Session 1: Earth Magnitude
Thursday 26 February
10:30 - 12:30
Paradiso, Main Hall
In the first panel we consider some of the consequences of the thesis of the Anthropocene, and what it means to imagine events on a geologic scale. Human history and the history of the Earth – once thought to be two completely different disciplines occurring on different timescales and at different speeds– are now seen as closely intertwined. Even human history is not just about humans anymore. This invites thought at ‘Earth magnitude’.
Timothy Morton: Subscendence
Thursday 26 February
11:50 - 12:30
Paradiso, Main Hall
We have all heard of transcendence. But what about the inverse, where something shrinks into its component pieces in such a way that the whole is always less than the sum of its parts? In this talk Morton explains why this new concept is very useful for thinking ecological beings.
Mark Williams (with Jan Zalasiewicz): 'The Human Impact from a Geological ‘Anthropocene’ Perspective'
Thursday 26 February
10:40 - 11:10
Paradiso, Main Hall
The history of human evolution extends back for more than two million years, and in all that time humans have been developing technologies that influence the landscape around them.