What is the Quaternary Period?

Answer 1

The Quaternary is the most recent geological time period, which started 1.67 to 2.4 million years ago depending on the area studied. The Quaternary is part of the Cenozoic ("new life") Era, along with the Tertiary Period. The Quaternary Period includes recent time (the last 11,000 years ago, since the last ice age) which is called the Holocene and the Pleistocene Epoch.

There is currently much debate as to how long the Quaternary period is. There are considerations into re-classifying the Quaternary as it is "technically" too short to be considered a geological age. But this is a matter of much conjecture at the moment.