Annotated Bibliography!!

Bridges, A. Global Warming: 8,000 years ago. CBS News. Retrieved February 22, 2008, from http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/09/23/tech/main574644.shtml

New measurements of air bubbles in Antarctic ice suggest that global warming was not started with the Industrial Revolution; scientists believe that global warming began during the agricultural Revolution. As humans began to cut down trees and other plants in order to make room for the crops they would plant, carbon dioxide levels began to rise and then 3,000 years later, methane levels began to rise as well. As this started happening, the earth's atmosphere began to become warmer and temperature levels began to rise. In earlier times, scientists believe that the onset of the earth's temperature rising came with the factories and industrialization in the 1800's, but more recent research has proven that it began naturally. Although levels of carbon dioxide and methane change naturally with the orbit of the earth, these gases are becoming more predominant throughout the atmosphere than they would naturally. New evidence proves that global warming started with the agricultural revolution thousands of years ago.

National Geographic News. Global Warming Fast Facts. Retrieved February 21, 2008, from http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2004/12/1206_041206_global_warming.html

Average temperatures around the world have increased by 1.4 degrees Farenheight since the late 19th century. Not only is the earth warming, but it's warming faster, according to the United Nations Panel on Climate Change because 11 of the past 12 years have been warmer than most since 1850. The most obvious changes are occuring in the arctic because 20% of it has melted since 1970 leaving many polar bears and penguins with less food and less space to live. All of the ice may be gone by 2040 which means the animals that live there could become extinct. The coral reefs everyone loves to look at on vacation are also disappearing and dying due to changes in the water temperature. Some experts in the field also think that the extreme natural disasters and more frequent occurence of them is due to global warming.

Roach, J. Global Warming "Very Likely" Caused by Humans, World Climate Experts Say. National Geographic News. Retrieved February 21, 2008, from http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/02/070202-global-warming.html

A panel of climate experts say that global warming is here, human caused, and will be here even if greenhouse gases are taken under control. The panel says the same thing that everyone has been hearing over and over - land use, fossil fuel use, and agriculture are the biggest contributors to global warming. A new policy laid out by 113 representatives from different countries now agree that the increase in greenhouse gas emissions is "very likely" from humans, with very likely meaning a 90% probability. In 2001, it was decided that the increase was "likely", having a 66% probability of being right. This may cause some people to be a little more concerned, but probably not much more concerned about the effects global warming is having on our planet.

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Basic Information - Climate Change. Retrieved February 22, 2008, from http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/basicinfo.html

For the past couple hundreds of years, humans have been burning fossil fuels which have significantly increased the level of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Greenhouse gases are necessary to a certain extent, because if we didn't have them the earth would be too cold to live on, but too many of them is a bad thing because the temperature can rise so much that everything and everyone dies, so the earth needs a happy medium. It's kind of like calories, if you eat too many you get fat, but if you don't have enough then you have to energy to fuel your body, so you need just the right amount. The United States has a policy in order to help global warming and decrease the amount of greenhouse gases. The three components of it are to slow the growth of emissions, strengthen science, technology, and institutions, and to enhance international cooperation. In the United States, the energy-related activities we partake in account for 3/4 of human generated greenhouse gas emissions. The health effects of global warming are very important because the rising temperatures can increase the number of people with asthma or make it worse, there could be more incidents of heat stroke and death, and climate related diseases can be spread easier.

Weise, E. (2007, December 5) Report warns of dangers USA faces from climate change. USA Today, p. 8D.

Because of the warming of the earth's atmosphere, there are more expected numbers of heat waves which means there will be more health implications. Many of the elderly are at risk because they aren't able to handle the heat as well and are more likely to die because of it. Late summer droughts will also become more common meaning that it will be more likely for there to be brush fires and wild fires in the western part of the United States which can put more people at risk for death or the loss of their homes. Rising sea levels and decreased soil build up because of poor human management of waterways could lead to wetlands turning into open waters. This will be bad for when hurricane season rolls around because there could be floods everywhere, and not just an increased water level of the wetlands.

Gelling, P. (2007, December 13). Focus of Climate Talks Shifts to Helping Poor Countries Cope. The New York Times, p. 31.

Many from the United Nations say that the poorest countries are being hit the hardest from global warming because they lack the resources to help cut down on harmful emissions. According to the Kyoto protocol, many under privileged nations will be getting funding for helping to reduce their effects on global warming. Some are still skeptical about whether this will really work or not.

Musgrave, R. A. (October 2007). 9 THINGS YOU Need to Know ABOUT Global Warming. National Geographic Kids, (374), A16-A20.

Global Warming is not just happening in the Arctic. It’s happening all over the world. In the past, it was easier for animals to adapt to change in climate because it was gradual, but now it is happening too fast for the animals to keep up and adapt. Many animals habitats and food sources are disappearing, also making it harder for them to adapt to the different climate changes.

Steele, B. &Pleschner, D. (February 2008). Connecting the dots: Global Warming and ocean acidification. National Fishermen, 88(11)8.

The amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has been trickling into the world’s oceans and making them more acidic which are harming the fish and their habitat as well as land animals. It is hitting the plankton the hardest which is a food source for many fish in the oceans. As they disappear, the animals that feed on them are having to find food elsewhere and this is causing a huge snowball effect.