Many scientists conclude that global warming affects the world by melting glaciers and ice sheets.
In 2006 former vice president Al Gore released the documentary "An Inconvenient Truth," which helped to draw the issue of global warming to the political forefront, along with a controversial division along partisan lines. On one side are those scientists and organizations that believe that the climate is undeniably changing and that the change is likely accelerated due to human activity. On the other are those scientists and political pundits who contend that global warming is a myth, based on the evidence readily available in current weather patterns.
Global Warming and Record Cold
With recent record low temperatures recorded in 2010 across regions such as far south as Florida, there are those who question if global warming is actually a myth or a hoax. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA,) this phenomenon was attributed to the short-term temperature variances that are typical of weather, despite an overall warming trend. Per its data, the NOAA concluded that global warming is "unequivocal," and that planet temperatures have risen on average of 1.3 degrees Fahrenheit over the span of the 20th century despite these temporary variances.
Human Effects vs. Mother Nature
The Greenhouse Effect refers to the natural phenomenon where most of the heat that comes from the sun to the earth is trapped in the atmosphere, courtesy of the clouds and greenhouse gases. These are gases that are produced by natural sources, such as water vapor and carbon dioxide, as well as human activities, such as burning fossil fuels. Because of this, the idea that human activity plays a predominant effect on global warming has been under fire by those who deny such a strong connection exists, due to the environmental nature of the greenhouse effect that has endured for millions of years. A report from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) noted that the level of greenhouse gases produced since 1750 has risen dramatically, especially methane, which has risen a whopping 148 percent. This is concurrent with the Industrial Revolution, the "eve" of which occurred in 1760.
Sea Levels and Melting Glaciers
One of the more frightening predictions of global warming is the effect on the world's glaciers and ice sheets. Every continent other than Australia has glaciers or ice sheets that can be affected by the climate change, sometimes very dramatically. Africa's Mount Kilimanjaro has lost ice by 82 percent from 1912 and 2000. The danger of this effect is twofold. According to the National Snow and Ice Data Center, glaciers hold 75 percent of the world's fresh water. The ice melting also threatens to make sea levels rise, and the director of the Institute for the Study of Planet Earth at the University of Arizona in Tucson, Jonathan Overpeck, predicts that even a small rise could threaten nations and cultures that have endured for thousands of years. However, according to a 2009 article in the UK's "Telegraph," Nils-Axel Mörner, the Swedish geologist and physicist who formerly chaired the INQUA International Commission on Sea Level Change, maintains the sea levels have not risen in 50 years.
Natural Pros and Cons
The scientific debate on whether global warming is man-made or natural rages on, thanks to conflicting theories, which fuel the bigger debate on whether changes in human activity can alter nature's course. Whether or not this is the earth's natural way of evolving, then cultures, humans and animals must evolve along with it to survive. If predictions are to be believed, this will be an impossibility for some. The polar bear, for instance, faces extinction due to the negative effects on its environment. According to a 2005 report in "Wired," some benefits include a positive environmental shift for those who face higher mortality rates due to severe cold temperatures. Because of more accommodating temperatures, the economy could be positively affected by longer growing seasons. Fewer frosts and more precipitation are also cited as positive effects.
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