IB ESS HL 3.1.18 (HL)—Anthropocene debate Question Bank

• The Anthropocene is a proposed geological epoch characterized by rapid environmental change and species extinction due to human activity

• There is debate about the existence and beginning of the Anthropocene epoch

• Various start dates have been proposed for the epoch

• Suitable “golden spikes” in the geological strata marking the proposed beginning include the 1610 dip in carbon dioxide caused by the arrival of Europeans in the Americas