The Global Countdown-Can we slow it down?

As of January 2010, the Doomsday Clock sits at 6 minutes before midnight

My last article was about global warming and its ill effects.One of my friends pointed me out to a documentary The Great Global Warming Swindle.You can view the documentary in youtube.There was another documentary "The age of Stupid" which I had managed to download in the past.What I felt that both of them were as if the sides of the same coin.Here are a few highlights of both the documentarys

The Great Global Warming Swindle

Read out the article and browse the internet to find out more about this documentary.The summary is that global warming is a government and industrialist funded hoax to stop the third world country from using up their oil reserves.
 
While this movie cites the example of a remote african health clinic to show that solar power is not even sufficient to operate the clinic to full potential and moreover about the uncertainity of sunny and windy days.

As the documentary claims that even speaking against the most happening event and to prove it a lie would be like as to pointing our fingers to god almighty and question his authority.

As the matter went up to court.Ruling was given against the channel for misusing of information and misinterpertetion of the interviews.I say read up the wikipdia about it and then watch the movie.

The Age of Stupid

Once again if you can watch it.The summary says that we had made several mistakes and one of them was to rely on Oil or fossil fuel for our development.The idea it proposes is not to stop all together but to bring the consumption to a standard level so that every major continent gets fair share of it with minimal usage.

The documentary narrates 6 stories.Stories of how we made mistakes and never even bothered to look at the consequences of those mistakes.

Six Human Stories

- Alvin DuVernay, is a paleontogolist helping Shell find more oil off the coast of New Orleans. He also rescued more than 100 people after Hurricane Katrina, which, by 2055, is well known as one of the first major climate change events.
- Jeh Wadia in Mumbai aims to start-up a new low-cost airline and gets a million Indians flying.
- Layefa Malemi lives in absolute poverty in a small village in Nigeria from which Shell extracts tens of millions of dollars worth of oil every week. She dreams of becoming a doctor, but must fish in the oil-infested waters for four years to raise the funds.
- Jamila Bayyoud, aged 8, is an Iraqi refugee living on the streets of Jordan after her home was destroyed - and father killed - during the US-led invasion of 2003. She's trying to help her elder brother make it across the border to safety.
- Piers Guy is a windfarm developer from Cornwall fighting the NIMBY's (Not In My Back Yard) of Middle England.
- 82-year-old French mountain guide Fernand Pareau has witnessed his beloved Alpine glaciers melt by 150 metres


Once again read and google out before you watch the documentary.

Well so which one is True?

So the question comes that which of these are true.What is true and what is false is really based on our perception of this world and the reality around us.But one thing is for sure.The Energy that is wasted simply because there is a lot to spend will have a dramatic effect on our future.The problem is the energy takes long time to become usable and then is used in a shorter span of life thus leading to near depletion.Lets take a closer look

1.Oil

Normally we use the petroleum or Gas for the Cars and Aircraft.The American Petroleum Institute estimated in 1999 the world's oil supply would be depleted between 2062 and 2094, assuming total world oil reserves at between 1.4 and 2 trillion barrels and consumption at 80 million barrels per day.

Imagine a life without Cars and Aviation.Not only that.All the major industries are based on a supply/delivery chain which will be hampered.Practically speaking we will go back to the stone age.Surely many have predicted that there will be alternate fuel source but the question is what if it is not discovered in the right time.Even a gap of 10 years can ultimately lead to the downfall of humanity.

2.Electricity

As we can see.Majority of the electricity comes from coal and gas.Both of these commodities are non renewable sources.

With the increase in world population(reach between 7.5 and 10.5 billion) there is going to be more demand for electricity and thus more non renewable sources will be used up.Also the alternatives are clealy visible to us but why they are not produced in a mass scale?

Three factors contribute the answer.

1.Cost of manufacturing alternate source of energy is very high

2.The energy developed doesnt yield much of power compared to a non renewable energy.

Ex:Solar Panel produced Electricity usually costs between Rs 15-18 /KwH (much higher than the Rs 3-6/unit paid normally) which makes it uneconomical except in special cases like off grid applications

3.The energy needs to be stored for distribution which further adds up to the cost.

The future relies however on the fact that over the time period the cost will go down and usage of non renewable energy source will discared or minimized for good.

3.Water

Though not alarming but still consider the fact that almost 1/4th of the world population lives on drinking water what we sophisticated people wouldnt even touch.

Consider the fact  that most of the population in Africa has virtually no access to clean water.Check on Internet for various pictures and videos.But be advised that it may create a severe consequence on your humanity.

Conclusion

Yes I agree that we are going through a very golden age and are happy about our life.True that today we are enjoying the modern marvel of technological advance.But do give it a thought wether our next generation that comes during 2050 will be able to see and enjoy the same or will they pray to god for a glass of water and curse us for being whatever we are today.

Only thing I ask you to think over and stop wasting energy and contribute towards the awareness factor.Go Green

Signing off
Santanu Ghosal

Global Warming

After a long series of thoughts I finally decided to write about this article.It took me a long and deep thinking for I was wondering whether to really trouble the readers with disturbing facts.The biggest question that was coming to mind immediately was "Is this the right decision for this moment".But finally I decided to put my thought to you guys in a different manner.

Our Planet is Dying


Lets take a peek into the few ecological problems we are facing or are about to face in the next decade.Since the content is very huge and requires detailed explanation I will be splitting it into several posts.

Global Warming

Hey we all know it.People all around the earth are facing it.Even on a fine Sunday morning when you ask the shopkeeper why the price of the fish is going up,he may even shoulder the global warming effect for that.

Global warming is the increase in the average temperature of Earth's near-surface air and oceans since the mid-20th century and its projected continuation. According to the 2007 Fourth Assessment Report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), global surface temperature increased by 0.74 ± 0.18 °C (1.33 ± 0.32 °F) during the 20th century.^[2][A] Most of the observed temperature increase since the middle of the 20th century has been caused by increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases, which result from human activities such as the burning of fossil fuel and deforestation

                                                                                     Wikipedia

Effects of Global Warming are various but the most direct and straightforward is the rise in sea level due to the melting of ice in polar caps.


Here is a glimpse of what could happen in the future. Note that the results are tentative and just calculated based on the temperature increase in a steady level.But if it starts to increase in an exponential level.



As you can see certain parts of West Bengal is hugely affected.What more to say.Buy a boat and stash it on roof.Just in case you know.Oh and be sur e to stack up rations.Lots of Booze and Cigrette(For those who smoke and drink of course).Money may not be a priority but here is some important stuffs. The list has been collected from Post Apocalyptic Movies and Games

1. Apple ipod.As seen in the Movie "The Book Of Eli" the ipod survived the appocalypse and Eli managed to load some cool songs onto it also(god knows from where) 
2. Umm...some way to recycle water..as seen in the Movie "Waterworld".Well to be honest "Whatever liquid comes out are recycled and put back in"...pretty groovy but a practical way otherwise. 
3. Chuck Noriss movie posters and gears.Indians can also settle for a Rajnikant or Sunny Deol or even Mithun Da Gear.The Gear helps in camaflaudge when your opponet will think that the mighty hand of god has just come forth. 
4. Some kind of Power Generator.Be it solar or be it Nuclear doesnt matter.

 

 

Last Minute Suggestion:Start buying land in the Himalayas.As seen in various movies.Himalaya remains dry at most of the cases.While we may not be looking at the immediate effects as shown in the movie 2012,there is no harm in getting prepared.

Changes in CO2 level in the Ocean Water and thus the Effect of Ocean Acidification

The role of the oceans in global warming is a complex one. The oceans serve as a sink for carbon dioxide, taking up much that would otherwise remain in the atmosphere, but increased levels of CO2 have led to ocean acidification.Dissolving CO2 in seawater increases the hydrogen ion (H+) concentration in the ocean, and thus decreases ocean pH. Caldeira and Wickett (2003) placed the rate and magnitude of modern ocean acidification changes in the context of probable historical changes during the last 300 million years.[16] Since the industrial revolution began, it is estimated that surface ocean pH has dropped by slightly more than 0.1 units (on the logarithmic scale of pH; approximately a 30% increase in H+), and it is estimated that it will drop by a further 0.3 to 0.5 units (more than doubling ocean H+ concentrations) by 2100 as the oceans absorb more anthropogenic CO2

 

 A Quick Overview

Here is an excellent link..Click n the below posted picture to go to the national geographic site link and get a good knowledge of how things fare.

How to counter the Global Warming

• Be aware of the Global Warming.
   
• Drive less. Instead take bikes, walk or carpool each time possible.
   
• Prefer investing in a hybrid or electric vehicle so as to avoid further global warming.
   
• Replace the bulbs in and around your home with energy-efficient tubes that require fewer watts for the same amount of light.
   
• Every month, clean or replace filters of your air-conditioners.
   
• Whenever buying new electrical appliances always go for energy-efficient ones.
   
• Decrease your travel by air.
   
• Wash clothes in cold or warm water instead of hot water and prefer line-dry sooner than drier.
   
• Use a low-flow showerhead as it will lessen the hot water used, and will not reduce water pressure in the shower.
   
• Reduce your garbage. Use eco-friendly bags for shopping. Purchase less packaged materials to stop further global warming.
   
• Unplug electronics whenever not in use, as they consume energy in the stand-by mode.  
   
• Recycle your waste to the extent that is possible. Purchase recycled paper and recycled products to prevent further global warming.
   
• When shopping for grocery, take your own reusable canvas bags so that you don’t accumulate more plastic at home.
   
• Plant a tree, whenever possible.
   
• For cleaning, prefer using natural or nontoxic cleaning products.
   
• Prefer fresh food rather than frozen foods. A farmer’s market is the best place to get fresh food.
   
• Get your car serviced and tires pressure checked to save consumption of fuel.
   
• Include less meat and more organic foods in your diet to prevent global warming

A matter to think over.

Signing Off
Santanu Ghosal