How Do Humans Cause Global Warming
Congratulate yourself for wanting to learn about the main cause of global warming. Not only does our species create huge problems that are beyond the ability of other animals to create, but we have the fortunate ability to analyze them and work to bring an end to their consequences. You are actively engaged in that process.
Humans cause global warming with our unique ability to capture and use energy from stored energy sources. No other animal can start fires or build gasoline engines.
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Consider your home and the environment in which it is situated. The very fact that you live in one place, something that was quite uncommon before the discovery of stored energy sources like fossil fuels, speaks to how your life is facilitated by these unique energy sources.
Even your basic needs are dependent on fossil fuels. Your water, food, and fuel for heating and cooking likely travel hundreds, if not thousands of miles to your home.
This pattern couldn’t be sustained if humans didn’t have the ability to exploit dense energy sources such as coal, oil, and natural gas. However, their discovery transformed the face of the earth and the nature of humans.
The effects on earth are dangerous. In the last 150 years, the human population has grown by more than five times and each person uses more energy than ever. This energy comes largely from fossil fuels, the use of which is a direct cause of global warming.
Global Warming is a Growing Problem
The growth of the human population and the growth of consumption adds up to an ever-escalating carbon output. You’ve probably heard a lot of talk about global warming, but if we want to decrease global warming, then the amount of carbon released each year by humans must be drastically reduced.
Human Consumption or Human Population?
Two factors are acting as catalysts of increased carbon levels in our atmosphere:
- Increasing consumption among the wealthy (that means you!)
- Increasing population among the poor
You may wonder which is the primary culprit. The answer is clear – both! Consider the following:
- Americans consume 300 - 600 times as much as people in very poor nations, in some cases.
- 70 million people are added to the world’s population each year, many of whom aspire to live “better” lives, to consume like wealthy people.
From this it becomes clear why humans are the main cause of global warming. However, it is even more important for you to understand that you have the power to help prevent global warming from getting worse.
(Image credit: Flickr via mkw87)
This reminds of the old Patsy Cline (authored by Willie Nelson) Crazy……… I will burn my ancient oak wood on my barbeque and cook my beef in your honor. If you got them burn them.
So now we know!! “Global Warming” is all our fault?!!
Whatever shall we do ?? Well, we might as well all kill ourselves!! That should solve it!! I cannot believe people actually think that it’s “Global Warming” that will destroy the earth!! WAKE UP!!! There is NO SUCH THING as Global Warming!! What do we breathe out? CO2
which means we should stop breathing?? What about plants
?? They “breathe” in CO2 emissions, so if we stop CO2, we will kill off the human-race?!! Good idea, eh??!
Climate Change happens all the time. It was happening long before man came along!!
It’s people who “think” like L. Nice who are the problem. What a fucking idiot! The thing we need to do is reduce the number of children being produced to something significantly less that 2 babies per woman, per lifetime. Over-breeding needs to be taxed or fined! People should be given a tax credit for NOT having a lot of children instead of the other way around. This needs to be a world-wide initiative. Forget about counting CO2 molecules or “carbon credits”. The problem is too many people and the solution is to reduce the number of people. And if we don’t get on it quickly, were are all screwed (along with just about every other living thing on the planet). The governments of the world will rarely admit that we should all be having less kids because that means less people to tax and milk. But, it’s killing us. They just can’t wrap their collective brains around the fact that money and power are in the long run, much less important than the survival of the biosphere. There are consequences for everything we do and allow to be done. What we are doing is wrong. Thanks for not breeding! And for those of you who do, please cut your own fucking head off.
Randwulf - Wow I cannot believe you have the audacity to call someone else an idiot and then propose a Chinese/communist solution to what you see as the problem. Yes we probably are overpopulating this planet but who are you to say who can and can’t have more than 2 children. I agree that Octo-Mom is ridiculous and people should only have a number of kids that they themselves can support without government assistance, but in no way should we limit the number to 2 or any number for that matter.
Global Warming is a scare tactic put on by the media and people out to make a ton of money. Scientists are learning so much about the planet everyday but you can’t put a puzzle together without all the pieces. It is a good theory to say that our carbon emissions are effecting this planet and it could be correct and it could be off base, but the scare tactics based on computer models are complete rubbish. It is an opportunity to place blame on people so others can become empowered and make money, I can’t believe more people don’t see this.
Take care of the planet as best we can, but don’t buy into the if we do nothing we are doomed argument. If you look back through history we are actually at a medium temperature on the fluctuating curve, it has been as much as 20 degrees warmer on this planet and they have found algae in sediment in Greenland causing some scientists to believe Greenland was once a tropical place much like the everglades.
Just because a belief is popular does not mean that it is Correct.
Ty
You don’t sound very educated. All of the continents were at different locations at one time or another due to continental drift, thus placing Greenland in a different latitude which could have been warmer.
There are many scare tactics in the world but to simply dismiss all of the science and computer models as rubbish is very short sighted and narrow minded.
As far as any species is concerned, if a population becomes too large resources will become scarce and habitats will become depleted and polluted. This is true whether you’re talking about bacteria, fungi, or humans. If something is not done with respect to population control on a global level, the quality of life for all organisms is going to suffer.
If find it interesting that the educated people of the world practice typically population control (without being told to) whereas the uneducated masses are the ones doing the overpopulating thus dumbing down our schools/country and the rest of the planet.
well i think that people in this United States are causing global warming and the first person that said that there is no such thing as global warming,,,WELL THERE IS SUCH A THING!!!! and its our job to try and stop global warming and STOP letting it keep going MAKE IT COME TO AN END or alot of ppl are going to die BECAUSE OF GLOBAL WARMING!!!
Okay. So definately we are not the only ones causing global warming. There are so many natrual cause like changes in our planets orbit and tilt and interglacier periods. We shouldnt burden this all on ourselves. What we really need to do is cut back on what really isn’t necessary. I know we all cant be like Leonardo De’caprio who lives in a major eco-friendly house but we can still help!!! we need to think before we turn on our fire places just because we are a little chilly… 12% of carbon dioxide emissions come from our BUILDINGS!!!! im saying this to everyone, think about the things YOU could do to help!!!!
hi, okay so im writing an essay on how the human population has changed, and what differences it has made to our planet,and everything you guys just put was all b.s.
thanks for your time, bye.
[...] Human activities are most likely causing global warming according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report. The results of this report are significant since the IPCC is the leading group of scientist that evaluate climate change-related research. [...]
Alright. There is no non political science evedence that sais humans are causing global warming. In fact, there is exactly the oppisite. 75% of professional scientist sertified by the UN say that humans are not the primary cause of global warming. Global warming is a natural cycle of the earth scine the start of time. According to the EPA the atmosphere does not not have enough compasity for C02 to heat the earth. And how come the years following WWII when the C02 levels were almost triple of what they are now due to the reconstruction of half the world the world was affraid of global cooling. And did you know that most countries in Africa are affarid of Global cooling right now.