Bev Posted June 27, 2014 Share Posted June 27, 2014 (edited) It has been suggested that I create a 40-50', 5 Billion Year, geologic timeline to give the kids on the tours {http://www.thefossilforum.com/index.php?/topic/47315-kids-fossil-tour/} a sense of just how recent life is on this earth. Hmmmm... Has anyone ever seen this done? Or have any ideas on how to do it? I am almost thinking that they are asking for a geologic time walk, which I don't know what that would look like either... Which then brings up eras, periods, that stuff - which I don't really have a handle on anyway. Can't be expensive. If permanent it would have to withstand Minnesota winters. Like if I did a circular thing with stepping stones or something. Scraps of wood I have a lot of... Thoughts? Ideas? Suggestions? I know, I challenge you with the weirdest questions! Edited June 27, 2014 by Bev The more I learn, I realize the less I know. BluffCountryFossils.NET Fossil Adventure Blog Go to my Gallery for images of Fossil Jewelry, Sculpture & Crafts Pinned Posts: Beginner's Guide to Fossil Hunting * Geologic Formation Maps Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siteseer Posted June 27, 2014 Share Posted June 27, 2014 Hi Bev, Actually, I did something similar years ago for a friend who teaches fifth grade. I thought about one inch equaling one million years and just seeing how far that would go in the space available on school property. That meant a foot equaled 12 million years so the beginning of the Miocene would have been marked off at just under 2 feet and the extinction of the dinosaurs was about 5 feet, four inches with the beginning of the Cretaceous about 11 feet 5 inches (135 million years ago). Ten times that is well over 100 feet and that gets you to just 1.35 billion years ago. I can't find the document I figured it all out on and I don't think she ever went beyond the "thinking-about-it" stage with even a smaller scale version like you are considering. With about 50 feet to work with you could start at 10 feet equaling 1 billion years so one foot represents 100 million years and every inch stands for just over 8.33 million years. Just over 45 and a half feet would contain the time since the earth's crust formed. At that scale the Miocene Epoch began right about the 3-inch mark and the dinosaurs died out just under the 8-inch mark. You can mark off the Mesozoic and Paleozoic periods from there with the Cambrian starting about the 5 foot, 8 1/2 inch mark. That means the early hominin, "Lucy," lived at about the 3/8 inch mark and recorded history (or the end of the Pleistocene) would be represented roughly by a razor cut (or less). I think I figured that all out right (but it's late here now). You could just measure it all off with small rocks (or whatever you have) or just make little signs (make them to look like road signs) if it's temporary. Jess It has been suggested that I create a 40-50', 5 Billion Year, geologic timeline to give the kids on the tours {http://www.thefossilforum.com/index.php?/topic/47315-kids-fossil-tour/} a sense of just how recent life is on this earth. Hmmmm... Has anyone ever seen this done? Or have any ideas on how to do it? I am almost thinking that they are asking for a geologic time walk, which I don't know what that would look like either... Which then brings up eras, periods, that stuff - which I don't really have a handle on anyway. Can't be expensive. If permanent it would have to withstand Minnesota winters. Like if I did a circular thing with stepping stones or something. Scraps of wood I have a lot of... Thoughts? Ideas? Suggestions? I know, I challenge you with the weirdest questions! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scylla Posted June 27, 2014 Share Posted June 27, 2014 The Rose Planetarium in NYC has a spiral walkway with the history of the universe from the big bang till now marked off. Recorded history is like a hairs breath at the end. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fruitbat Posted June 27, 2014 Share Posted June 27, 2014 A roll of adding machine paper works reasonably well for this. -Joe Illigitimati non carborundum Fruitbat's PDF Library Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bev Posted June 27, 2014 Author Share Posted June 27, 2014 (edited) All great ideas guys! I think what they want is the basic concept for kids of how recent life has been on the earth and a basic introduction to the geologic time periods... I could use the road actually as I have a horizon point to the west along a white horse fence. Then turn into the driveway for "life on earth" and figure out signage for the periods... A big broad concept as opposed to mathematical accuracy. Huh! I just figured out how to use the spell check on here - pretty awesome! I did run across an example done in chalk on a driveway too. Edited June 27, 2014 by Bev The more I learn, I realize the less I know. BluffCountryFossils.NET Fossil Adventure Blog Go to my Gallery for images of Fossil Jewelry, Sculpture & Crafts Pinned Posts: Beginner's Guide to Fossil Hunting * Geologic Formation Maps Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stocksdale Posted June 27, 2014 Share Posted June 27, 2014 (edited) Hi Bev, I thought about doing something like this. I actually thought about doing it at our church for Darwin Sunday/Evolution Weekend but never got around to talking to our pastor about it. Maybe next year. I envisioned it in my head like a geological version of walking a prayer labyrinth or walking the stages of the cross. Or I might do it for a Webelo/Boy Scout project with my two sons. The idea I was thinking was using colored yarn, perhaps different colors for the different Æons and Periods. Edited June 28, 2014 by Stocksdale Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known.–Carl Sagan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fossildude19 Posted June 28, 2014 Share Posted June 28, 2014 It was done at Dinosaur State Park, in Rocky Hill, Connecticut. in this manner: Images taken from This Website. Regards, Tim - VETERAN SHALE SPLITTER VFOTM --- APRIL - 2015 IPFOTM -- MAY - 2024 _________________________________________________________________________________ "In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks." John Muir ~ ~ ~ ~ ><))))( *> About Me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted June 28, 2014 Share Posted June 28, 2014 Just to be different, I'd represent time as a volume of water, with each major stage as a vessel holding a proportional amount of water. 1 "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bev Posted June 28, 2014 Author Share Posted June 28, 2014 All very interesting concepts! :-D The more I learn, I realize the less I know. BluffCountryFossils.NET Fossil Adventure Blog Go to my Gallery for images of Fossil Jewelry, Sculpture & Crafts Pinned Posts: Beginner's Guide to Fossil Hunting * Geologic Formation Maps Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stocksdale Posted June 28, 2014 Share Posted June 28, 2014 (edited) Me and my two younger kids worked on putting together a smaller but more detailed timeline. It ended up about 12-14 feet long. It was fun to put the fossils and plastic dinos in the right places on the timeline. I did all of it to scale in 20 million year increments back to the Ediacaran. And then crunched the timeline of the stuff before that. A lot of the photos we used were pictures that my sons took with the iphone while they walked through the Field Museum in Chicago. Edited June 28, 2014 by Stocksdale 1 Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known.–Carl Sagan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bev Posted June 28, 2014 Author Share Posted June 28, 2014 Me and my two younger kids worked on putting together a smaller but more detailed timeline. It ended up about 12-14 feet long. It was fun to put the fossils and plastic dinos in the right places on the timeline. I did all of it to scale in 20 million year increments back to the Ediacaran. And then crunched the timeline of the stuff before that. A lot of the photos we used were pictures that my sons took with the iphone while they walked through the Field Museum in Chicago. THAT is ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC! is there any way you would be willing to share that with me for the sake of other kids learning about the geologic time line? The more I learn, I realize the less I know. BluffCountryFossils.NET Fossil Adventure Blog Go to my Gallery for images of Fossil Jewelry, Sculpture & Crafts Pinned Posts: Beginner's Guide to Fossil Hunting * Geologic Formation Maps Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stocksdale Posted June 28, 2014 Share Posted June 28, 2014 Sure you can use it. Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known.–Carl Sagan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bev Posted June 29, 2014 Author Share Posted June 29, 2014 Sure you can use it. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you, so much Stocksdale for all the wonderful pdfs and jpegs! TRULY APPRECIATED! The more I learn, I realize the less I know. BluffCountryFossils.NET Fossil Adventure Blog Go to my Gallery for images of Fossil Jewelry, Sculpture & Crafts Pinned Posts: Beginner's Guide to Fossil Hunting * Geologic Formation Maps Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted June 29, 2014 Share Posted June 29, 2014 I've been cogitatin' about the time = water concept (just 'cause I like the twist of portraying time as a volume). Start with a 55 gal. drum, and a bunch of small vessels that hold amounts proportional to the periods you want to illustrate (55 gal. = 208198 ml). Pour each period's volume into the drum; at the end, recorded history will be much less than "a drop in the bucket". 1 "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wrangellian Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 Thank you! Thank you! Thank you, so much Stocksdale for all the wonderful pdfs and jpegs! TRULY APPRECIATED! Just make sure you spell 'Ediacaran' correctly! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stocksdale Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 Just make sure you spell 'Ediacaran' correctly! Good eye, Wrangellian. It was fixed in the PDF I sent her 1 Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known.–Carl Sagan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
piranha Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 Since Wrangellian is spell checking the timeline chart, I should point out a couple other significant oversights. The chart shows Ordovician trilobites in the Cambrian section and Devonian trilobites in the Ordovician section. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bev Posted June 30, 2014 Author Share Posted June 30, 2014 After I put it together, I will have to post it BEFORE I laminate it for accuracy! Thank you so much for your input. The more I learn, I realize the less I know. BluffCountryFossils.NET Fossil Adventure Blog Go to my Gallery for images of Fossil Jewelry, Sculpture & Crafts Pinned Posts: Beginner's Guide to Fossil Hunting * Geologic Formation Maps Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wrangellian Posted July 1, 2014 Share Posted July 1, 2014 (edited) I don't want to tear it apart either but one other thing.. the Archean isn't immediately succeeded by the Cryogenian. There is the whole Proterozoic Eon in there which the Cryogenian and Ediacaran are part of.. I understand that isnt the most interesting part of the timescale to most people, but it is a significant chunk of time! Edited July 1, 2014 by Wrangellian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stocksdale Posted July 1, 2014 Share Posted July 1, 2014 (edited) No big deal.... just a couple billion years of life history. Yes, probably should have Proterozoic at the top of two or three panels and then maybe just Ediacaran as a "subsection". And if there was room, adding a header for all the other panels as Phanerozoic with divisions for Paleozoic, Mesozoic, and Cenozoic. Also, I should note that in that early version there are trilobites grouped together and some don't belong in the Cambrian. Probably other things that are not quite right as well, but those are pretty obviously wrong to the trilobite experts. Edited July 1, 2014 by Stocksdale Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known.–Carl Sagan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bev Posted July 1, 2014 Author Share Posted July 1, 2014 Personally, I think it is an absolutely SPECTACULAR timeline to be done by a non-paleontologist! And for kids just trying to get a drift of geologic time being able to actually place toy dinosaurs, etc. on the line (interactive) it is FANTASTIC! Besides, I can't pronounce any of those words anyway. :-D The more I learn, I realize the less I know. BluffCountryFossils.NET Fossil Adventure Blog Go to my Gallery for images of Fossil Jewelry, Sculpture & Crafts Pinned Posts: Beginner's Guide to Fossil Hunting * Geologic Formation Maps Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wrangellian Posted July 2, 2014 Share Posted July 2, 2014 No big deal.... just a couple billion years of life history. Yes, probably should have Proterozoic at the top of two or three panels and then maybe just Ediacaran as a "subsection". And if there was room, adding a header for all the other panels as Phanerozoic with divisions for Paleozoic, Mesozoic, and Cenozoic. Also, I should note that in that early version there are trilobites grouped together and some don't belong in the Cambrian. Probably other things that are not quite right as well, but those are pretty obviously wrong to the trilobite experts. That would work. I'm always in favor of keeping things accurate even if people/kids don't memorize every detail (because you never know which detail will be remembered!). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wrangellian Posted July 2, 2014 Share Posted July 2, 2014 ... Besides, I can't pronounce any of those words anyway. :-D Just keep all the right letters in the right order, that's all that matters Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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