Sunday, April 18, 2010

Global Warming

“The gradual increase in the overall temperature of the earth's atmosphere due to the greenhouse effect caused by increased levels of carbon dioxide, chlorofluorocarbons, and other pollutants.”-Apple Dictionary

I think that global warming is another issue for people to get all worked up over and to fight about. However, that doesn’t mean that I don’t believe that it exist or that I think that we should limit the amount of nonrenewable resources we use. Maybe it’s the hippie side of me but I think that we should take better care of our Earth. During sixth grade my science teacher showed us a video on the advancement science has made in respect towards alternative sources of fuels using algae. That was 5 years ago, research and experiments have advanced from the beginning stages and there is a fully functioning form of algae fuels that could be mass produced and used to run cars, machines, and virtually anything that fossil fuels and gasoline power now. To ignore this kind of advancement is ridiculous and to say that it’s too costly to invest in other forms of fuels is absurd. Billions of wasted dollars from the current president AND the previous one have shown that no cost is too high. In the long run mass producing these alternatives would be cheaper not only for the government but for the people as well.

By using nonrenewable resources we are not only hurting future generations we are hurting ourselves. It’s predicted that by 2020 a global decline in oil will start to take effect; that’s exactly one decade away and I plan on still being alive ten years from now. Not to mention that gaping holes in the ozone layer are effecting the world now, due to the fact that pollutants in the atmosphere are wearing away a necessary protection from the sun. If the mass production of algae fuels doesn’t interest people there is also hydrogen fuel. Hydrogen fuel is currently the fuel source for people who have had the technology installed into their cars; it’s also produced and sold in Greenland for people to use in their cars. Which means that hydrogen fuel is not only supposed to work, it actually does. These alternatives to the gas we use now have now not only produce nearly 97% less pollution than the products we use now but they’re cheaper and they’re renewable. Renewable meaning it can be created again, and again, and again, and again.

The Earth is not only our home but it’s home to nearly 5 million other creatures and plants and possibly 50 million more depending on the creatures and plants that have yet to be described and discovered. Global warming is real in the sense that the world is changing due to the greenhouse effect. This means that the weather changes drastically all over the world to either hot or cold extremes. The presences of atmospheric weirdness can’t be denied especially with the kind of weather that’s recently been experienced. Something must be done about protecting the Earth from even more damage, it’s the very least we can do.

2 comments:

  1. As Sarah states in her blog we should not ignore the many advancements made by environmentalists and scientists in regards to other form of renewable energy. She states correctly that we are slowly running out of natural resources and the oil in the middle east is also declining. Though we are capable of other sources of energy other than oil, I disagree with Sarah and think that Americans should take full advantage of our own homegrown supplies before we revert to alternatives such as algae. Alaska is full of oil and actually has the second largest oil territory in the world. Though controversial, I truly believe that drilling into Alaska for oil would drastically improve our economy and would take away our dependency on the Middle East. With companies such as OPEC regulating the oil prices, we will continue to suffer economically unless we take action and drill into our own supplies. Sarah believes that it would be absurd to not invest in other costly forms of fuels, but why invest in these fuels if there is no profit to be made? I'm sorry that may seem like a very brash stement, but that is what the majority of Americans want: money, period. I'm not saying that this type of thinking is morally right, but when you look at our society as a whole now there is much more to worry about economically than there is environmentally. In the future, when we have to means to agressively protect our environment, I think we should definitly make it a priority. I just think that in our present economic situation, this suject matter should not be at the top of the government's to-do list.

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  2. I completely agree with everything Sarah said in her blog entry. There are so many alternative forms of fuel that have been developed and tested. The fact that we know they are there and still continue to use oil is completely ridiculous. The people who think that the money is an insanely huge issue are clearly failing to see the bigger picture here. They are putting off the environmental troubles we have now to the future generations and that is no way to make progress. Sometimes these people are extremely hypocritical. They are saying, “Oh, the environment is important to me and we need to improve the way we treat it. I’m not willing to support alternative energy sources, which will dramatically cut the amount of pollution, though because it’s costly. We’ll leave that to the future generations.” Do you want progress or not? If we don’t start incorporating these alternative energy sources into American life now, it will never happen. And no matter how much oil you think is left on this planet, it will run out eventually, and it will be sooner rather than later. So, do these people want to wait until we are completely out of oil to start using only alternative energy sources just like that, or do they want to start incorporating it now? Based on their concern for money, we should start now. It would be less costly to do this gradually than to just smack Americans in the face with only alternative energy sources. There are enough energy sources that have been developed that America can find the best fits for the people in this country. These renewable energy sources have output that are better for the planet. Massive amounts of smog and fossil fuels would no longer be burning holes in the ozone layer, which is important for the safety of both humans and the large amount of other species on Earth. We should not ignore advancements made in science, which many people are doing in this country.

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