scary new changes in the earth's eco-system

[houstonmacbro]

while we squabble over whether gays can marry, what's in paris hilton's purse, whether madonna will be able to legally keep a black baby adopted from africa, and did OJ really murder nicole (and why it should or shouldn't be a book or be shown on fox) ... the world is literally falling apart around us and before our very eyes.

i guess it's easier for most people to get absorbed in the stupid stuff, than to take a really hard look at what is happening to us all.

Pace of Global Warming Causes Alarm

'Very different and frightening world' coming faster than expected, scientists warn

by Seth Borenstein

Animal and plant species have begun dying off or changing sooner than predicted because of global warming, a review of hundreds of research studies contends.

These fast-moving adaptations come as a surprise even to biologists and ecologists because they are occurring so rapidly.

At least 70 species of frogs, mostly mountain-dwellers that had nowhere to go to escape the creeping heat, have gone extinct because of climate change, the analysis says. It also reports that between 100 and 200 other cold-dependent animal species, such as penguins and polar bears, are in deep trouble.

"We are finally seeing species going extinct," said University of Texas biologist Camille Parmesan, author of the study. "Now we've got the evidence. It's here. It's real. This is not just biologists' intuition. It's what's happening."

full story here: http://www.commondreams.org/headlines06/1121-09.htm

[TheNiche]

while we squabble over whether gays can marry, what's in paris hilton's purse, whether madonna will be able ot legally keep a black baby adopted from africa, and did OJ really murder nicole (and why it should or shouldn't be a book or be shown on fox) ... the world is literally falling apart around us and before our very eyes.

i guess it's easier for most people to get absorbed in the stupid stuff, than to take a really hard look at what is happening to us all.

Pace of Global Warming Causes Alarm

'Very different and frightening world' coming faster than expected, scientists warn

by Seth Borenstein

Animal and plant species have begun dying off or changing sooner than predicted because of global warming, a review of hundreds of research studies contends.

These fast-moving adaptations come as a surprise even to biologists and ecologists because they are occurring so rapidly.

At least 70 species of frogs, mostly mountain-dwellers that had nowhere to go to escape the creeping heat, have gone extinct because of climate change, the analysis says. It also reports that between 100 and 200 other cold-dependent animal species, such as penguins and polar bears, are in deep trouble.

"We are finally seeing species going extinct," said University of Texas biologist Camille Parmesan, author of the study. "Now we've got the evidence. It's here. It's real. This is not just biologists' intuition. It's what's happening."

full story here: http://www.commondreams.org/headlines06/1121-09.htm

Oh no! Miniscule changes! The sky is falling, the sky is falling!

[TJones]

Pass the suntan lotion. You won't see sgnificant "Global" changes in our lifetime, our children's lifetimes, our children's children, our their children either. Put your faith in something else besides what a few skeptics say. Back in the 70's and early 80's the scientific community agreed that we were heading for an "iceage", now we are gonna cook ourselves.

[dbigtex56]

Pass the suntan lotion. You won't see sgnificant "Global" changes in our lifetime, our children's lifetimes, our children's children, our their children either. Put your faith in something else besides what a few skeptics say. Back in the 70's and early 80's the scientific community agreed that we were heading for an "iceage", now we are gonna cook ourselves.

"Won't see"? The changes are already undeniable. And make no mistake, this isn't "climate change" - it's global warming.

Or maybe those disappearing species are just playing hide-and-seek as a joke?

So far as consensus about an impending ice age among scientists in the 70's and early 80, there was none. It was a hotly (if you'll excuse the term) debated topic. But no legitimate scientist discounts global warming. The evidence is overwhelming.

[houstonmacbro]

some folks refuse to open their eyes.

remember they laughed at noah too.

[gwilson]

When someone can rationally explain to me that any changes are not the natural cyclic nature of the earths climate is when I will start buying the global warming idea.

The world has been "warming" at record paces of a half a degree a year for 20 years, yet the temperature is still the same. The summer here in Houston was a mild one this year, compared to past very hot summers. How is that possible if we are in a global temperature upshift.

There are far too many holes in the theory of global warming for it to be anything solid.

Happy Feet movie aside, global warming is still, at best, a theory.

[houstonmacbro]

global warming does not automatically mean that ALL areas of the earth will be a hot swampy mess.

in fact, some places will get colder and some will get drier.

[Montrose1100]

Oh jesus! Animal species are Dying off? NO WAY! Do we still have time to save the Dinosaurs & DoDo Birds?

Hello Global Warming, havn't about 90% of all species on earth have already become extinct? We Humans have not been on earth for forever, so why not stop flattering ourselves into thinking we're the problem.

[TJones]

global warming does not automatically mean that ALL areas of the earth will be a hot swampy mess.

in fact, some places will get colder and some will get drier.

So if the equator becomes the new polar region and the icecaps melt and become island paradises, would you say that is a trade off in the Earth's eco-system, or is it global warming ?

[houstonmacbro]

that would be called gentrification.

[Captain Impossible]

...ALL areas of the earth will be a hot swampy mess.

One giant southeast Texas.

[Pumapayam]

Happy Feet movie aside, global warming is still, at best, a theory.

Really, with all the rainforest being destoryed and all the developing countries adding carbon monoxide to the atmosphere.

Can you remember back in the 70 and 80's we used to have at least one heavy snow day (okay, like 1" of snow) or frost day each winter in Houston, now we are lucky just to get a temperature below freezing for 3 or 4 days the ENTIRE winter.

Really now. . . .

[nmainguy]

while we squabble over whether gays can marry, what's in paris hilton's purse, whether madonna will be able ot legally keep a black baby adopted from africa, and did OJ really murder nicole (and why it should or shouldn't be a book or be shown on fox) ... the world is literally falling apart around us and before our very eyes.

i guess it's easier for most people to get absorbed in the stupid stuff, than to take a really hard look at what is happening to us all.

I agree we get caught up in the stupid stuff-I'm guilty of it today by correcting an inaccurate definition of "basilica"-just stupid time-wasting on my part.

However, I will err on the side of sound scientific research instead of anti-science Republicans or some childish throw-away tag like "the sky is falling."

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/world/AP-A...amp;oref=slogin

[Jeebus]

remember they laughed at noah too.

As long as cows, pigs, & chickens don't go extinct, I'm happy.

[Parrothead]

Really, with all the rainforest being destoryed and all the developing countries adding carbon monoxide to the atmosphere.

Can you remember back in the 70 and 80's we used to have at least one heavy snow day (okay, like 1" of snow) or frost day each winter in Houston, now we are lucky just to get a temperature below freezing for 3 or 4 days the ENTIRE winter.

Really now. . . .

Puma, gwilson is right. It's a theory, and one that does not have the entire scientific community behind it. A lot like the Big Bang and dinosaur extinction. The trouble is, when the media gets a hold of these theories, the public tends to think they are no longer theories but fact...and the whole time nothing has changed, they're still just theories.

I agree we get caught up in the stupid stuff-I'm guilty of it today by correcting an inaccurate definition of "basilica"-just stupid time-wasting on my part.

However, I will err on the side of sound scientific research instead of anti-science Republicans or some childish throw-away tag like "the sky is falling."

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/world/AP-A...amp;oref=slogin

anti-science Republicans? Um, okay...

[nmainguy]

Here's a review of The Republican War on Science].

From Scientific American

Thomas Jefferson would be appalled. More than two centuries after he helped to shape a government based on the idea that reason and technological advancement would propel the new United States into a glorious future, the political party that now controls that government has largely turned its back on science...It does not claim that business interests or moral values trump the scientific consensus. Rather rightists argue that the consensus itself is flawed. Then they encourage a debate between the consensus and the extremist naysayers, giving the two apparently equal weight.

And that is the crux of much of the argument: Giving non-science based talking points equal status with rigorous scientific research. They are not and never have been equal.

[RedScare]

Actually, global warming is really not questioned by legitimate scientists anymore. Numerous studies have charted an unmistakable rise in the global mean temperature over the last 4 decades. It is not really even considered a "theory" in the general use of the word. The warming trend is real.

Now, what is currently being debated is the SOURCE of the warming. There is a growing consensus that it is related to human activities, though it is not yet certain. Most likely, the consensus will be that it is a combination of human and natural activity that accounts for the warming trend. There is also much debate regarding what to do about it.

As for certain places becoming cooler, this is in fact true. However, the measurement is of the GLOBAL mean temperature. The cooler locales are outweighed by the warmer locales. Even in Texas, where Houston's cooler summer this year was noted, Dallas' warmer summer, as well as the rest of the US, made this the 2nd hottest summer on record. Of the 10 hottest summers, 5 occurred during the Dust Bowl years of the 1930s, and 4 have occurred in the 21st Century. The other was 1988.

[Parrothead]

If there are anti-science Republicans, there are just as many anti-science Democrats. I still can't figure out why Dems just do not want to fund scientists who wish to study adult stem cells. It's baffling.

[west20th]

If there are anti-science Republicans, there are just as many anti-science Democrats. I still can't figure out why Dems just do not want to fund scientists who wish to study adult stem cells. It's baffling.

Is anyone against funding adult stem cell research? Who in particular? I thought the argument was it all should be funded, including embryonic.

[Parrothead]

Actually, global warming is really not questioned by legitimate scientists anymore. Numerous studies have charted an unmistakable rise in the global mean temperature over the last 4 decades. It is not really even considered a "theory" in the general use of the word. The warming trend is real.

I disagree. I'm immersed pretty heavily in "legitimate scientists", being married to one. It's a theory, and that's all. Some people agree with the global warming theory, some people do not, but almost all agree that forty years is just a fraction of a second in the lifespan of a planet and not nearly enough to warrant scientific truths of any kind. Just get a conversation going on that topic with the Chair of the Biology dept at UT-HSC and you'll get an earful!

[nmainguy]

Is anyone against funding adult stem cell research? Who in particular? I thought the argument was it all should be funded, including embryonic.

I've never heard of anyone being against adult stem cell research. It all should be funded. I'll never understand those that oppose embryonic research based on a "pro-life" platform but have no problem when they are discarded literally in the garbage. Again, it's hard to debate when anti-science, emotion based views demand the same status as those based on firm scientific research.

[houstonmacbro]

i watched 'the inconvenient truth' and most of the evidence seemed pretty compelling. i am not sure what is making the earth hotter or whether it is a 40 year, 100 year, or 1,000 year cycle.

just that RIGHT NOW it is getting warmer and having some serious effects.

we can laugh about it and call it political wrangling, but the facts are unmistakably clear (to me).

[Parrothead]

I've never heard of anyone being against adult stem cell research. It all should be funded. I'll never understand those that oppose embryonic research based on a "pro-life" platform but have no problem when they are discarded literally in the garbage. Again, it's hard to debate when anti-science, emotion based views demand the same status as those based on firm scientific research.

They are morally based views. Don't get me started on lives that are discarded every day and the hypocrisy among people in this country. You have a problem with a frozen embryo that hasn't even been fertilized being discarded as medical waste (BTW, a practice only done with full permission from the donor)? Well, please, tell us how you feel about a woman going to a doctor at 20 weeks and having her fetus cut into pieces and removed? I'd be interested to know.

Just last week, three Democrats right here in Texas voted against legislature that would enable the funding of adult stem cell research: Reps Mike Villareal, Trey Martinez Fischer, and Jessica Farrar. You can read more by checking out Wesley Smith's blog.

BTW, there isn't much that's "firm" about scientific research. It's ever-changing, that's about the only thing that's firm. But, I get what you're saying.

[nmainguy]

They are morally based views. Don't get me started on lives that are discarded every day and the hypocrisy among people in this country.

I don't debate abortion. Abortion has been performed and debated since before biblical times. There has always been abortion and there always will be abortion whether it is safe, legal and rare or thrown back into the alley with a coat hanger. Take your pick.

Just last week, three Democrats right here in Texas voted against legislature that would enable the funding of adult stem cell research: Reps Mike Villareal, Trey Martinez Fischer, and Jessica Farrar.

They didn't vote against any legislation. They refused to sign a report that they say doesn't offer a "scientifically accurate" view.

BTW, there isn't much that's "firm" about scientific research. It's ever-changing, that's about the only thing that's firm.

...and that is why the majority of people are for embryonic and adult stem cell research-we see promise in both.

BTW, Wesley Smith's affiliation with the Discovery Institute and support for intelligent design merely informs us of his attempt to trump science with religion. It's president, Bruce Chapman, explained that the Center seeks "To replace materialistic explanations with the theistic understanding that nature and human beings are created by God." Adam was subsequently replaced with the double helix of DNA:

Speaking of "intelligent design"...if the designer was so intelligent, then why do we have global pollution and why do I need to wear eyeglasses? Couldn't the designer at least have invented an eye that didn't go bad so early?

[DJ V Lawrence]

i am not sure what is making the earth hotter...

That would be me. My bad...

i watched 'the inconvenient truth' and most of the evidence seemed pretty compelling.

There seems to be a lot of politicians who like to brush the idea of global-warming and the greenhouse effect aside because all they care about is money now.

People need to stop being so nieve, man. Theory or no theory, how people can say that all the pollution us humans cause is helping the earth's environment is like saying Saw III is the feel-good movie of the year, yo. WE affect how polluted our air is. Look at how Houston had the "dirtiest air in America" a few years back. We're still working on it, but you can already see that our cutting down on pollutants can make a difference.

[TheNiche]

...now we are lucky just to get a temperature below freezing for 3 or 4 days the ENTIRE winter.

Yes, we are lucky.

just that RIGHT NOW it is getting warmer and having some serious effects.

RedScare was really on target with his comments. In fact, the places on the planet that have been warming most rapidly are in Siberia and many other of the extreme latitudes. Try telling someone who lives up there that global warming is a bad thing.

There's another debate that is going on amongst economists, entirely seperate from the scientific debate. They make assumptions about the nature of the mean warming trend and try to derive the actual impact on human activities. And generally speaking, if the trend occurs gradually, warmth is good. It's the possibility of an ice age that we should worry about.

[Guest danax]

Yes, we are lucky.

RedScare was really on target with his comments. In fact, the places on the planet that have been warming most rapidly are in Siberia and many other of the extreme latitudes. Try telling someone who lives up there that global warming is a bad thing.

There's another debate that is going on amongst economists, entirely seperate from the scientific debate. They make assumptions about the nature of the mean warming trend and try to derive the actual impact on human activities. And generally speaking, if the trend occurs gradually, warmth is good. It's the possibility of an ice age that we should worry about.

Apparently the Gulf Coast is especially vulnerable, not just due to possible sea level rises but also due to the land subsidence that is happening quickly.

The problem with gradual is that people don't react but stay in a short-term mode. Mother Nature has a way of spanking those children who don't pay attention in class.

[TheNiche]

Apparently the Gulf Coast is especially vulnerable, not just due to possible sea level rises but also due to the land subsidence that is happening quickly.

The problem with gradual is that people don't react but stay in a short-term mode. Mother Nature has a way of spanking those children who don't pay attention in class.

The article was surprisingly well-balanced. I would've expected much more fear-mongering from the Chronicle.

We're going to have to accept that Galveston will one day slip beneath the Gulf waters. And there's really not much that we can do about it unless you anticipate a repeat of 1902. In the mean time, the suggestion provided in the article that the NFIP needs to be dismantled is right on the mark. That is a critical first step toward sanity.

But even once true insurance costs are reflected in the coastal housing markets, there will still be people willing to pay big money for sweeping waterfront views...even if they are living on borrowed ground. Short term doesn't always mean bad. If people are willing to pay the price and they understand and accept the risks, that's their life, their money (and should be theirs alone), and their perrogative. They know what makes them happy better than I know what makes them happy. And I can't (and won't) be their nanny.

[Montrose1100]

I don't know why everyone is so selfish to say our pollution is so bad. Volcano Eruptions (individually) 'pollute' the air with more carbon dioxide then us Humans have in our exsistance.

So Chill out, I'll buy you a drink.

[Houston1stWordOnTheMoon]

When will the mosquitos and spiders and roaches die? I say let themFRY > > >