Thread posted in the West Tn forum

[gflat65]

More bad news... I had always heard 10-20 years worth of reefs left in the wild. I guess it is coming to fruition. When the slow growers start going...

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060330/ap_on_sc/coral_death

 

[greystreet41]

my global warming knowledge is pretty vague, but that article didn't site any specific temperature changes. It only paired record hot waters with disease. I thought those warm waters had only gone up 1 degree since something like 1969. Again, I have no real knowledge on the issue. It would just be nice to have a media outlet without an agenda.

 

[gflat65]

I don't have hard numbers in front of me, but the Gulf waters are at least 4-5 degrees warmer than they were five or six years ago. I can't remember where I read that, but I remember thinking they were reputable. The temp swings are cyclical, but they seem to be more severe over the last few cycles. The warmer water in the gulf is what forms the nastier hurricanes. As they form near Africa, they move out into open ocean where the temps are a bit lower. As they move in toward the US, the waters get warmer. In the gulf, the extra warmth fuels hurricanes, creating the year they had last year (a bunch of nasty nasty storms). It's kind of like when a cold front meets a warm front. Larger pressure differences create worse the storms. Check out NOAA.gov. They have temperature mapping from satellites and articles on some of their studies in the gulf.

 

[boodwah]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7078975#post7078975 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by greystreet41
my global warming knowledge is pretty vague, but that article didn't site any specific temperature changes. It only paired record hot waters with disease. I thought those warm waters had only gone up 1 degree since something like 1969. Again, I have no real knowledge on the issue. It would just be nice to have a media outlet without an agenda.

The issue of global warming has become so politicized that it is difficult to seperate the wheat from the chaffe. And it has been proven that our climate changes on a cyclical basis. You can buy 'scientific' books and visit 'scientific' sites that either promote or dispel global warming as caused by humankind. Who do we believe? Merely making judgements based on how things were compared to how things are now is nothing but making judgements on anecdotal evidence. Personally, I think that there is enough evidence to warrant further study. And until we have enough hard evidence to make an informed judgement I think that it is prudent that we tread on this planet with caution. If we err on the side of caution we have much less to lose than if we take the alternative route.

 

[fishdoc11]

Unfortunately one side says not to worry and the other says it will all be gone in two weeks. Most of us with a brain know it is probably somewhere in between...............

 

[greystreet41]

it's not difficult to recognize global warming is happening on some level. It is difficult to ascertain what the human impact is and what would be happening in naturally occuring events not only on earth, but the sun as well. You guys are right...we have one side that says Bush has a hurricane making machine and neo-cons saying any suggestion of global changes is propaganda. Gotta love elected officials and lobbyists.

 

[boodwah]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7085559#post7085559 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by fishdoc11
Unfortunately one side says not to worry and the other says it will all be gone in two weeks. Most of us with a brain know it is probably somewhere in between...............

Exactly. And there is a lot of real estate in the "in between" neighborhood.

 

[boodwah]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7088152#post7088152 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by greystreet41
it's not difficult to recognize global warming is happening on some level. It is difficult to ascertain what the human impact is and what would be happening in naturally occuring events not only on earth, but the sun as well. You guys are right...we have one side that says Bush has a hurricane making machine and neo-cons saying any suggestion of global changes is propaganda. Gotta love elected officials and lobbyists.

The whole global warming issue is even more difficult to ascertain than some of the principles of quantum physics. In physics one can postulate a theory and in many cases conduct experiments with a control group and a study group to calculate results. With the whole global warming scenario it is impossible to have the control group and study group. Also, the scale is so large that it would be darn near impossible to study using most approved methods of scientific research. And last, we have the whole time issue to deal with. Even the time frame is on the macro level. So all that the scientists and speculators can do is run gesalt experiments based on geological data, weather trends over the past 100 years, and working theories that are not proven but considered to be fairly accurate. There are too many unkowns in the equation which makes it very hard to solve for the unknown. Therefore, the whole issue makes for very good fodder in a polarized political enviroment during this critical time in our history when tensions with the world's oil suppliers happen to coincide with a noticeable change in our climate. Couple that coincidence with the recent development of insantaneous (and mostly unfiltered) information and it is very surprising that the issue is not more divisive than it already is. But then again, it ain't over yet.

 

[eyebedam]

Global warming is crap. Just another way to scare us into higher taxes & for goverment to have a hold & more control over us.

 

[easttn]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7090836#post7090836 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by eyebedam
Global warming is crap. Just another way to scare us into higher taxes & for goverment to have a hold & more control over us.

That is irresponsible and incorrect. Read a little more.

 

[eyebedam]

Read the propaganda

 

[Angela Short]

Global warming must have hit about the time I moved to middle TN! Talk about hot humid summers We also only have 2 seasons it seems HOT and COLD!

 

[forensicdoc]

Yes there is dying off on the reefs in the Caribbean. Whether it is due to warming of the water and/or disease is not clear. I would say the prediction of the complete loss of the reef system in 10-20 years is alarmist at best. The truth is that what we know is far exceeded by what we have no clue about.

Also, while our planet's climate changes over time, the ecosystem adapts. You do not have to do more then dig down a few feet in Middle TN to see the inland sea that used to be on this site, complete with fossils of previous sea life. This includes reefs (although quite different in the passage of tens to hundred of millions of years). So I suspect that reefs will adapt and survive climate change as they have for longer than humans have been on this planet.

My personal opinion (so take it for what it is worth) is that the concept that humans are responsible for climate change is egotistical. We cannot predict what the weather will be tomorrow. To not just predict climate change but to know the cause of it is not credible.