Global Warming and the Greenhouse Effect
Recently, global warming has moved to a serious scientific issue. Because sunlight is constantly falling on the earth, the law of physics say that the planet has to radiate the same amount of energy back into space. Infrared radiation is sent out by the earth through the atmosphere, where molecules (carbon dioxide) hold outgoing radiation for a while, warming the surface.1 The molecules are kind of like glass in a greenhouse which is why this process of warming is called the greenhouse effect.
The greenhouse effect has been operating since the beginning of time. Without the effect, the surface of the earth would be -20 degrees Celsius, oceans would have frozen, and there would be no life on earth. The Washington Post has reported that the earth is warmer than it has been in 1,200 years.2 Recently, the summer of 1999 set records for heat in much of the United States. The average world temperature has increased one degree Fahrenheit over the last 120 years, making the world hotter than it has been in 100,000 years. From the beginning of the industrial revolution, concentrations of carbon dioxide have increased by 30%, concentrations of methane have doubled, and nitrous oxide has risen by 15%. The increases of these chemicals have enhanced the heat trapping capability of the atmosphere of the earth. Sulfate aerosols, cool the atmosphere because they reflect light back into space, but sulfates do not live long in the atmosphere.
Scientists still do not know what exactly is heating up the earth. Some say the earth is going through a natural cycle because the earth has gone through cold periods as well as hot periods. Mounting evidence is saying that humans are to blame for the rise in temperatures over the past 120 years. When we burn fossil fuel, oil, gasoline, and natural gas to run power plants, cars, and heat homes, we produce carbon dioxide. An increase in carbon dioxide magnifies the greenhouse effect. All this energy accounts for 80% of society’s carbon dioxide emissions, 25% of methane emissions, and 20% of nitrous oxide emissions. In 1994, the U.S. emitted one fifth of all the greenhouse gases in the earth. Carbon dioxide amounts are now 360 parts per million today, verses 315 per million parts in 1958, when modern technology started, and 270 per million parts in pre-industrial times. Sc...
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...mate change means at a local and regional level.
Deforestation is another issue that is often discussed as a problem contributing to global warming that can easily be stopped. Deforestation has many negative effects such as ecological imbalance, bio-diversity loss, and climate change. Most areas in which deforestation is a problem are located in 3rd world countries. Deforestation leads to a massive extinction of species as well as vascular plant species, such as trees. When this happens, atmospheric carbon dioxide is increased because the carbon in forests is higher than in the agricultural areas which replace them.
In conclusion, global warming is an increase of the Earth’s surface temperature and the Earth’s lower atmosphere. Atmospheric greenhouse gases (water vapor, carbon dioxide, and other gases) trap outgoing energy, and retain heat like the glass panels in a greenhouse. Many people believe that humans are causing the problem with emissions from things such as cars and trucks. Others say that the warming is just part of a trend and that the world goes through warm and cold periods. If the planet continues to warm, there could be many harmful side effects.
Global Warming, much of what does or does not happen forty years from now rests on our actions or inactions taken between now and then. The crucial question is whether we should pour all our resources into mitigation – reducing our carbon emissions. According to scientists who study the climate there are other environmental problems; “we now face a global crises in land use and agriculture that could undermine the health, security, and sustainability of our civilization”.
My interest in the career of optometry stems from my first experience in the optometry office to receive my first pair of glasses when I was in middle school. I distinctly remember the moment when my optometrist slipped my new glasses over my eyes for the first time. Suddenly, everything in the room came into sharp, clear focus. I knew that the glasses would help me see the board in school, but I was astonished to find that I could see small details about the room, as it had never before occurred to me that I should have been able to see these details. I was also surprised that I was even able to see the expressions on the faces of people who were standing far away from me. It was one of the most incredible, freeing, and empowering moments of my life. As I walked out of the optometry office, I felt
First, during the last few decades the Earth is experiencing greater rate of rising temperatures due to greenhouse gases that are being produced by human activities rather than because of environmental reasons, such as solar or volcanic activities. In 2006 the President of the National Academy of Sciences stated: “There is no doubt that the Earth is warming,” also he added that people are at least partly responsible for these changes in addition to regular factors (Cicerone, par.4). Natural factors have produced climate fluctuations on Earth for several million years. People have effected an atmosphere of the Earth just for nearly one hundred years, since Industrial Revolution has begun (Revkin 340). Of course, it is unfair to say that global warming is caused entirely by humans. For example, people can not have an impact on the position of Earth in relation to the sun, or on the galactic density, or such nature events as air emissions of volcanic gases. As a result of these environmental factors, Earth usually had higher rates of temperature fluctuations during the previous million years than it has in later centuries. On the other hand, people are responsible for the highest concentration of greenhouse gases during the last 650,000 years in the atmosphere due to industrial manufacturing, driven by the increase in consumer consumption (Lindsey, par.
Many factors can determine why someone belongs to a specific taste culture, but one factor that Gans (1974) believes is the most impactful is socioeconomic class. Growing up in a typical middle-class home with two parents who have only received a high school diploma, according to Gans, I belong in the lower-middle taste culture. However, I “turn to fiction that depicts the struggle of women to compete with men in male-dominated enterprises...and more recently, the potentialities and problems of women’s liberation (106). “ I read the New Yorker and Vogue, and shy away from Cosmopolitan or other women’s and homemaking magazines, which in essence means that I share more cultural
Does one drink caffeine? Caffeine is everywhere, it's in everything, it's apart of our daily lives. That’s what people doesn’t realizes; every soda drink, every cup of coffee, and every energy drink he or she gulps down before a thrilling game, all of that is caffeine. Caffeine is only completed when he or she get addicted. Caffeine can be an exceptional threat to the human body; energy drinks for example, it has enough caffeine to kill someone if he or she drinks enough. Energy drinks has been the number one drink high school students drink to stay awake in school; they even bring the drink in classrooms, and more than one energy drink. Soda has enough caffeine to destroy ones inner body. Soda is a everyday drink for some individuals, they
Scrutiny of caffeine and its effects has increased dramatically in the last 20 years, due in part to an increase in consumption of caffeine. In fact, coffee consumption among young adults rose to 3.2 cups per day in 2008 from 2.4 cups per day in 2005 (Rokerya 1). For instance, in a one hour period, on Richland College’s on-campus Starbucks, the author took note of how many customers arrived and purchased a cup of coffee. Between 8:00 and 9:00 AM, there were 51 customers, implying that – especially at college - many people are dependent on coffee in the mornings. However, the results from these studies are inconclusive and often somewhat contradictory – many studies (such as that by Tetsuya Ohara et al.) show that caffeine is a great boon to
My journey towards the field of optometry began in an unsuspecting place; a tiny pharmacy situated inside of a local medical facility. Throughout high school, I spent my time outside of class behind a counter, shadowing and working for a pharmacist who instructed me on the many facets of the profession. I always knew I wanted a career in the field of health, and the more I experienced the more I was certain that becoming a pharmacist was the perfect profession for me.
Dr. Anderson was successfully able to see a large number of patients per day, largely in part due to the help of staff members. Technicians perform pretesting on patients (including visual acuity testing and Optos imaging) and then direct patients to seats in the hall. This patient flow opens more chairs in the waiting room/dispensary and ensures that patients are ready to be seen by the doctor at the time of their appointment. Unfortunately, these chairs are immediately outside of the exam room, which necessitates exam room doors be completely shut for privacy. Overall, this process was a creative way of increasing the number of exams per day without increasing the number of exam lanes needed. Additional practice management advice gained was Dr. Anderson’s opinion on instrument importance and productivity. New optometry graduates must prioritize purchases due to large amounts of student debt and limited funding. Interestingly, Dr. Anderson advocated that the Optos retinal imaging instrument was his favorite and most profitable instrument. He explained that this technology provides a wow factor for patients, while also cutting down on exam time. For non-medical, routine exams, the retinal imaging allows for a complete exam without dilation (an added bonus for patients as well!). Furthermore, the advanced technology allows for sustained viewing of the retina and provides an opportunity for
Kaplan, G., D. J. Greenblatt, M.A.Kent, and M.M. Cotreau-Bibbo. 1996. Caffeine treatment and withdrawal in mice: Relationships between dosage, concentrations, locomotor activity and A1 adenosine receptor binding. Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics 266:1563-1573.
Caffeine plays an enormous role in society today, from coffee to cokes to candy bars. Companies have made billions off the desire for that extra kick. Caffeine is the most widely consumed behaviorally active substance in the world making it one of the world’s most popular drugs. It’s known for the ability to stimulate the brain and central nervous system. The Chemical structure of caffeine is C8H10N4O2. Before the popular use of caffeine one can assume that people were sleepier, and less alert.
As the vast majority of Americans are addicted to caffeine, studies show that the effects during post-consumption, can be positive or negative depending on the amount and frequency of caffeine intake. As the demand for caffeine has increased, the caffeine industry has increased its amount of marketing and establishments to help aid this demand. Caffeine addiction can lead to serious health detriments and physiological detriments. It is evident that the primary reason for consumption of caffeinated beverages is due to positive effects, such as alertness. The media has an abundance of marketing to continue to illustrate this main effect. The media fails to project the negative effects of excessive caffeine intake. This literature review will illustrate how excessive caffeine consumption can be detrimental to one’s life, and how problematic caffeine use derives from conditioning by the caffeine industries.
Almost everyone in our society today uses caffeine regularly, in one form or another. According to Jennifer Warner of WebMD Medical News, nearly 90% of adults and 76% of children drink some kind of caffeinated beverage every day. More than half of all American adults consume more than 3 cups of coffee. Also, a 1994 survey by the Agriculture Department found that on average, 64 gallons of soda are consumed by children and teenagers every year. Researchers have found that soft drinks have surpassed tea as the second leading source of caffeine for adults while being the top source of caffeine for children. People are not only getting their caffeine from coffee, soda and tea, but from other sources such as energy beverages, caffeinated water, herbal supplements and chocolate. You may not realize how much caffeine you are consuming on a daily basis because caffeine is not listed as an ingredient on the food or drink label, and the Nutrition Facts label does not show how much caffeine is in the product. In addition, beverages marketed as high-energy drinks may contain more than one type of caffeine extract, and in herbal sources, caffeine may not be listed as an active ingredient.
A study done in India in 2015, by the Department of Clinical Psychology, at the National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences, records the increase of caffinated product use by teenages. According to their study, usages have increased up to 70 percent in the past 30 years, “Consuming common caffeinated beverages like sodas may enhance the preference for sweet foods throughout the lifespan when regularly taken during childhood It can contribute to excess caloric intake and have a negative impact on one’s nutrition intake” (Kumar, 1).
Global warming is the gradual rise in temperature and oceans due to recent human activity. This is created by the production of too much carbon dioxide that is released into the earth’s atmosphere. The carbon dioxide, also known as a greenhouse gas, remains in the air trapping heat and gradually warming the planet. Other greenhouse gases such as: methane, nitrous oxide, and water vapor also contribute to this slow warming. According to Live Science, The state of these gases being trapped is called the greenhouse effect, which is one of the leading causes of global warming (Lallanillia). All the gases are created differently and have different effects on the earth. As for some greenhouse gases can be in the atmosphere for a short amount of time, other gases can remain in the atmosphere for thousands of
Global warming is an increase in the earth's temperature due to fossil fuels, industry, and agricultural processes caused by human, natural, and other gas emissions. This results in an increased evacuation of greenhouse gases. “Short-wave solar radiation sinks into the Earth's atmosphere and warms its surface while long-wave infrared radiation emitted by earth's surface is absorbed, and then re-emitted by trace gases.” (2)