Padraic
Active member
- Joined
- Sep 13, 2006
- Messages
- 1,755
The human impacts upon global climate is a controversial topic. This book is one of the more controversial books on that topic.
Al Gore discusses the history, causes and science of global climate change. A number of surprising and unsettling facts are brought up which illustrate how and why scientists have been surprised in the past.
The book discusses:
* The melting of glaciers and the artic and antartic ice caps.
* Projected increases in the strength of hurricanes and typhoons.
* Changes in precipitation patterns
* Changes in groundwater levels
* Melting of permafrost
* Changes in the ocean currents and how this could impact weather.
* Increases in invasive species, and the rise in extinctions.
* The spread of disease
* The Kyoto Treaty and other carbon markets.
* Technologies that may reduce our dependance on greenhouse gas producing fuels.
Al Gore is unapologetically biased in his presentation, and yet he is very persuasive. It also repeatedly stresses that we have the technologies that will flatten the projected rise in greenhouse gases. This reduces the doomsday feel of the book.
The projections he makes have been criticized, and seem to be overstated. I would prefer to have seen more justification for his claims that sea levels could rise by 20', which seems difficult to accept. Moreover, the effects we are already seeing are disturbing enough without the "hard sell".
Anyone who is concerned with this topic should read this book, whether or not they believe that human activity has any impact on global weather.
Al Gore discusses the history, causes and science of global climate change. A number of surprising and unsettling facts are brought up which illustrate how and why scientists have been surprised in the past.
The book discusses:
* The melting of glaciers and the artic and antartic ice caps.
* Projected increases in the strength of hurricanes and typhoons.
* Changes in precipitation patterns
* Changes in groundwater levels
* Melting of permafrost
* Changes in the ocean currents and how this could impact weather.
* Increases in invasive species, and the rise in extinctions.
* The spread of disease
* The Kyoto Treaty and other carbon markets.
* Technologies that may reduce our dependance on greenhouse gas producing fuels.
Al Gore is unapologetically biased in his presentation, and yet he is very persuasive. It also repeatedly stresses that we have the technologies that will flatten the projected rise in greenhouse gases. This reduces the doomsday feel of the book.
The projections he makes have been criticized, and seem to be overstated. I would prefer to have seen more justification for his claims that sea levels could rise by 20', which seems difficult to accept. Moreover, the effects we are already seeing are disturbing enough without the "hard sell".
Anyone who is concerned with this topic should read this book, whether or not they believe that human activity has any impact on global weather.
