Global Warming: Fact or Fable?

Throughout history global warming has been on peoples minds. Global warming is “an increase in the volume of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, contributing to a “green-house” or insulating effect that traps heat from the sun’s rays and raises the average temperature around the world” (Viotti and Kauppi p 543). Some causes of this environmental threat are: pollution of harmful gases in the atmosphere, deforestation, and technological advances. The effects to the human population, animals, and agriculture could be dangerous. There are people who believe this is happening and something needs to be done. Then there are people who say global warming is a myth and our global society is not in any eminent danger. So my question is: Is global warming fact or fable?

To fully understand how global warming affects the world we know today, we have to go back to the 1800’s when scientists began learning about global warming and the greenhouse effect. “Swedish scientist Svante Arrhenius warned that carbon dioxide emissions could lead to global warming” (United Nations). Arrhenius was an electrochemist. In 1884, he wrote “His doctoral thesis on the chemical theory of electrolytes” (NASA), which was considered uninspiring when first submitted and after further examination was considered an important aspect of the theory of affinity and laid the foundation of future sciences. “In 1889 Arrhenius also observed that the speed of chemical reactions increases markedly when the temperature is increased, at a rate proportional to the concentration of the activated molecules” (Svante Arrhenius). In 1891 he founded the Stockholm Physical Society where he and fellow scientists discussed different areas of chemical makeup regarding the earth and its atmosp...

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...untries have the most deforested areas and the percentages of forests lost in each.

Warming 7

(Simmon, R)

(Simmon, R)

Warming 8

Rising sea levels and the water supply are of great concern as well. Since the heat is not escaping into space the earth and its components are in affect getting warmer. What happens when the icy regions of Antarctica and Greenland get warmer; they melt. When ice melts into the oceans, lakes, and rivers the water levels rise. When this happens the water cannot go anywhere except over land thus causing more concern for population, agriculture, and animals. “If the Greenland were to melt, it would raise the sea level 7 meters (23 feet). Melting of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet would raise sea level 5 meters (16 feet)” (Earth Policy Institute). That is a lot of water even if only part of these ice sheets melted.