Where the Meghalayan meets the Anthropocene
Stratigraphic signals of human-environmental interactions on the periphery of Indian civilisation
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21321586 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Paweł Prokop (0000-0002-1165-2499, Institute of Geography and Spatial Organization, Polish Academy of Sciences, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2020 |
| Volume | 93 |
| Issue | 4 |
| Pages | 505-523 |
| Publication date | 2020-01-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Geographia Polonica (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0016-7282 • E-ISSN: 2300-7362 |
| Publisher | Institute of Geography and Spatial Organization, Polish Academy of Sciences (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.7163/gpol.0185 |
| OpenAlex | W3112432255 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 74 |
The aims of this study were to review human-environment interactions during the Meghalayan and to search for the stratigraphic boundary of a new epoch, informally termed the Anthropocene, as well as to determine whether the stratigraphic signals of human activity on the Meghalaya Plateau in Northeast India can be correlated globally. This plateau is the base of the Meghalayan Age that was determined from a speleothem in a cave located on it. Review indicates that study region developed on the periphery of ancient Indian civilisation, with stratigraphic signals of human activity being apparent in only the last few thousand years; that is, substantially later than the neighbouring ancient Indian civilisation. The stratigraphic signals are heterogeneous and diachronous, not only as a result of various human activities, but also in the effect of the diverse sensitivities of the environment to anthropogenic disturbances. A discrete and visible cultural layer that relates to the development of settlements and the production of new materials is still being formed and reworked. The only synchronous stratigraphic signal with a global range seems to be associated with the artificial radionuclide fallout from nuclear weapons testing, which covers a topsoil layer of up to tens of centimetres thick
Anthropocene · Archaeology · Cave · Civilization · Diachronous · Earth science · Geography · Holocene · Human settlement · Plateau (mathematics) · Speleothem · Structural basin · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies · Geology · Geology and Paleoclimatology Research · Paleontology · Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology
Climatic and in-cave influences on δ 18 O and δ 13 C in a stalagmite from northeastern India through the last deglaciation
A Pronounced Dry Event Recorded Around 4.2 ka in Brine Sediments from the Northern Red Sea
The Anthropogenic Greenhouse Era Began Thousands of Years Ago
Assessing the Causes of Late Pleistocene Extinctions on the Continents
Abrupt weakening of the summer monsoon in northwest India 4100 yr ago
The Anthropocene
Evolution, consequences and future of plant and animal domestication
Climate change at the 4.2 ka BP termination of the Indus valley civilization and Holocene south Asian monsoon variability
Defining the epoch we live in
Current perspectives and the future of domestication studies
Kilimanjaro Ice Core Records
Modeling human decisions in coupled human and natural systems
Holocene climate variability
Formal ratification of the subdivision of the Holocene Series/Epoch (Quaternary System/Period)
Formal definition and dating of the GSSP (Global Stratotype Section and Point) for the base of the Holocene using the Greenland NGRIP ice core, and selected auxiliary records
The 8k event
Anthropogenic transformation of the terrestrial biosphere
Defining the Anthropocene
Geology of mankind
Landforms and landscape evolution in the M ylliem G ranite A rea, M eghalaya P lateau, N ortheast I ndia
The Indian Summer Monsoon from a Speleothem δ18O Perspective—A Review
Aridification of the Egyptian Sahara 5000–4000 cal BP revealed from x-ray fluorescence analysis of Nile Delta sediments at Kom al-Ahmer/Kom Wasit
A severe centennial-scale drought in midcontinental North America 4200 years ago and apparent global linkages
The stratigraphic status of the Anthropocene
Holocene carbon emissions as a result of anthropogenic land cover change
A dramatic climatic transition at ~4000 cal. yr BP and its cultural responses in Chinese cultural domains
Anthropogenic soils are the golden spikes for the Anthropocene
The contribution of rice agriculture and livestock pastoralism to prehistoric methane levels
The Stone Monuments of the Khasi Hills
Early Metal in South India
Preliminary Report on the Excavations of Neolithic sites from Khasi Hills Meghalaya
The Anthropocene
When did the Anthropocene begin? A mid-twentieth century boundary level is stratigraphically optimal
Fire and human evolution
Diachronous beginnings of the Anthropocene
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |