1. Extinction: A large Scale Random Transformation

2. Potential Triggers
Asteroid Impacts = sudden

3. Gradual: Large Basalt Outflows
Large CO2 changes which can affect atmospheric and ocean chemistry (slow)
an “oh shit” event

4. 65 Million years ago
KT extinction (dead dinosaurs) triggered by asteroid impact.
A 10km diameter asteroid, leaving a crater ~200 Km in diameter
Impact caused acid rain, ash (from global forest fire) that directly blocked out the sun for months, severe global cooling (nuclear winter).

5. Many events of varying extinction percentage amplitude
The struggle
Relatively stable

6. Five Agreed Upon Major Events

7. Co-Evolution & Niches
Any species living in a niche has evolutionary relationships with other species; some casual, some crucial
Therefore, the extinction of a species will have repercussions in the niches of all species which have co-evolutionary relationships with the newly extinct species

8. Implications: Evolutionary Clock gets periodically reset
Life recovers (relatively rapidly) to fill new ecological niches  this empowers species diversification
This means that “survival of the fittest” doesn’t work on long timescales  random catastrophe is MORE important
Strangely, nature confirms that a “new world will arrive out of the ashes of the old one”