Origin and Evolution of the Earth: Research Questions for a Changing Planet
Formerly known (by ESD and UC Berkeley staff), as the "Grand Challenges Report" or "The 10 questions", this report, "Origin and Evolution of the Earth: Research Questions for a Changing Planet" was made public this past Wednesday (March 12).
|
|
|
|
||
| Read this FREE online! Full Book | PDF Summary | PDF Report Brief | ||
Chaired by Division Director, Don DePaolo, in summary here are the 10 questions:
1) Origins
- Question 1 - How did the Earth and other planets form?
- Question 2 - What happened during the Earth's "dark age" (the first 500 million years?
- Question 3 - How did life begin?
2) Earth's Interior
- Question 4 - How does earth's interior work, and how does it affect the surface?
- Question 5 - Why does the Earth have plate tectonics and continents?
- Question 6 - How are Earth's processes controlled by material properties?
3) A Habitable Planet
- Question 7 - What causes climate to change - and how much can it change?
- Question 8 - How has life shaped Earth - and how has Earth shaped life?
4) Hazards and Resources
- Question 9 - Can earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and their consequences be predicted?
- Question 10 - How do fluid flow and transport affect the human environment?
For more information can be found at the National Academies news release and Berkeley Lab's TABL.