http://www.collegian.psu.edu/venues/2008/08/28/new_book_simplifies_climate_ch.aspx
"In the last section, the authors explore geo-engineering and "increasingly vigorous discussion among scientists about an alternative to decreasing greenhouse gas emissions," Mann said. Though this may seem to be a viable option, Mann said, there are ramifications associated with such a course of action that would be detrimental because there are many pitfalls to that approach." Posted on August 28, 2008 12:00 AM New book simplifies climate change By Jenna Ekdahl Collegian Staff Writer For two Penn State science professors, the issue of global warming is certainly a "hot topic." Professors Michael Mann and Lee Kump, of meteorology and geosciences, respectively, collaborated in the beginning of summer 2007 to write Dire Predictions, Understanding Global Warming: The Illustrated Guide to the Findings of the IPCC, which was released on July 21 of this year. The book describes simply the findings from the most recent Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report, Mann said. It can be found on Amazon.com, Borders, and Barnes & Noble. The report generally stated the planet is warming up, and humans can have an effect on the climate by modifying their actions, Mann said. "The book is for a person without a technical background," Mann said. "It explains in basic terms the ... difficult-to-digest findings of the IPCC report in a sort of colorful, vibrant manner." The publishing partnership between DK Publishing, which generally focuses on travel guides and picture books with Pearson, another publishing company that works with academic books, was interesting and fun to work with, Mann said. The about 200-page publication is produced in a two-page spread format with large texts and many reader-friendly images, Mann said. The most strenuous part of writing the book for Kump was sifting through the IPCC report, which took close to a year. Mann said the difficulty was getting through the IPCC report in a systematic and timely manner. "The process was actually fun and educational for me and helped me in other ways not just as a scientist, but as an educator as well," Kump said. Broken into five sections, the book cites specific evidence supporting the claims the book includes about Earth's apparent increasing temperatures. "It isn't coincidental that we've seen a large increase in fires in previous years, less snowfall in mountains that melts earlier, a longer, hotter dry season," Mann said. In the last section, the authors explore geo-engineering and "increasingly vigorous discussion among scientists about an alternative to decreasing greenhouse gas emissions," Mann said. Though this may seem to be a viable option, Mann said, there are ramifications associated with such a course of action that would be detrimental because there are many pitfalls to that approach. He said while some speculate lessening the world's dependency on fossil fuels could be harmful to the economy, "the cost of inaction could be much greater than any cost of taking action." The book covers the findings from the IPCC report and basic climate change projections, but notes how life might be able to adapt to a warmer climate and how humans can take steps to solve the issue, Mann said. The most important point Mann said he wants readers to take from the book is it is not too late to act by modifying their lifestyles to help prevent further damages caused by global warming. "There are clear strategies that won't destroy the economy, are doable with current technology, and that will prevent us from doubling CO2 concentrations," he said. He also noted there is a trend in popular culture today that seems to dilute the issue, deeming it unimportant or simply false. "There is no longer any debate that humans are indeed responsible for the warming of the climate," he said. If humans don't take control of the situation, they must be committed to detrimental results such as an increase in wildfires and disappearing coastlines, he said. "As dire as the predictions are, that is not a reason for despair," Mann said. "That's one possible future." Likewise, Kump agreed though the report's conclusions could seem gloomy, the call to action is imminent. "In the end we might see this as a wake-up call and as something that kind of transforms society," Kump said. --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "geoengineering" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/geoengineering?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
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