so about that global warming...
I was reading just a few minutes ago about the Gore vs. Palin debate concerning global climate change. And among all these debates that have gone on and on and on and on for the last couple of decades or so, it seems that one HUGE fact has been omitted: the sun is heating up.
Let that sink in for a moment.
Here's the deal. The sun is a star. As a star, the sun converts hydrogen into helium as it burns, and like all other stars in existence, it goes through stages. Right now, the sun is in yellow dwarf stage, meaning that, granted what we know about stars is true, it is approximately halfway through its life cycle, and it at least WAS burning at a core temperature to help support life on earth, but not anywhere else that we know of.
The sun is currently running out of hydrogen, and when you have less of something, it tends to burn faster, causing an increase in temperature for a short time. We've had huge climate changes in the past that were NOT manmade (i.e. the ice age and subsequent melting thereof), and there are also cyclical patterns of temperature increase and drop that, if one takes the time to check, are well documented, at least since the 1700s if not before. There's more to considering the earth's core temperature than simply whether or not our carbon emissions and the 'hole in the ozone layer' are causing too many UV rays to enter earth's atmosphere. Have we forgotten that the core of the earth is comprised solely of piping hot magma, the levels of which tend to fluctuate?
Granted, the industrial revolution caused quite a bit of pollution to enter the atmosphere. So have cow farts, and we were an agricultural nation LOOOONG before we became industrial. Is it possible that automobiles, trains, etc. have taken over for the cows now that our agriculture is falling by the wayside? Maybe. But so far, no one is murdering cows, besides the farmers. And while I try to do my part to fight global warming by eating as much beef as possible, I can't stop the sun from burning through its hydrogen.
I watched this movie called "Sunshine" last year, the sole reason being the beautiful Chris Evans (and I was enthralled because the movie is more character driven than plot driven). Basically, the plot is that the sun is dying and these people are trying to reheat it. First, this is implausible. The sun will heat up before it dies, and when it does die, chances are that it will turn into an orange dwarf, meaning that it will EXPAND (thus destroying all life on earth and pretty much anywhere else), and then begin to retract, possibly even imploding and turning into a black hole. Honestly, our only hope would be to put more hydrogen into the sun. A lot more. Or maybe we can just throw in some cows.
I'm not going to say that things don't need to change, because they do. Industrialization and urbanization have led to deforestation (-ations are bad, just in case you haven't noticed), which in turn has led to a decrease in the conversion of carbon dioxide into oxygen. I did have a professor tell my class once that most of our oxygen production comes from ocean plants, but I digress. Regardless of the fact that we'll still have oxygen if we destroy every tree on the planet, the fact that the carbon dioxide won't be processed as much will lead to significant problems down the road (and a new book idea, but again, digressing). Even as a coal baby, I know that burning coal and other fossil fuels leads to environmental problems. But I just can't agree 100% with Al Gore that all of this is our fault. Not because I'm unwilling to take responsibility, but because, like the plot of that movie, it's implausible. Stars heat up before they cool down and die. And while Palin is an airhead, shooting her into the sun won't help, either (dammit).
I also can't take seriously a woman who denies that polar bears are becoming endangered considering their habitat is melting. Of course, I could never take her seriously, but that's a whole different point, and I'm fairly certain it's one I made in this journal's last incarnation, long before the presidential campaigns.
So, if you take nothing from this entry, take this: All the talking we do won't stop the sun from heating up.
***Also, I know that this is more akin to a high school research paper (you know, the ones sans references), but I'm annoyed and a little rushed. I'll post references later. This is what happens when you're a science nerd and can rattle off random information without really remembering where you got it.***
now i have to go to work and try to get some query letters done.
Let that sink in for a moment.
Here's the deal. The sun is a star. As a star, the sun converts hydrogen into helium as it burns, and like all other stars in existence, it goes through stages. Right now, the sun is in yellow dwarf stage, meaning that, granted what we know about stars is true, it is approximately halfway through its life cycle, and it at least WAS burning at a core temperature to help support life on earth, but not anywhere else that we know of.
The sun is currently running out of hydrogen, and when you have less of something, it tends to burn faster, causing an increase in temperature for a short time. We've had huge climate changes in the past that were NOT manmade (i.e. the ice age and subsequent melting thereof), and there are also cyclical patterns of temperature increase and drop that, if one takes the time to check, are well documented, at least since the 1700s if not before. There's more to considering the earth's core temperature than simply whether or not our carbon emissions and the 'hole in the ozone layer' are causing too many UV rays to enter earth's atmosphere. Have we forgotten that the core of the earth is comprised solely of piping hot magma, the levels of which tend to fluctuate?
Granted, the industrial revolution caused quite a bit of pollution to enter the atmosphere. So have cow farts, and we were an agricultural nation LOOOONG before we became industrial. Is it possible that automobiles, trains, etc. have taken over for the cows now that our agriculture is falling by the wayside? Maybe. But so far, no one is murdering cows, besides the farmers. And while I try to do my part to fight global warming by eating as much beef as possible, I can't stop the sun from burning through its hydrogen.
I watched this movie called "Sunshine" last year, the sole reason being the beautiful Chris Evans (and I was enthralled because the movie is more character driven than plot driven). Basically, the plot is that the sun is dying and these people are trying to reheat it. First, this is implausible. The sun will heat up before it dies, and when it does die, chances are that it will turn into an orange dwarf, meaning that it will EXPAND (thus destroying all life on earth and pretty much anywhere else), and then begin to retract, possibly even imploding and turning into a black hole. Honestly, our only hope would be to put more hydrogen into the sun. A lot more. Or maybe we can just throw in some cows.
I'm not going to say that things don't need to change, because they do. Industrialization and urbanization have led to deforestation (-ations are bad, just in case you haven't noticed), which in turn has led to a decrease in the conversion of carbon dioxide into oxygen. I did have a professor tell my class once that most of our oxygen production comes from ocean plants, but I digress. Regardless of the fact that we'll still have oxygen if we destroy every tree on the planet, the fact that the carbon dioxide won't be processed as much will lead to significant problems down the road (and a new book idea, but again, digressing). Even as a coal baby, I know that burning coal and other fossil fuels leads to environmental problems. But I just can't agree 100% with Al Gore that all of this is our fault. Not because I'm unwilling to take responsibility, but because, like the plot of that movie, it's implausible. Stars heat up before they cool down and die. And while Palin is an airhead, shooting her into the sun won't help, either (dammit).
I also can't take seriously a woman who denies that polar bears are becoming endangered considering their habitat is melting. Of course, I could never take her seriously, but that's a whole different point, and I'm fairly certain it's one I made in this journal's last incarnation, long before the presidential campaigns.
So, if you take nothing from this entry, take this: All the talking we do won't stop the sun from heating up.
***Also, I know that this is more akin to a high school research paper (you know, the ones sans references), but I'm annoyed and a little rushed. I'll post references later. This is what happens when you're a science nerd and can rattle off random information without really remembering where you got it.***
now i have to go to work and try to get some query letters done.