1. Some Climate Change FAQs
Walter Whiteley
May 2013

2. 1. Increased Carbon Dioxide (Keeling Curve)

3. 1. Increased Carbon Dioxide Questions
Is this man-made?
Is it higher than anything in the last 800,000 years?
What are the impacts on Oceans, Atmosphere?
How long will it last?

4. 1. Increased Carbon Dioxide Sources
explore on different time scales. Each has a different message of chaos and pattern

5. 2. Ocean Acidification

6. 2. Ocean Acidification CO2 enters Oceans (makes acid)
More acid oceans changes key parts of the ecology (Coral, shells) …
Change in species in particular environments (extinction)
How long does the new equilibrium hold?
Interactive resources:

7. 3 Continuing carbon emissions? Global Warming
ttp://thinkprogress.org/climate/2013/04/23/ /the-hockey-stick-lives-new-study-confirms-unprecedented-recent-warming-reverses-2000-years-of-cooling/?mobile=nc

8. 3. Continuing carbon emissions? Global Warming
Do carbon emissions (and other emissions – methane etc.) warm the planet?
Are there other sources which can compensate / dominate these human causes?
There are differences (more change in the north, less in the equators)
What are the risks if we are still uncertain?
Is temperature alone (including ocean temperature) the key problem?

9. 3. Do continuing carbon emissions imply Global Warming?
How sensitive is the average temperature to CO2 levels?
Skeptics say atmospheric warming has slowed:
scientists say same total heat but more went into the ocean:

10. 4. Global Warming and extreme weather

11. 4. Global Warming and extremes weather

12. 4 Global Warming and extreme weather
More humidity stronger events
Amplification (bigger waves) and slower movement
Dry gets dryer, wet gets wetter
Systems can stall – many snow storms, flooding
then hot drought in summer …

13. 5 Sea Level Rise

14. 5 Sea Level Rise Melting ice sheets, glaciers
Expansion of water due to warming (1 m?)
Risk of storm surges (extremes)
A student’s guide to global warming:

15. 5 Sea Level Rise

16. 6 A budget for carbon emissions?v

17. 6 A budget for carbon emissions?
When I was younger – concern over peak oil (scarcity). Now concern about too much oil, coal …
Is there a maximum safe limit for carbon sources we can burn to create CO2?
How would this be determined?
If there is a budget – whose resources will be left ‘in the ground’?
If there is a budget, who will have the right to use the associated energy?
Will your pension plan go bust investing in oil / coal?
Do the Math:  

18. 7 Communication Barriers

19. 7 Communication Barriers

20. 7 Communication Barriers
Rhetorical devices: repetition:
Story (narrative) or formulae / graphics
Metaphors to live by: e.g. “climate Is like body temperature: there is a safe range beyond which there is major risk”:
Graphics, sequences of graphics, animation
Mathematics is a barrier to public communication: numerically and visually
Does this illustrate a fundamental failure of Math Ed?
What does research show works / does not work?

21. 7 Communication Barriers
hope works better than fear:
Adapting or Mitigating … (prepare for it or prevent it)