Introduction To Global Warming

Global Warming is something we don’t experience on a daily basis, and is essentially the rise in the average temperature of the Earth. Scientists have spent many years attempting to establish what the cause of global warming is, but the only factor that can explain the amount and pattern of warming is the greenhouse gases emitted by humans (Greenhouse Effect = http://earthguide.ucsd.edu/earthguide/diagrams/greenhouse/). The United Nations formed a group called the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, or IPCC; they meet every few years and write a report summarizing everything known about global warming. The most responsible greenhouse gas is CO2, carbon dioxide, coming from combustion of fossil fuels. It is widely assumed there will be major consequences of global warming, some of which are described by National Geographic - http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/environment/global-warming/gw-effects/.

Some of the main reasons for caring about global warming are clear – the impact on endangered species, the risk of extreme weather, or the flooding of major coastal cities due to land glaciers melting into the ocean. All of these effects, however, are more far reaching than anyone first thinks. Climate Change and/or extreme weather conditions could impede humans’ ability to produce food. Time Magazine’s Bryan Walsh writes about this in “Climate Change and Farming: How Not to Go Hungry in a Warmer World” - http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,2105169,00.html. The recent severe weather conditions have also caused insurance companies to investigate how companies they insure intend to protect against severe weather. New York Times writer Felicity Barringer investigates these new policies in “Three States to Require Insurers to Disclose Climate-Change Response Plans” - http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/02/business/energy-environment/three-states-tell-insurers-to-disclose-responses-to-climate-change.html. As you can see, global warming does not just affect the temperature or the weather, but also our food and insurance.

Is this winter’s historic warmth climate change, Time Magazine’s Bryan Walsh writes about it in “The Year That Winter Forgot: Is It Climate Change?” - http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,2104040,00.html. Is climate change real? Washington Post Writers George F. Will and Chris Mooney dispute each other in “Dark Green Doomsayers” - http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/02/13/AR2009021302514.html - and “Climate Change’s Myths and Facts” - http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/story/2009/03/20/ST2009032003115.html?sid=ST2009032003115 - respectively.

Is there anything we can do? Everyone has a different opinion on whether Global Warming is real, why it is happening, and what to do about it. The only fact humans have is that the Earth has been getting slightly warmer. Think about what you would do to make the United States more “green”. We will open our discussion on Tuesday with your opinions to the answers to these questions.

Other Resources with an abundance of information on Global Warming:
New York Times Global Warming Topics Page – http://topics.nytimes.com/topics/news/science/topics/globalwarming/index.html#
National Geographic Global Warming Home Page –http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/environment/global-warming/
2006 Time Magazine Article (a little long, but interesting) – http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1176980,00.html