Energy And Climate; Science For Citizens In The Age Of Global Warming

General Information

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Title:

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Energy And Climate; Science For Citizens In The Age Of Global Warming-

Author: The Teaching Company

Read By: Richard Wolfson

Genre: Lecture

Publisher: The Teaching Company

Abridged: No

Original Media Information

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Media: Tape

Number: 5

Source: Downloaded

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Total Duration: 7:55:42

Total MP3 Size: 222.59

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Book Description

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Energy and Climate: Science for Citizens in the Age 15215u204p of Global Warming-

(10 lectures, 45 minutes/lecture)

Course No. 154

Taught by Richard Wolfson

Middlebury College

Ph.D., Dartmouth College

Is global warming actually happening? Could it really threaten civilization?

How much money are we willing to spend on alternate fuels? Should we

use technologies that involve other risks (like nuclear power)?

Professor and physicist Richard Wolfson's course will allow you to form

answers to those questions-answers that are grounded in scientific facts.

You do not need a background in science to understand these issues as

he presents them.

Using simple diagrams and graphics, Professor Wolfson makes his subject

both lively and accessible as he explains how the Earth's climate regulates

temperature, how human activity can unbalance this system, how scientists

predict the extent and impact of global warming, and what we can do

about it.

This course examines human energy use and global warming and offers

a basic literacy in the science of climate. Lectures cover:

how the Earth's climate regulates temperature

the basic sources of energy available on Earth

the alternatives to fossil fuels; the workings of nuclear fission and

fusion, and

some of the controversies surrounding nuclear energy.

Discover the Facts About Global Warming from an Award-Winning Physicist

Richard Wolfson is Benjamin F. Wissler Professor of Physics at Middlebury

College, where he has taught for more than 25 years. He has received

the Perkins Award for outstanding teaching at Middlebury and served

as chair of the physics department.

Author of numerous articles and books, Professor Wolfson is also a research

physicist. He has spent sabbatical years as Visiting Scientist at the

National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colorado, and in

1993 was Visiting Scientist at St. Andrews University in Scotland.

He has crafted this 10-lecture series to examine human use of energy

and global warming, which he refers to as "one of the more controversial

environmental issues of recent decades."

"Concerns about the warming of Earth's climate have been with us for

some time. How serious is this concern? Recent newspaper headlines indicate

a real concern about the increasing global temperature," he continues.

What is actually happening?

Is the Earth undergoing a warming? If so, what are the consequences?

Are they dire?

Will the increasing temperatures cause the sea level to rise and inundate

coastal cities?

Will the warming render the world's major breadbaskets less productive?

Could the warming have beneficial effects?

What will be the economic consequences of global warming?

What costs would be involved in mitigating its effects?

Is global warming as serious as we originally thought, or has it been

exaggerated?

According to Dr. Wolfson, the purpose of this course is not to answer

all of these questions, or even the question of whether global warming

will occur, but to provide a basic literacy in the science of climate.

This improved literacy, he maintains, will allow us to examine more

effectively the issues involved and to gain better understanding of

why it is generally thought that global warming might occur and what

role human energy use plays in the problem.

Consider the Problem: What is the Greenhouse Effect?

In his opening presentation, Professor Wolfson attempts to provide the

scientific background necessary to understand how Earth's climate is

established. Major topics of discussion include:

Earth's energy balance

the greenhouse effect

greenhouse gas emissions

past climate changes, and

climate projections for the future.

The establishment of Earth's temperature became conducive to the existence

of life more than 3 billion years ago. By understanding how Earth's

climate was established, we are able to predict future climates and

the effect of global warming upon these climates.

Dr. Wolfson uses the warming of a house in winter as a model to demonstrate

the energy equation of energy input with energy loss. The Natural Greenhouse

Effect is discussed as the major factor in the discrepancy between the

mathematically determined temperature of Earth, which should be about

-18° C (0 ° Fahrenheit), and its actual temperature of 15° C or 59°

F.

The absorption of outgoing infrared radiation by atmospheric water vapor

and CO2 causes the greenhouse effect, which warms Earth's atmosphere

by about 33° C.

In order to demonstrate the validity of the greenhouse effect on Earth,

we look at Venus and Mars as models. On Mars we see almost no greenhouse

effect, but on Venus we see the other extreme-the "runaway greenhouse"

effect.

Mars and Venus both have temperatures that are warmer than they would

be without this effect. The natural carbon cycle on Earth is considered.

Although the presence of some CO2 in the atmosphere is desirable, the

increase is more than 30 percent since the beginning of the industrial

age.

"Unless some corrective measures are taken, it will double the preindustrial

level by the year 2100," says Professor Wolfson.

Looking into the past, Professor Wolfson describes the cyclic climate

changes that cause ice ages. He notes that the temperature difference

between now and an ice age is only about 10°F.

A Focus on Human Energy

Dr. Wolfson considers the use of computer models to predict future climate,

the limitations of these models, and their consistency in terms of broad

suggestions they make regarding future climates.

"The use of human energy is the dominant cause of the problem of global

warming as well as the enabling factor in many of the environmental

problems we face today," says Professor Wolfson.

"Problems like resource depletion and overpopulation are the consequence

in part of energy-intensive agriculture, pollution, and other environmental

problems. We have at our disposal a tremendous amount of energy-much

more than our bodies alone can produce. This available energy and the

patterns of its use by human beings affect the terrestrial environment,

the atmosphere, and the climate."

The human use of energy, particularly in the industrialized world, is

a major topic of consideration in this series.

You will learn about statistics on energy use and global energy issues,

and examine the composition and measurement of energy, nuclear and renewable

energy alternatives, the continued use of our present dominant energy

source (which is the burning of fossil fuels), and possible means of

mitigating the negative impact of energy use upon our atmosphere. What

are the prospects for more efficient use of energy?

What Can Be Done?

There is potential for considerable energy savings both by individuals

and industry. Dr. Wolfson reviews trends in energy consumption and reduction

and discusses some of the possibilities for increased efficiency He

presents scenarios prepared by the American Council for an Energy Efficient

Economy (ACEEE) for specific reductions in energy.

"If we gain an appropriate level of scientific literacy and an understanding

of the relationship between issues of human energy consumption patterns

and global warming, we will be better able to make responsible decisions

in our individual, business, and political lives regarding the issues

of global warming," says Professor Wolfson.

Finally, Professor Wolfson suggests ways our energy use could be more

efficient. But do we have the will to make the necessary changes, or

will we be forced to adapt to the uncertainties of human-caused climate

change?

Course Lecture Titles

Keeping Warm

A Tale of Three Planets

Climates Past, Climates Future

Computing the Climate

Energy-Cheap and Plentiful

Energy-What It Does, Where It's From

Fossil Fuels

Nuclear Options

Renewable Energy

Energy Efficiency-More from Less