Global Warming? FIB Spring 2008

What is all the hype about? I don’t feel that hot!

Global Warming refers to the increase in the average temperature of the Earth's near-surface air and oceans in recent decades and its projected continuation.

Says who? On Feb. 2, 2007 the United Nations scientific panel studying climate change declared that the evidence of a warming trend is "unequivocal," and that human activity has "very likely" been the driving force in that change over the last 50 years. –The last report by the group, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, in 2001, had found that humanity had "likely" played a role.

But the guy on the radio says its all poppycock! There are naturally voices (scientists, observers, commentators, and politicians) which say that the reason the Earth is seeing an increase in temperature is due to: –Natural cyclic fluctuations in its temperature They tell us that ‘Mother Nature’ will compensate And sometimes, they tell us that it is a liberal left-wing conspiracy

Rush Limbaugh “We exhale it. It's now being called a pollutant.” Liberal conspiracy to defraud the American people by making CO2 as valuable as gold. “It's made to order for the gullible and for the well-intentioned, the do-gooders and so forth out there who also have been convinced after 20 years of this campaign that they are the culprits, that they are responsible for it.”

Sean Hannity Does not believe it is happening. Natural cycles

Best way to learn is from the evidence As always, past history can educate us as to what may be going on. It is no different in this case… The video shall explore the evidence, –both current and past –pros and cons –trends and causes –and the reasons behind any increases…

FACTS…Not made up There are 500 million cars on Earth They release 4 billion tons of CO2 each year into the air!

FACTS…Not made up Of all man-made CO2 - 20% comes from car exhausts!

FACTS…Not made up Since the industrial revolution CO2 levels are today 35% higher!

FACTS…Not made up The U.S. produces about 25% of all CO2 emissions from burning fossil fuels

FACTS…Not made up CO2 levels expected to increase each year from 2001 to 2025 by 2%

FACTS…Not made up Number of Category 4 and 5 hurricanes has almost doubled in the last 30 years!

FACTS…Not made up Deaths directly related to global warming will double in 25 years to 300,000 people a year!

FACTS…Not made up More than a million species could be driven to extinction by 2050!

Questions on video 1.What do coral growth bands tell us? 2.What was the ‘snowball’ earth? 3.Which gases are more troublesome than carbon dioxide as greenhouse gases? 4.What type of ice melt can cause sea levels to rise? 5.The planet changes its orbital path every how many years? 6.According to the video, the Earth should be getting colder right now, but it is getting warmer. Why?

Questions on video - 2 A.Name at least two ‘Mega Mammals’? B.What significance did caves how in this video? C.Why are sunspots significant to Earths’ climate? D.Are human activities contributing to the cause? E.What rate of change in temperatures are we seeing at this time?

Group discussion questions 1.What was your view and understanding of global warming before the video? What is it now? 2.What changes are you aware of due to warming related factors? 3.What 5 things can you do today to help offset global warming? 4.How can humans survive the upcoming challenges as a result of global warming?