More About the Shows and How to Use Them

In a previous post I talked about a few series including Life, Planet Earth and Aftermath. As a follow up I wanted to include some links that tell you more about the show.
Information about Life can be found here. There are many videos from the show and behind the scenes.
Information about Planet Earth can be found here. This is another Discovery Channel show, just like Life, and there is a lot of good videos from the show and about the show.
Information about Aftermath can be found here. This show is by National Geographic and on this site there is a lot of information about the show like an overview, photos and lots of videos.

Ithaca College has a website that includes some really good lesson plans about looking at Climate Change in the media. I think that this would be really interesting to include in a college course since society today has become so focused on the media. The media influences our thoughts about news stories, celebrities, scientific evidence and almost everything else. A good activity may be to find an article that is told in multiple lights depending on the source that is talking about it. Working with the media and looking how climate change and global warming is being portrayed in the media would be a good thing to work on with students. Global Warming tends to have more of a negative connotation in society, a good activity for students would be figure out why. What is being said about global warming that is turning it into something evil and not climate change? (Other than the scary facts about how it is actually occurring)

Looking for Climate Change Shows

There are many shows and movies now a days about climate change and the impacts that are being seen worldwide. There have been movies in the past like Day After Tomorrow and An Inconvenient Truth that are all about what could happen to our planet if things get out of our control. And although that may seem far fetched and not possible, recently it has become clear that it is a very strong possibility. There has also been multiple shows on TV that are giving the public a chance to learn more about the history of our planet and the changes that it is currently going through. Some of these series include: Life (fantastic series), Planet Earth, Aftermath, Cosmos (which is so much more than just about space) and lots of specials on the Discovery Channel and National Geographic. Cosmos really interested me because they have a special episode completely based on climate change, the others touch on it but this is completely focused on it.  

The show Life is a really cool show that gives an in depth look into certain aspects of life on this planet. It does it in a very interesting manner and really gives you a lot of good information. I recorded this show when it first came out, and it was definitely worth it. Each episode is about an hour long, and each episode has a specific theme to it.  Another Series I really looked into was Cosmos, which is definitely more than just about space. It is all about the planet and why it is the way it is. You can see the trailer and other information here as well as the trailer for the climate change episode here. Climate change is a motif in all the episodes but there is a specific episode completely dedicated to the topic.

A show called Years of Living Dangerously on Showtime is another good show that really goes into climate change and show the effects that society is currently facing. The show is "hosted" by well known celebrities, and in one of the future episodes it includes Micheal C. Hall. Anyone who has Netflix and common sense will recognize him from the show Dexter so I was really excited to see the episode he was included in. The first episode goes into Texas and shows the drought that they are currently facing that is causing almost the whole town to uproot and find work elsewhere. A good activity to include with this could either be finding out other places that are facing similar effects of climate change or just other places in society that have to deal with the changing climate. This could include places receiving less precipitation or more frequent weather events. I think it would be good to explore more into the everyday effects people are having to adapt with. 

Global Warming Quiz

Here is another quiz from National Geographic about global warming this time. It has the same sort of layout, where you get information about each question's answer. This time the quiz is more focused on energy and the future possibilities. I did the quiz and I had gotten the same as the previous... 50 percent. There are some interesting questions on there that definitely inform you of some things you probably would not have known otherwise. Here is the link to take the quiz yourself!

Source: "Global Warming Facts, Global Warming Information, Global Warming Questions, Quiz - National Geographic." National Geographic. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 May 2014.

Climate Quiz

What do you know about climate? There is a quiz on the national geographic to test how much you know about climate change on our planet. You can take the quiz here. After you answer each question it tells you whether you are correct or not, and gives a brief explanation of the answer. I took the quiz and got 50 percent. The questions on the quiz are more about what is being effected by climate change past, present and future. It teaches you some cool facts that you probably didn't know, and some are actually kind of scary!

Source: "Freshwater Quiz: Climate Change -- National Geographic." National Geographic. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 May 2014.

WHAT CAN I SAY?!

So what's the difference... global warming....climate change.... it's all the same thing right? WRONG! Global warming refers to the global temperature increasing. While climate change refers to a much broader area. Climate change refers to how climates are taking the increase in global temperatures. This means like weather patterns, sea level rise and ocean acidification. NASA prefers the term climate change over global warming because it is a better representation of what the planet is going through since it does not only cover the increase of global temperature. To read more about where the phrases originated from, and the debate click here.

Source: Wall, Tim. "War of the Words: Climate Change or Global Warming? : DNews."DNews. N.p., 6 May 2014. Web. 28 May 2014.

The Arctic Ice Could Melt Faster Than We Thought!

All throughout the ocean there are underwater volcanoes that will sometimes erupt. There are volcanoes that are present underneath the Antarctic ice sheet, which could potentially lead to huge problems. If these were to erupt, the heat would cause the ice sheet to melt at a much faster rate and would cause abrupt sea level rises. If the ice were to melt at an accelerated pace, society as a whole most likely will not be able to completely prepare for such a sudden rise in sea levels. For more information about volcanic reactions effecting the ice you can look here.

Source: Heltzel, Paul. "Antarctic Melt Could Increase Volcanic Activity : DNews."DNews. N.p., 20 May 2014. Web. 28 May 2014.

For All You Non-Believers...

As with almost every issue, there is going to be two sides. Even things that you would think are common knowledge or relatively simple, like 9/11 or other tragic events, somehow have conspiracies behind them. Even with every fact pointing towards something being true, there are going to be people that don't believe it. And even nowadays with every single sign pointing towards global warming being real and happening, there are still people saying that it isn't real. As this group is becoming fewer and fewer, here is some solid proof that climate change is happening and effecting us more than we may know. On this website it shows you ten signs that climate change is happening, but all of these coincidentally have to do with rising sea levels and ice melting. Could it be any more obvious how much of a reality climate change is?

Source: Mulvaney, Kieran. "1. Carbon Dioxide Concentrations in the Atmosphere Are Increasing : DNews." DNews. N.p., 22 Apr. 2013. Web. 27 May 2014.

Glaciers

This is a before and after painting of a glacier melting. As global warming progresses through the years, glaciers that could be used to cool the planet (ice albedo) are now melting at an accelerated pace. The ice albedo feedback is essential to our climate and it's balance. This and the other feedbacks are what influence the climate and its variability. As the ice melts, there is less of a chance for the planet to cool itself down. If the melting rate slows down, there is a chance the the ice albedo effect can catch up and cool down the planet.

Source: http://www.treehugger.com/culture/diane-burko-puts-climate-change-on-a-canvas-with-politics-of-snow.html

The Effects of Climate Change in a Picture

Global warming does not necessarily mean that the entire globe is facing the same effects. A rise in temperature globally can mean more precipitation in some parts of the world, with less precipitation in other parts of the world. Some parts of the world are going to experience frequent extreme weather conditions like tornadoes, tsunamis, earthquakes or hurricanes. Other extremes people may face would be the temperatures. There could be colder winters and hotter summers and extreme highs and lows are going to become more common. The hot weather shown on the right could become a reality in the US with the rising temperatures, causing more frequent droughts.

Source: http://kabq.org.au/welcome-to-the-low-carbon-diet/what-is-climate-change

The Hazards of Nuclear Energy

There are so many pros and cons when in comes to using nuclear energy. There is the risk of a power plant explosion, which could cost many lives, but there is the benefit of not relying on non renewable resources. An accident that occurred during routine maintenance in India that killed six people, is now causing people to protest at the site. This can easily delay the country's plan to further the nuclear power industry. In this article you can read more about India's nuclear industry and the protest that occurred.

Source: "Nuclear Power Plant Accident Triggers Protests in India - India Real Time - WSJ." India Real Time RSS. 15 May 2014. Web. 15 May 2014.

Climate Change is Still Really Hurting Florida

As a coastal state, Florida is getting hit pretty hard when it comes to climate change. Beaches and sea life are seeing this climate change faster than expected. And even worse, they are having to deal with the rising sea levels. This is already an effect that people have to deal with, because rising sea levels have caused increased flooding. Agriculture and wildlife are also already being effected which is really beginning to hurt Florida. In this article here you can read more about the effects climate change is having on Florida.

Source: Fishkind, Hank. "Fishkind: Effects of Climate Change Affect Florida Now."Fishkind: Effects of Climate Change Affect Florida Now. 16 May 2014. Web. 17 May 2014.

Climate Change and it's Real Life Effects

When browsing the internet about recent news in climate change, I found a series of videos done by NASA that show climate change and it's effects on the planet.There are several videos in this series, about a lot of interesting things. How bees and pollination are effected, how important glaciers are and how our oceans effect climate change are all part of this video series that help really visualize global warming. Underneath the top ten videos of climate change there are other videos more specifically about life, the ocean, the atmosphere and ice.

Source: "CLIMATE REEL." Global Climate Change. Earth Science Communications Team, n.d. Web. 16 May 2014.

Why are States Trying to Prevent the Chesapeake Bay From Getting Cleaned Up?

I know it probably seems crazy, who would be against cleaning up a bay that once was filled with wildlife such as clams and crabs? Believe it or not there are 20 states that are not even close to the bay that are rejecting the idea of cleaning it up. This is because the bay is strongly polluted by chemicals and urban runoff that is produced from local factories and/or farms. These states that are not bordering the bay are trying to prevent a bill that reduces the pollution and save the wildlife. In this article, you can see more in depth about why these states are trying to prevent it.

Source: Valetine, Katie. "Why Are 20 Far-Away States Trying To Block The Cleanup Of The Chesapeake Bay?" ThinkProgress RSS. N.p., 16 Apr. 2012. Web. 15 May 2014.

When the Economy Starts to Get Effected

Although the economy has always been influenced by climate change, lately it has been having a stronger impact than normal. In particular, it has been starting to influence insurance companies and their policies for natural disasters, that now occur more due to the climate changing. These climate change scenarios could take an extreme toll on businesses and individuals if they are not properly prepared for. In this article, you can read more about the world's oldest and biggest insurance market and what they are recommending for insurance agencies worldwide to do about climate change and it's damages.

Source: Stern, Nicholas, and Julia Kollewe. "Lloyd's Calls on Insurers to Take into Account Climate-change Risk." The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 08 May 2014. Web. 21 May 2014.

Climate Change is Being Seen Worldwide

Here in the US we see climate change effecting us in was such as extreme weather and extreme temperatures. Across the globe, some countries are having a harder time with the change of climates. The Middle East and Africa are having trouble with droughts causing water deprivation and crop shortages. For undeveloped countries global warming is definitely taking a larger toll on them. At this website you can learn some more information about what they are going through, and how they are trying to handle it.

Source #6: Davenport, Coral. "Climate Change Deemed Growing Security Threat by Military Researchers." The New York Times. The New York Times, 13 May 2014. Web. 20 May 2014.

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