Global Warming Controversy
Critically assess how the media have used the scientific evidence in the debate around the climate change, and its causes and/or effects
Introduction
Nowadays, the whole world are paying attention on the controversy about climate change and global warming. Hot topics include whether global warming is occurring, warming level in modern times, causes, effects and what that action should be taken (Science Daily). On one hand, there is a strong consensus that human and industries take main responsibility for the rapid increase of global surface temperatures in recent decades, and greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide is the major cause of global warming. Meanwhile, some people that come from organizations with
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Controversy on Global Temperature Change
Points by supporters:
Help Save the Climate website declares that there are now strong evidences of a rapidly warming world. The Third Assessment Report (TAR) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) contains most of the following. Firstly, the surface thermometer record presents that historical temperature records increased 0.4-0.8°C in the last 100 years (IPCC, 2001). Figure 1 shows the abnormal temperature from 1856 to 2005 comparing with global average surface (horizontal line). It could be observed that global average surface temperature has slightly increased since 1862. And the increase has been enlarged to 0.6 ± 0.2oC when entered 20th century. Help Save the Climate claims 1990s were the warmest decade since records began. This data set clearly reflects the temperature trend based on directly measured temperature, which might has less room for error and no doubt of methodology comparing with more complex means. Natural Resource Defence Council (NRDC) also indicates average global temperature has increased at the fastest rate over past 50 years. Figure 3 obviously shows that we are experiencing an extremely warm period on earth comparing with past 1000 years.
Secondly, glacier record and sea level also could be used as the proof of global warming (Dessler and Parson, 2006). Glacier is one of the most sensitive indicators of climate change. In polar regions, scientists determine temperature
The globe is being rocked by extreme weather and the hottest temperatures on record. As the average global temperature soars, there are floods, droughts, unusually cold winters, forest fires, and huge storms. Are all of these horrors being caused by human-induced global warming?
Media coverage of climate change has effects on public attitude on the issue, as it mediates scientific opinion on climate change. The media uses interactions between climate science, policy, statistical scientific texts, data, scientific language and the appearances of scientific personalities. Such as work and stories from scientists that are personally known. It is clear that science and policy shape media reporting and public understanding. Whether people believe in it or not is their
In recent years, global climate change due to global warming has been largely researched. The paper, “Global Climate Change Triggered by Global Warming,” offers compelling evidence from various scientific papers that the process of Earth’s climate undergoing significant change has already begun and requires our attention due to the probability that human-generated greenhouse gases are the primary cause. Major focal points are shifting towards determining the causes to mitigate the effects rather than establishing the existence as sufficient amount of evidence has proven that global warming is indisputable. During the final decade of the 20th century, climatologists have concluded that the past millennium to be the warmest, especially in the year of 2005. Solutions towards the cause would require assistance from the population as a whole.
Global warming is hot topic nowadays. Alarmists and scientists fight to make their statements known, but while the alarmists avoid the scientist, non-governmental organizations pass themselves as scientist. They not only give out exaggerated data, they also have the nerve to accuse humans of being the cause of global warming. Also, we cannot be certain that we are being told the truth without knowing exactly what is really going on behind the scenes. We blindly trust those in authority because we think that they have our greater good in mind and that whatever they say must be the truth.
Though scientific evidence has been found to have its flaws, there is still a substantive basis for sizable global warming due to the man-made greenhouse gas emissions that cannot be disputed.
Polar bears sweating, the Earth reforming into a volcano, and oxygen artificially supplied to the atmosphere is the future of tomorrow. It is unfortunately a consequence of our activities today. Global warming is an extremely adverse word and a great deal of controversy. It is all an interconnected process of globalization, hence having human activities cause global warming and destruction of the environment.
Throughout history climates have drastically changed. There have been shifts from warm climates to the Ice Ages (Cunningham & Cunningham, 2009, p.204). Evidence suggests there have been at least a dozen abrupt climate changes throughout the history of the earth. There are a few suspected reasons for these past climate changes. One reason may be that asteroids hitting the earth and volcanic eruptions caused some of them. A further assumption is that 22-year solar magnetic cycles and 11-year sunspot cycles played a part in the changes. A further possibility is that a regular shifting in the angle of the moon orbiting earth causing changing tides and atmospheric circulation affects the global climate (Cunningham & Cunningham, 2009,
But Mr. John Coleman, Co-Founder of the Weather Channel, calls the topic of climate change “bologna” (“CNN”) or untrue. He also states that “there is no significant climate change” (“CNN”), but what Mr. Coleman lacked is that the climate change is not significant but is very subtle. Mr. Coleman infact is a scientist himself
Global warming is a huge issue that we have to deal with. The world is getting warmer. Whether the cause is human activity or natural variability most of evidence says it is because of humans. Thermometer readings all around the world have risen steadily since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution in Great Britain (“earthobservatory”).
There is an issue on this planet that will define this generation. The issue is climate change. Global warming. A world on the collapse as our oceans are acidified, our air polluted, our forests disappearing, and human rights issues getting worse. It seems that people are not aware of how big climate change actually is. It’s not something that only takes place on the ice caps or in the forests on the far corners of the world. This is an issue that happens here, and now. It’s real. It’s happening.
For over a hundred years, scientists have been carefully gathering and verifying data on the earth's temperature. The latest data reveals some striking trends:All 10 of the warmest years on record have occurred in the last 15 years The 1990's have already been warmer than the 1980's- the warmest decade on record The global average surface temperature has risen 0.5 degrees (site source)For the first time ever, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the authoritative international body charged with studying this issue, concluded that the observed increase in global average temperature over the last century "is
I feel that global warming is taking place due to the human beings influence of the earth. When I say influence I mean the use of fossil fuels, aerosols and other hazardous devices that humans have derived for comforts. These chemicals that are being used have and continuously harmed the environment, not just with global warming, but the pollution of our natural resources Now we the human race is suffering the effects of global warming that is causing the melting of ice glaciers. Glaciers that have been in existences for hundreds and are now subject to the greenhouse effect. The chemicals used for our everyday lives and the pollution caused from such uses have not only directly impacted the earth’s environment, it has caused the melting of ice glaciers that are hundreds years old or more. In my opinion, glaciers that have been on this earth for that long do no simply melt due to the cycle of the earth’s natural weather patterns. There are multiple facts to support my opinion, but in this case I will only reveal the three that I think are the most substantial to support my point. First, “carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere are increasing” (Mulvaney 2013). This aspect is undisputable in the science community considering that the levels have increased dramatically even over the past decade. Second, the “Arctic Sea ice is in a Death Spiral” (Mulvaney 2013). The ice in the Arctic Sea, and many other parts of the world, is vanishing at an alarming rate.
However, CEI scientists have reported that there is no proof that rising temperatures are linked to global warming. The Earth has gone through various periods of cooling and warming throughout its history. The rising temperatures are simply the Earth warming itself up from the previous ice age (Competitive Enterprise Institute). Contrasting with the virtual world of computer simulations, the real world presents a very different picture. The EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) website even states that:
The issue of global warming should be on the list of our top priorities. Studies show that the average of global temperatures have risen since the Industrial Revolution began. Since the Industrial Revolution, human emissions has quadrupled the frequency of certain heat extremes and many scientists have warned that a failure to bring greenhouse gases under control could eventually lead to a 62-fold increase in extreme heat blasts (Gillis Justin A17). Most of the increase is due to human activities, especially the burning of fossil fuels and deforestation. These activities contribute to a build-up in carbon dioxide and other gases in Earth’s atmosphere. The Earth’s atmosphere is made of gases like nitrogen, carbon dioxide and oxygen. These gases act as a blanket that covers and gives us warmth, but once these gases such as carbon dioxide absorbs heat, but does not release it back into space in which causes the increase in global temperature. This is called the greenhouse effect because it only traps heat but does not release it.
“When taking the heating of the entire climate system into account, our planet has warmed at a rate equivalent to 4 Hiroshima atomic bomb detonations per second over the past 15 years” (Cook). Our planet is becoming warmer. When scientists add up all the heat warming the land, oceans, atmosphere, ice melting, earth is accumulating heat equivalent to four Hiroshima bombs worth of heat per second. Global warming is a serious issue faced by our world as there has been a significant increase in temperature over the years. But the article published by Dr. Mark Sircus on “Global Warming -largest science scandal in the history” refutes the theory of global warming. Dr. Sircus states that there is no linkage between carbon dioxide and temperature leading to global warming, the sea level is not rising, arctic sea ice extent is now higher and climate change is due to solar activity. Dr. Sircus also points out that that the recent weather changes are not in line with global warming and “we are in the beginning of a deep freeze” (Global Warming - Largest Science Scandal in US History). NASA and the scientific community states that global warming is not a hoax and there is a rapid increase in Earth’s average surface temperature due to greenhouse gases released as people burn fossils. NASA states that the “key indicators of global warming are based on surface, satellite, and ocean temperature measurements, satellite measurements of energy imbalance and of receding glaciers, sea ice, and