I have just seen an intriguing trailer for this;
http://www.channel4.com/science/micr...dle/index.html
This should be a good programme to watch.
I must admit that I'm not convinced of anthropogenic global warming at all. ???
It is known that the climate has varied quite a lot in the past. 700-900 years ago the climate in the UK was around 2o warmer than today and in the 1600s to 1800s we had a 'mini ice age' where temperatures were a lot cooler.
I think we're somewhere in between those extremes at the moment and the current slight rise in global temperature is well within the normal variance.
I also question the doom-mongering attitude that's prevalent with global warming alarmists. At times in the past where the climate was warmer than today there was great prosperity. The prosperity of the warm period of 700-900 years ago resulted in the great cathedrals being built throughout Europe.
Why do they assume that global warming is going to be catastrophic?
It might actually turn out to be good.
.
A good place to start is the IPCC's summary for policymakers.
http://www.ipcc.ch/SPM2feb07.pdf
Which nicely sums up all the evidence for anthropogenic climate change. Basically it's now almost a certainty that overall warming has been caused by massive increases in greenhouse gases.
http://www.realclimate.org has a good section on paleoclimatology which should answer your questions about climate changes in the past.
But I will agree with you that there are a lot of doom-mongers who over-state the impact of climate change.
However I'm very much in the camp of those who think it is a Bad ThingTM
also the IPCC's summary for policymakers "Impacts and Vulnerabilities"
http://www.grida.no/climate/ipcc_tar.../wg2TARspm.pdf
which talks about the potential problems of climate change.
All the IPCC reports can be found at http://www.ipcc.ch
happy reading
Unfortunately both the Medieval Warm Period and the Little Ice Age were local phenomena. The trouble with the current warming trend is that it is genuinely global. The resolution of most of the climate record is not good enough to say this warming is unprecendented, but we know for sure the world has not warmed this quickly for many centuries, and probably not for thousands, or even millions, of years.Originally Posted by John Jackson
People assume that the change will be catastrophic because this time the warming includes the ice caps. If it was just a case Europe having slightly different weather there wouldn't be a problem, but if you dump enough fresh water in the sea to raise sea levels by metres and disrupt global currents you can be fairly sure that something interesting is going to happen. It's possible that the problems are overstated, but I think there are two main reasons for this. Firstly, it is better safe than sorry. Much better that we stop polluting everywhere, build defenses and are ready to cope with bigger changes than actually happen than not do anything to prepare and all end up underwater because we underestimated it. The other reason is that people simply don't listen. If you tell people average global temperatures will rise by 1.5oC and a bit of ice will melt, no-one will care. If you tell them their city is going to be underwater and we'll have massive hurricanes every day they'll at least pay attention, even if they don't entirely believe it. The fact is that whether we cause global warming or not, in the not too distant future we are going to have problems with pollution, lack of energy and resources. Better that we start thinking about it now than only notice once it is too late.
Thanks Huw, I'll read those links.
I must confess to being fairly ignorant on this topic but I think the hype and exaggeration that Cuddles alluded to is actually what puts me off it. ???
The world is warming but no-one really knows what the effects are going to be and even science/scientists are divided on the issue.
.
Well, I had a read of the PDF Huw linked to and I'm more convinced of AGW now. ???
There's nothing gets me going more than a document full of evidence with error bars!!
Although I did notice that the graphs' Y-axes were truncated in many cases (helps make the peak at the end look sharper and bigger).
.
Noone is convinced really with the exception of a few, But if it is that little island of Great Britian will be in big trouble.This should be a good programme to watch.
I must admit that I'm not convinced of anthropogenic global warming at all. ???
It is known that the climate has varied quite a lot in the past. 700-900 years ago the climate in the UK was around 2o warmer than today and in the 1600s to 1800s we had a 'mini ice age' where temperatures were a lot cooler.
I think we're somewhere in between those extremes at the moment and the current slight rise in global temperature is well within the normal variance.
I also question the doom-mongering attitude that's prevalent with global warming alarmists. At times in the past where the climate was warmer than today there was great prosperity. The prosperity of the warm period of 700-900 years ago resulted in the great cathedrals being built throughout Europe.
Why do they assume that global warming is going to be catastrophic?
It might actually turn out to be good.
Great prosperity 700 years ago, you can't even begin to argue that. Was billions of people on the earth at that time!
Now I am not claiming global warming is happening, but I am well versed in weather conditions. And global warming
maybe happening and one thing is for sure we are affecting our world. And if this is true were already dead because there is no reversing now.
We all have to wonder with all those nuclear bomb tests, did we actually kill our selfs without that missle.
But has I said with all the ice that has already melted, you can't reverse it and it will be a done deal.
So maybe faith and hope will play a leading role in all of our lives.
No-one is convinced? The IPCC would disagee with you there, and since that body is made up of thousands of the world's leading climatologists they probably know what their talking about. The deniers would like you to believe that there is still an argument going on, but that is simply not true. We know global warming is happening, and we are pretty sure that we are at least partly to blame. THe only questions now are about exactly what will happen and what we can do about it.
Rather pessimistic. Why do you think this? If we are able to affect the planet enough to cause global warming, why shouldn't we be able to do something about it? Even if we can't stop it, why would that mean we are dead? Global warming isn't like an asteroid hitting us, all it means is higher sea levels and different (probably more severe) weather patterns. We might not be able to keep our lives and societies exactly the same as they are now, but there is no reason to think that we are all going to die.And if this is true were already dead because there is no reversing now.
Nuclear missiles? What do they have to do with anything? The few bombs that have actually detonated have no effect whatsoever on the climate. They don't even have a noticeable effect on background radiation levels.
Actually, very little ice has melted yet. The problem is that we can see it will if temperatures increase further. This is why people make a fuss about global warming, because it is not too late to do anything about it, but it probably will be soon.But has I said with all the ice that has already melted, you can't reverse it and it will be a done deal.
Nope.So maybe faith and hope will play a leading role in all of our lives.
It is not pessimistic, it's reality! At the rate the ice is melting, and if global warming is to blame then at this point it's irreversible. Reason being it takes so much time for the tide to shift whenit comes to healing.No-one is convinced? The IPCC would disagee with you there, and since that body is made up of thousands of the world's leading climatologists they probably know what their talking about. The deniers would like you to believe that there is still an argument going on, but that is simply not true. We know global warming is happening, and we are pretty sure that we are at least partly to blame. THe only questions now are about exactly what will happen and what we can do about it.
Rather pessimistic. Why do you think this? If we are able to affect the planet enough to cause global warming, why shouldn't we be able to do something about it? Even if we can't stop it, why would that mean we are dead? Global warming isn't like an asteroid hitting us, all it means is higher sea levels and different (probably more severe) weather patterns. We might not be able to keep our lives and societies exactly the same as they are now, but there is no reason to think that we are all going to die.And if this is true were already dead because there is no reversing now.
There have been hundrens of nuclear weapons test', and I can't imagine that being a real good thing!Nuclear missiles? What do they have to do with anything? The few bombs that have actually detonated have no effect whatsoever on the climate. They don't even have a noticeable effect on background radiation levels.
Actually, very little ice has melted yet. The problem is that we can see it will if temperatures increase further. This is why people make a fuss about global warming, because it is not too late to do anything about it, but it probably will be soon.But has I said with all the ice that has already melted, you can't reverse it and it will be a done deal.
Nope.So maybe faith and hope will play a leading role in all of our lives.
You live in England Cuddles! Well if all this is true consider the possiblity. But I am not saying
Global warming is happening, there's evidence both ways. If it is we have a big problem!
And if you knew what it takes for nature to make rain, you would understand?Nuclear missiles? What do they have to do with anything? The few bombs that have actually detonated have no effect whatsoever on the climate. They don't even have a noticeable effect on background radiation levels.
Actually, very little ice has melted yet. The problem is that we can see it will if temperatures increase further. This is why people make a fuss about global warming, because it is not too late to do anything about it, but it probably will be soon.But has I said with all the ice that has already melted, you can't reverse it and it will be a done deal.
Nope.So maybe faith and hope will play a leading role in all of our lives.
Evidence? The whole reason scientists are making a fuss about global warming is because they think we can do something about it. We do not even need to reverse it. We are not dead yet, so simply stopping it here would help, even if we can't go back to where we would like. In any case, why do you assume we are all going to die? As I said, we can cope with an awful lot. Global warming isn't a sudden killer, it will simply change the climate. Yes, some people are likely to die, and there may even be a much reduced landmass and population, but even in the worst case we won't reach a Waterworld scenario. To assume that everyone is going to die just because of a change in climate is far from reality.
In your previous post you were very clear that global warming is happening. Why are you now claiming that you are not saying this? Regardless of your opinion, global warming really is happening, there is no argument about that. The only argument is whether it's our fault, and the increasing amount of evidence suggests very strongly that it is.There have been hundrens of nuclear weapons test', and I can't imagine that being a real good thing!
You live in England Cuddles! Well if all this is true consider the possiblity. But I am not saying
Global warming is happening, there's evidence both ways. If it is we have a big problem!
That aside, why mention nuclear missiles? As I said, they do not affect global temperatures. Even the total of all bombs ever detonated has a tiny effect compared to just one volcano. In fact, there is a tiny effect just compared to the amount of conventional explosives used. Nuclear weapons and power do raise issues about the environment, but global warming is not one of them.
If you have a mummy rain and a daddy rain who love each other very much then nature is nice to them and gives them lots of baby rain.And if you knew what it takes for nature to make rain, you would understand?
What exactly do you think I don't understand?
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote
Bookmarks