Geographic Research Questions and Hypothesis

My Question:
I have always wondered about the Chauvet caves of Southern France
because they foster some of the oldest drawings created by humans.
How do scientists know the age of these caves and drawings? These
caves were discovered a few years ago and have been visited by many
scholars to explore its insides. After some research, these caves are
claimed to have some of, if not, the oldest pictures created by us. I am
curious to find out how these caves were formed and how they are
studied. What evidence do scientists have about the age of these
caves & the drawings within?
Colleagues Question:
I have always wondered about the age of the human species. I find it
interesting because many different cultures and religions speculate the
lifespan of the human race. Although these various ideas exist,
science if able to give a more accurate hypothesis. How do scientists
know the age of the human species? What technology have they used
to determine this?
My Response:
That is a very interesting question-- "How do scientists know the age of
the human species?" Well, up to a certain extent, anthropologists can
take old human skeletal systems/bones and determine their age. In
these cases, the National Science Foundation, a government agency,
has researchers that utilize radiometric dating to answer these types of
questions. In the past, these researches have participated in various
expeditions across the globe to find historic bones and determine their
age. Although there isn't a concrete response to answer the age of the
human species, the aforementioned agency believes it is around
195,000 years. This age is derived from measuring the age of fossil
human remains that were found at the Omo river (located in southern
Ethiopia). In this region, researchers discovered fossil fragments that,
according to genetic studies, are linked to the last, common Homo
Sapiens ancestor. Although this you were questioning the "when"
aspect of human species, the "where" aspect is also interesting. Based
on the frequency of findings of fossil human remains in Africa, it is
believed, by the NSF, that human species transpired from Africa. In
summary, your question was very intriguing and by answering it, I
have learned a bit about this topic myself. Although there isn't a
specific age of the human species, for now, somewhere around
195,000 years is generally accepted.

Source: http://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=102968
Colleagues Question:
We live on earth but I have always wondered how earth was created?
How do scientists know the age of when it was formed? What evidence
do scientists have about the age of the earth? How was it formed? How
old is the earth?
My Response:
That is a very interesting question-- "how was the earth formed?" Well,
to determine the age of a planet such as Earth, scientists utilize a
theory of core accretion. 4.6 billion years ago, following the big bang,
solar winds swept rocky particles into other heavy particles to form
earth. With these elements colliding together, earth's rocky crust
formed first. At this early stage, many elements were crashing into the
earth with the moon being one of them. Through gravity, some of the
lighter elements were captured within our atmosphere. After this, the
earth's plates begin to shift, which caused the formations of volcanoes
& mountains. Of course, you may be asking yourself, "what about all
the water?" Well, the water on our planet was accrued through vast
amounts of meteors & comets crashing onto our planet. These bodies
fostered icy deposits that would later become liquids, and little by little
create our oceans. At this point, the earth had all the ingredients to
develop life and the rest is history. In summary, the earth was formed
as an outcome of an array of cosmological events. If you would like to
learn about a second theory that is utilized to determine the age of
larger planets, checkout the link at the bottom.
Source: http://www.space.com/19175-how-was-earth-formed.html

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