Gaia Hypothesis and Faint Young Sun Puzzle Flashcards
What did Lovelock propose as a generic signature of life on a planet
Disequilibrium in the mixture of atmospheric gases
What happens to the temperature on daisyworld when both daisies are co existing and the solar luminosity increases
It increases
3 Arguments against the gaia hypothesis
Implies foresight
Gaia cannot evolve by natural selection because it is a population of 1
Implies that organisms care to make the environment better
All life produces …
Waste
What type of daisies appear first
Black daisies
Effect of black daisies
Makes the world hotter, increase in albedo
How is the number of daisies impacted when maximum temperature is reached
Number of black daisies start to decrease, positive and negative feedback loops
What 3 elements are found in equal ratios to each other in photosynthetic organisms
Carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus
Why did lovelock say that life regulates ocean salinity
Because if ocean salinity rose from 3.4% to 6% then it would be fatal to life, thus there must be some regulation
What has counteracted the steady brightening of the sun and helped regulate earth surface temperature
Silicate weathering has removed co2 out of the atmosphere
Description of the greenhouse effect - be careful and specific
The earths surface absorbs sunlight then emits heat that gets absorbed by the atmosphere which re radiates some of it back to the surface
What is the largest reservoir of carbon
Carbonate carbon in sedimentary rocks
How long will our sun spend on the main sequence
10 billion years
Equation for silicate weathering
CaSiO3 + CO2 —> CaCO3 + SiO2
Which elements does the sun convert to make it brighter
Hydrogen to helium
