Concept
Quaternary science is the subfield of geology which studies the Quaternary Period commonly known as the ice age. The Quaternary Period is a time period that started around 2.58 million years ago and continues today. This period is divided into two epochs – the Pleistocene Epoch and the Holocene Epoch. The aim of Quaternary science is to understand everything that happened during the Pleistocene Epoch and the Holocene Epoch to be able to acquire fundamental knowledge about Earth's environment, ecosystem, climate changes, etc. Quaternary science was first studied during the nineteenth century by Georges Cuvier, a French scientist. Most Quaternary scientists have studied the history of the Quaternary to predict future changes in climate. Quaternary science plays a vital role in archaeology providing a possible accurate human studies' framework which would help the archaeologists interpret archaeological records. Quaternary science is the systematic study of the Quaternary Period. It is a rapidly changing field with new research techniques being developed e.g. new dating techniques. Quaternary science is a field of study which involves geography, biology, chemistry, and physics. Its focus is during the Quaternary Period – a time period that started around 2.58 million years ago and which continues to the present day. Earth has been affected by the events that occurred during the Quaternary Period – a time of ice ages. One topic in Quaternary science is to understand what happened during the ice ages. Quaternary science adds an important historical perspective to the understanding of current ecosystems and climate changes. The Quaternary Period is a geologic time period that can be separated into two epochs, the Pleistocene ("most recent") Epoch, generally defined as beginning about 2.58 million years ago, and the Holocene ("wholly modern") Epoch, which began about 11,700 years ago. The study of Quaternary science began in the late eighteenth century in Europe.