Worldchanging: A User's Guide for the 21st Century

Book Description

Worldchanging is poised to be the Whole Earth Catalog for this millennium. Written by leading new thinkers who believe that the means for building a better future lie all around us, Worldchanging is packed with the information, resources, reviews, and ideas that give readers the tools they need to make a difference. Brought together by Alex Steffen, co-founder of the popular and award-winning web site Worldchanging.com, this team of top-notch writers includes Cameron Sinclair, founder of Architecture for Humanity, Geekcorps founder Ethan Zuckerman, sustainable food expert Anna Lappé, and many others. Renowned designer Stefan Sagmeister brings his extraordinary talents to Worldchanging, resulting in a book that will challenge readers to personally redefine the conversation about the future.

Each chapter offers readers new answers to key questions, such as:
Why does buying locally produced food make sense?
What steps can I take to influence my workplace toward sustainability?
How do I volunteer, advocate, and give more effectively?

From eco-building to responsible shopping, political action to humanitarian relief, Worldchanging
puts the power to solve problems into the reader's hands.

Customer Reviews:

Interesting but not what I expected.......2007-09-14

This is more like an encyclopedia than "a users guide for the 21st century". The hefty volume includes hundreds of short topical articles on lots of different things but doesn't go into a lot of detail on any. I was hoping for more practical examples of things I could do to survive in a changing world but was disappointed. For example, there is a section on Green Rooftops. You would think that a "users guide" might give you practical advice on creating one. Instead it talks about how they are great for saving energy and creating gardens. Okay... I get that and I agree but maybe a little more info please?

All and all the writing is good and it does cover a lot of topics I just think that the description when buying it leads one to believe there is a bit more depth than there actually is.

This book could change your world.......2007-08-29

This publication is worth it's weight in something quite valuable. It provides a mass of information on all sorts of subjects relating to changing your outlook and how to live within the planets available resources. It has some surprisingly useful tips on things like how to make a small apartment look and feel big by using great space saving ideas; how to use less of the planets scarce resources in many ways.

My only beef is that it looks like a self published volume and so lacks gravitas somehow. For example it does not have any information on the inner fly page about the book, such as year of publication, publisher, ISBN Number, and other essential info. Another problem I found was actually finding some of the reference works in the text. Not enough info to enable the reader to trace sources adequately.

I found it very difficult for example to find the publisher of one work I was interested in. Google hadn't even heard of the publisher. I did find them and the book eventually but had to try very hard and boy, was it obscure.

Even though the jacket and outer are quite attractive, they reek of self-publishing. This is not good for the image of a book on such an important subject.

Sorry chaps, only 6 out of 10 from me.

Good reference.......2007-07-15

Some info is out of date and biased, ie article on Vancouver (my home town). Lots is covered, not in much depth but there are lots of references for further reading. Would be a great addition to everyone's reference section.

brilliant!.......2007-07-12

For a "users guide" I actually expected something more "portable"... its brilliant in its content and design!!

A smart and inclusive book, really recommendable! .......2007-07-03

The book contains small articles about everything between heaven and earth all within the envionmental scope of interest. You find your self reading it, flipping through the pages wanting more info...A fun concept between an excellent encyclopedia, interesting facts book and a nice coffee table book. Only con might be the size, making it a bit bulky to read for more than a short while...

Why Geography Matters: Three Challenges Facing America: Climate Change, the Rise of China, and Global Terrorism

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Occasionally insightful, but generally uninspired
Important book
What we should have learned in school about the world...
Very informative reading
Debunking the global warming myth!

Why Geography Matters: Three Challenges Facing America: Climate Change, the Rise of China, and Global Terrorism
Harm de Blij
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0195315820

Book Description

Over the next half century, the human population, divided by culture and economics and armed with weapons of mass destruction, will expand to nearly 9 billion people. Abrupt climate change may throw the global system into chaos; China will emerge as a superpower; and Islamic terrorism and insurgency will threaten vital American interests. How can we understand these and other global challenges? Harm de Blij has a simple answer: by improving our understanding of the world's geography. In Why Geography Matters, de Blij demonstrates how geography's perspectives yield unique and penetrating insights into the interconnections that mark our shrinking world. Preparing for climate change, averting a cold war with China, defeating terrorism: all of this requires geographic knowledge. De Blij also makes an urgent call to restore geography to America's educational curriculum. He shows how and why the U.S. has become the world's most geographically illiterate society of consequence, and demonstrates the great risk this poses to America's national security. Peppering his writing with anecdotes from his own professional travels, de Blij provides an original treatise that is as engaging as it is eye opening. Casual or professional readers in areas such as education, politics, or national security will find themselves with a stimulating new perspective on geography as it continues to affect our world.

Customer Reviews:

Occasionally insightful, but generally uninspired.......2007-08-29

I would describe this book as the rambling--but occasionally insightful--musings of a thoughtful scholar. Unfortunately, many, if not most, of Blij's arguments are not made from a geographic perspective. For instance, his chapter on the European Union rambles on for page after page about the history of the EU from the European Coal and Steel Community, to the European Economic Community, to the European Community, and, finally, to the European Union. That's not to say that's not and interesting and important history lesson for people who are unfamiliar with EU history, but its not geographic! I was hoping for a book of theories explaining human events using reasoning built on spatial orientations or location. Why Geography Matters had some of that, but Blij could have, in my view, omitted much of the voluminous background information. Doing some would have made his book more concise and allowing his genuine insights to be featured more prominently.

And for what its worth, the book could have used a better editor. For instance, on p.160 it refers to "South Ossetia" as a Russian Republic instead of North Ossetia. I noticed a couple errors like this.

Perhaps, I would be more positive about this book if its last chapter hadn't been the low point. The chapter on Africa had absolutely nothing original to say (AIDS is bad, we need to do more to stop it; colonization and slavery were bad too; Africa has been plagued by bad leadership; etc.).

Important book.......2007-08-28

This is an exceptional and needed introduction to Geography and how it relates to world problems.

What we should have learned in school about the world..........2007-05-27

This is essential reading for anyone who should have a sound foundation of knowledge to back up one's social commentary, but doesn't. Geography can be understood and used to understand our world with great clarity. Everyone who watched Al Gore's movie should read this book if only to know that Harm de Blij has been explaining geographic issues for decades better than nearly anyone.

The US Department of Education needs to buy and issue a copy of this book to every teacher in America.

Very informative reading.......2007-05-13

This is definitely a quality work in the field of Geography with an emphasis on Politics i.e. GeoPolitics. However, it is important to point out a couple of incorrect facts I found while reading this work.

1. On page 190 we have the statement, "On an aircraft carrier off the coast of California, President Bush declared "mission accomplished.", regarding the war in Iraq. If you read the speech that President Bush gave, you will find that he never uttered the words "mission accomplished." The author just regurgitated this line from the biased print media i.e. The NYTimes, Time, Newsweek, etc... Intuitively, if you think about it, George Bush, assigns the mission to the military and after assigning the mission to the military he is not going to turn around and say good "mission accomplished. That is what the military's response, will be, to the President, after they have completed the mission. This is reflected by the fact that the military hung a banner up on the aircraft carrier that said "Mission Accomplished."

2. On pages 193-194 The author states. "The American invasion severly damaged the city, which was for months afterward, and remains as of this writing, without a reliable water supply, power, medical facilities, or schools." It is very true that much of the infrastructure in Iraq is severly damaged, but the author has tried to blame this on American firepower and it is simply not true. The precision guided weapons our U.S. forces utilized were excellent at avoiding collateral damage. The truth is more damning for the Saddam regime. THE INFRASTUCTURE DAMAGE WAS CAUSED BY 30 PLUS YEARS OF NEGLECT ON THE PART OF THE BAATH PARTY AND NOT AMERICAN MILITARY MIGHT. Also, the military planners who provided for getting the infrastructure back online, after the war, grossly underestimated the level of the existing infrastructure of Iraq, before the U.S. military even set foot inside the country.

Overall I recommend this work, but it cannot be given five stars due to these errors.

Debunking the global warming myth!.......2007-03-08

This is an excellent book based on scientific fact debunking the "global warming" myth.

I highly recommend this book.

Global Warming in the 21st Century [Three Volumes] (Praeger Perspectives)

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Global Warming in the 21st Century [Three Volumes] (Praeger Perspectives)
Bruce E. Johansen
Manufacturer: Praeger Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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An Inconvenient Truth

ASIN: 0275985857

Book Description

Evidence of rising temperatures, melting ice, rising sea levels, and damage to flora and fauna on land and in the oceans has been accumulating for several decades. Scientific bodies around the world have traced this trend to increasing levels of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, most of it attributable to the consumption of fossil fuels. Despite the evidence, political debate still rages over the existence of global warming. Global Warming in the 21st Century provides a detailed review of the accumulating evidence of global warming, from the Arctic and Antarctic to the tropics, focusing special attention on a number of processes that will accelerate warming as the century passes. Extensive warming also could endanger sea life through the devastation of phytoplankton populations at the base of the oceanic food chain. Bruce Johansen presents scientific theories on the subject that conflict with popular assumptions and explains that global warming is a slow-motion crisis in which the effects of greenhouse gas emissions are not evident in the atmosphere until roughly a half-century after they occur. Extensive reports from scientific literature explain how ozone depletion in the stratosphere and warming near the surface of the Earth are related. This three-volume work also proposes detailed solutions to global warming, including a worldwide overhaul in energy systems that will go beyond the initial diplomatic efforts of the Kyoto Protocol. The set ends with one of the most extensive bibliographies in the field and includes more than 80 color and black and white illustrations.

The Kyoto Protocol: International Climate Policy for the 21st Century

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The Kyoto Protocol: International Climate Policy for the 21st Century
Sebastian Oberthür , and Hermann E. Ott
Manufacturer: Springer
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 354066470X

Book Description

The adoption of the Kyoto Protocol in December 1997 was a major achievement in the endeavour to tackle the problem of global climate change at the dawn of the 21st century. After many years of involvement in the negotiation process, the book's two internationally recognised authors now offer the international community a first hand and inside perspective of the debate on the Kyoto Protocol. The book provides a comprehensive scholarly analysis of the history and content of the Protocol itself as well as of the economic, political and legal implications of its implementation. It also presents a perspective for the further development of the climate regime. These important features make this book an indispensable working tool for policy makers, negotiators, academics and all those actively involved and interested in climate change issues in both the developed and developing world.

21st Century Essential Guide to Carbon Sequestration: Greenhouse Gas and Carbon Dioxide Capture and Pollution Control to Prevent Global Warming, Coal Power Plant Research (CD-ROM)

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21st Century Essential Guide to Carbon Sequestration: Greenhouse Gas and Carbon Dioxide Capture and Pollution Control to Prevent Global Warming, Coal Power Plant Research (CD-ROM)
U.S. Government
Manufacturer: Progressive Management
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: CD-ROM
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ASIN: 1422006662

Product Description

This unique electronic book on two CD-ROMs has the finest collection of federal documents and resources available anywhere about carbon sequestration, capturing carbon dioxide emissions from coal-fired power plants to help prevent global warming from greenhouse gases. The Department of Energys National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) manages laboratory and field R&D focused on technologies with great potential for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and controlling global climate change. Most efforts focus on capturing carbon dioxide from large stationary sources such as power plants, and sequestering it using geologic, terrestrial ecosystem, or oceanic approaches. Control of fugitive methane emissions is also addressed. Carbon sequestration work directly implements the President's Global Climate Change Initiative, as well as several National Energy Policy goals targeting the development of new technologies. It also supports the goals of the Framework Convention on Climate Change and other international collaborations to reduce greenhouse gas intensity and greenhouse gas emissions. The programmatic timeline is to demonstrate a portfolio of safe, cost effective greenhouse gas capture, storage, and mitigation technologies at the commercial scale by 2012, leading to substantial deployment and market penetration beyond 2012. These greenhouse gas mitigation technologies will help slow greenhouse gas emissions in the near-term. They also provide potential for ultimately stabilizing and reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the United States. NETL-funded activities in carbon sequestration include: l Core research and development. In its core R&D efforts, NETL focuses on developing new sequestration technologies and approaches to the point of pre-commercial deployment. Primary objectives are (1) lowering the cost and energy penalty associated with CO2 capture from large point sources, and (2) improving understanding of factors affecting ! CO2 storage permanence, capacity, and safety in geologic formations and terrestrial ecosystems. Funded research activities address: carbon dioxide capture; carbon storage; monitoring, mitigation, and verification; and fugitive methane control. The NETL portfolio also includes breakthrough R&D that furthers revolutionary and transformational sequestration concepts with potential for low cost, permanence, and large global capacity. Regional carbon sequestration partnerships. On behalf of DOE, NETL manages seven regional carbon sequestration partnerships. These partnerships engage state agencies, universities, and private companies to create a nationwide network that will help determine the best approaches for capturing and permanently storing greenhouse gases. Documents reproduced include: Carbon Sequestration Technology Roadmap; Carbon Sequestration Program Outreach Plan; DOE-Advances Commercialization of Climate Change Technology; Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnerships Program, and much more. Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock composed mostly of carbon and hydrocarbons. It is the most abundant fossil fuel produced in the United States. Over 90 percent of the coal used in the United States is used to generate electricity. It's also used as a basic energy source in many industries, including, steel, cement and paper. This CD-ROM is packed with over 13,000 pages reproduced using Adobe Acrobat PDF software - allowing direct viewing on Windows and Macintosh systems. The Acrobat cataloging technology adds enormous value and uncommon functionality to this impressive collection of government documents and material. Our news and educational discs are privately compiled collections of official public domain U.S. government files and documents - they are not produced by the federal government. They are designed to provide a convenient user-friendly reference work, utilizing the benefits of the Adobe Acrobat format to uniformly present thousands of pages that can be rapid

Protecting the Ozone Layer: Science and Strategy (Environmental Science)

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Protecting the Ozone Layer: Science and Strategy (Environmental Science)
Edward A. Parson
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0195155491

Book Description

This book is the first comprehensive history of international efforts to protect the ozone layer, the greatest success yet achieved in managing human impacts on the global environment. Its arguments about how this success was achieved are both theoretically novel and of great significance for the management of other global problems, particularly global climate change. The book provides an account of the ozone-depletion issues from the first attempts to develop international action in the 1970s to the mature functioning of the present international regime. It examines the parallel developments of politics and negotiations, scientific understanding and controversy, technological progress, and industry strategy that shaped the issue's development and its effective management. In addition, the book offers important new insights into how the interactions among these domains influenced the formation and adaptation of the ozone regime. Addressing the initial formation of the regime, the book argues that authoritative scientific assessments were crucial in constraining policy debates and shaping negotiated agreements. Assessments gave scientific claims an ability to change policy actors' behavior that the claims themselves, however well known and verified, lacked. Concerning subsequent adaptation of the regime, the book identifies a series of feedbacks between the periodic revision of chemical controls and the strategic responses of affected industries, which drove rapid application of new approaches to reduce ozone-depleting chemicals. These feedbacks, promoted by the regime's novel technology assessment process, allowed worldwide use of the chemicals to decline further and faster than even the boldest predictions, by nearly 95 percent within ten years.

21st Century Complete Guide to Global Warming, Climate Change, Greenhouse Gases, and Ozone Depletion

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21st Century Complete Guide to Global Warming, Climate Change, Greenhouse Gases, and Ozone Depletion
World Spaceflight News
Manufacturer: Progressive Management
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: CD-ROM
ASIN: 1893472892

Book Description

This electronic book on CD-ROM provides the most up-to-date and comprehensive collection available anywhere of official information and documents on climate change, global warming, greenhouse gases, and ozone depletion. Hundreds of reports from the EPA, NASA, NOAA, Energy Department, DOT, State Department, and United Nations cover every aspect of the problem, from the latest climate science data to regulatory action in the United States and elsewhere. There is extensive material on the proposed Kyoto Protocol on Climate Change, inventories of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions, US and world temperature measurements and trends, spacecraft observations, impacts on sea levels and individual states, research papers, energy production and consumption, paleoclimatology, ozone depletion, polar ozone hole, the Montreal Protocol controlling ozone-depleting chemicals, chlorofluorocarbons, and much more - over 30,000 pages of superb information. Please see the Table of Contents link on this page for additional content details.

This book-on-a-disc makes a superb reference work for concerned citizens and environmentalists, researchers, libraries, schools, students, and home reference!

Our CD-ROM is designed to provide a convenient user-friendly general reference work, utilizing the benefits of the Adobe Acrobat format to uniformly present thousands of pages that can be rapidly reviewed or printed without untold hours of tedious searching and downloading. Vast archives of important government information that might otherwise remain inaccessible are available for instant review.

The documents are reproduced using Adobe Acrobat PDF software - allowing direct viewing on Windows and Apple Macintosh systems. Reader software is included on the CD.

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21st Century Complete Guide to Paleoclimatology: Research into the Climate of the Past-Global Warming and Climate Change Insights, Greenhouse Gas Profiles
World Spaceflight News
Manufacturer: Progressive Management
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: CD-ROM
ASIN: 1422006379

Book Description

This up-to-date and comprehensive electronic book on CD-ROM provides the finest collection of official federal documents available anywhere on the subject of paleoclimatology. Paleoclimatology is the study of climate prior to the widespread availability of records of temperature, precipitation and other instrumental data. There is particular interest in the last few thousand years because this is the best dated, best sampled part of the past climatic record and can help us establish the range of natural climatic variability in a period prior to global-scale human influence. Environmental recorders are used to estimate past climatic conditions and thus extend our understanding far beyond the 100+ year instrumental record. "Proxy" records of climate have been preserved in tree rings, locked in the skeletons of tropical coral reefs, extracted as ice cores from glaciers and ice caps, and buried in laminated sediments from lakes and the ocean.

This research is enormously important to understanding our current climate and the possible changes caused by greenhouse gases and global warming. Research involves computer climate reconstructions and physical investigations into ice cores, coral, tree rings, insects, and pollen. This research is providing important information about glacial and carbon cycles.

Paleoclimatologists use clues from natural "proxy" sources such as tree rings, ice cores, corals, and ocean and lake sediments to understand natural climate variability. NOAA Paleoclimatology operates the World Data Center for Paleoclimatology and the Applied Research Center for Paleoclimatology, with the goal to provide data and information scientists need to understand natural climate variability as well as future climate change. International partners include the Past Global Changes Program of the International Geosphere Biosphere Programme, and the World Data Center system of the International Council of Scientific Unions. Topics covered in this extensive material include:

Borehole Data * Climate Forcing * Climate Reconstructions (Estimates of past climate conditions) * Corals & Sclerosponges * Fauna * Historical Data * Ice Cores * Insect * Lake Levels * Loess * Paleoclimatic Modeling * Paleofire * Paleolimnology * Paleomagnetism * Paleoceanography * Plant Macrofossils * Pollen * Speleothems * Tree Ring * Other Collections * Papers and reviews on conferences, scientific goals, milestones, Paleo Perspective on Abrupt Climate Change, North American Drought Paleo Perspective, Paleo Perspective on Global Warming. In addition to the comprehensive coverage of paleoclimatology, there is coverage of the U.S. Global Change Research Information Office (GCRIO) and NOAA programs on climate change and global warming.

In all, this CD-ROM has over 24,000 pages reproduced using Adobe Acrobat PDF software - allowing direct viewing on Windows and Apple Macintosh systems. Reader software is included on the CD.

Our news and educational discs are privately compiled collections of official public domain U.S. government files and documents - they are not produced by the federal government. They are designed to provide a convenient user-friendly reference work, utilizing the benefits of the Adobe Acrobat format to uniformly present thousands of pages that can be rapidly reviewed, searched by finding specific words, or printed without untold hours of tedious research and downloading. Vast archives of important public domain government information that might otherwise remain inaccessible are available for instant review no matter where you are. This book-on-a-disc format makes a great reference work and educational tool. There is no other reference that is as fast, convenient, comprehensive, thoroughly researched, and portable - everything you need to know, from the federal sources you trust.

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21st Century Environmental Threat: A New Ice Age? Global Warming at the Tipping Point Climate Change Research (Two CD-ROM Set)
U.S. Government
Manufacturer: Progressive Management
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: CD-ROM
ASIN: 1422006263

Product Description

This up-to-date and comprehensive electronic book on two CD-ROMs presents an incredible collection of important documents, reports, and publications from the federal government about the science of global warming and climate change. There is speculation that ocean currents could change in a way that actually triggers a new ice age, or at least significant localized cooling, in some parts of the Northern Hemisphere. There is extraordinary material from the federal agencies and departments working on this vital issue: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Department of Energy (DOE), Commerce Department, State Department, Agriculture Department (USDA), U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), Department of Interior, Department of Transportation (DOT), and the National Science Foundation (NSF). There are hundreds of references, position papers, action reports, and more from the U.S. Global Change Research Program (GCRP) and other activities of the federal government. Topics covered include: Greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide), emissions and impacts, the global carbon cycle, land-use and land-cover changes, ecosystems, observation and monitoring, American and international research and cooperation, human contributions and responses, sea level rises, beach erosion, wetlands, global water cycle, climate variability, solar influence, future climate trends and computer models, uncertainties, possible effect on extreme weather and hurricanes, science programs, and ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. With over one and a half gigabytes of valuable information, there is no better source of up-to-date material on global warming and climate change. According to the National Academy of Sciences, the Earth's surface temperature has risen by about 1 degree Fahrenheit in the past century, with accelerated warming during the past two decades. There is new and stronger evidence that most of the warming over the last 50 years is attributable to human activities. Human activities have altered the chemical composition of the atmosphere through the buildup of greenhouse gases primarily carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide. The heat-trapping property of these gases is undisputed although uncertainties exist about exactly how earths climate responds to them. Energy from the sun drives the earths weather and climate, and heats the earths surface; in turn, the earth radiates energy back into space. Atmospheric greenhouse gases (water vapor, carbon dioxide, and other gases) trap some of the outgoing energy, retaining heat somewhat like the glass panels of a greenhouse. Without this natural greenhouse effect, temperatures! would be much lower than they are now, and life as known today would not be possible. Instead, thanks to greenhouse gases, the earths average temperature is a more hospitable 60°F. However, problems may arise when the atmospheric concentration of greenhouse gases increases. Since the beginning of the industrial revolution, atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide have increased nearly 30%, methane concentrations have more than doubled, and nitrous oxide concentrations have risen by about 15%. These increases have enhanced the heat-trapping capability of the earths atmosphere. Sulfate aerosols, a common air pollutant, cool the atmosphere by reflecting light back into space; however, sulfates are short-lived in the atmosphere and vary regionally. Scientists generally believe that the combustion of fossil fuels and other human activities are the primary reason for the increased concentration of carbon dioxide. Plant respiration and the decomposition of organic matter release more than 10 times the CO2 released by human activities; but these releases have generally been in balance during the centuries leading up to the industrial revolution with carbon dioxide absorbed by terrestrial

21st Century Ultimate Guide to Climate Change and Global Warming: Science Reports, Climate Models, Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Sources, Sinks, Atmospheric Science Observations (2 CD-ROM Set)

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21st Century Ultimate Guide to Climate Change and Global Warming: Science Reports, Climate Models, Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Sources, Sinks, Atmospheric Science Observations (2 CD-ROM Set)
U.S. Government
Manufacturer: Progressive Management
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: CD-ROM
ASIN: 1422006433

Book Description

There is extraordinary material from the federal agencies and departments working on this vital issue: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Department of Energy (DOE), Commerce Department, State Department, Agriculture Department (USDA), U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), Department of Interior, Department of Transportation (DOT), and the National Science Foundation (NSF). There are hundreds of references, position papers, action reports, and more from the U.S. Global Change Research Program (GCRP) and other activities of the federal government. Topics covered include:

Greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide), emissions and impacts, the global carbon cycle, land-use and land-cover changes, ecosystems, observation and monitoring, American and international research and cooperation, human contributions and responses, sea level rises, beach erosion, wetlands, global water cycle, climate variability, solar influence, future climate trends and computer models, uncertainties, possible effect on extreme weather and hurricanes, science programs, and ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

With over one and a half gigabytes of valuable information, there is no better source of up-to-date material on global warming and climate change.

According to the National Academy of Sciences, the Earth's surface temperature has risen by about 1 degree Fahrenheit in the past century, with accelerated warming during the past two decades. There is new and stronger evidence that most of the warming over the last 50 years is attributable to human activities. Human activities have altered the chemical composition of the atmosphere through the buildup of greenhouse gases - primarily carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide. The heat-trapping property of these gases is undisputed although uncertainties exist about exactly how earth's climate responds to them. Energy from the sun drives the earth's weather and climate, and heats the earth's surface; in turn, the earth radiates energy back into space. Atmospheric greenhouse gases (water vapor, carbon dioxide, and other gases) trap some of the outgoing energy, retaining heat somewhat like the glass panels of a greenhouse. Without this natural "greenhouse effect," temperatures would be much lower than they are now, and life as known today would not be possible. Instead, thanks to greenhouse gases, the earth's average temperature is a more hospitable 60°F. However, problems may arise when the atmospheric concentration of greenhouse gases increases. Since the beginning of the industrial revolution, atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide have increased nearly 30%, methane concentrations have more than doubled, and nitrous oxide concentrations have risen by about 15%. These increases have enhanced the heat-trapping capability of the earth's atmosphere. Sulfate aerosols, a common air pollutant, cool the atmosphere by reflecting light back into space; however, sulfates are short-lived in the atmosphere and vary regionally. Scientists generally believe that the combustion of fossil fuels and other human activities are the primary reason for the increased concentration of carbon dioxide. Plant respiration and the decomposition of organic matter release more than 10 times the CO2 released by human activities; but these releases have generally been in balance during the centuries leading up to the industrial revolution with carbon dioxide absorbed by terrestrial vegetation and the oceans. What has changed in the last few hundred years is the additional release of carbon dioxide by human activities.

In all, the set of two discs has over 49,00

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