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Climate Change
Is climate change really happening and does it matter?
The answer from the scientific community is a resounding yes, yet debates about the reality of climate change and what measures to take are slowing our response. Barrie Pittock, one of the world's leading climate researchers, argues that we need to act urgently to avoid increasingly severe climate change. He looks at the controversy around global warming and other predicted changes, examining the scientific basis of the changes observed to date, how they relate to natural variations and why the evidence points to larger changes later this century. The effect of these changes on our natural systems and our lifestyles will be considerable and could include wild weather, shifts in global ocean circulation, decreases in crop yields and sea-level rises. But the impacts won't be distributed some countries will suffer more than others. Climate Turning up the Heat explains how our attitudes to risk and uncertainty � constant companions in life � influence our decision making and, ultimately, how much we and future generations stand to lose from rapid climate change. It outlines the current concerns of the major international players and reviews the response to date, detailing national interests. Importantly, it shows there is real hope of managing climate change and minimising the risk of disaster if we step up efforts to develop and apply innovative technological and policy solutions.
The answer from the scientific community is a resounding yes, yet debates about the reality of climate change and what measures to take are slowing our response. Barrie Pittock, one of the world's leading climate researchers, argues that we need to act urgently to avoid increasingly severe climate change. He looks at the controversy around global warming and other predicted changes, examining the scientific basis of the changes observed to date, how they relate to natural variations and why the evidence points to larger changes later this century. The effect of these changes on our natural systems and our lifestyles will be considerable and could include wild weather, shifts in global ocean circulation, decreases in crop yields and sea-level rises. But the impacts won't be distributed some countries will suffer more than others. Climate Turning up the Heat explains how our attitudes to risk and uncertainty � constant companions in life � influence our decision making and, ultimately, how much we and future generations stand to lose from rapid climate change. It outlines the current concerns of the major international players and reviews the response to date, detailing national interests. Importantly, it shows there is real hope of managing climate change and minimising the risk of disaster if we step up efforts to develop and apply innovative technological and policy solutions.
328 pages, Paperback
First published December 1, 2005
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
July 21, 2018
A very good one-stop reource for learning about climate change, includes the basics about greenhouse gases, history and past causes of climate change, projections about the future and how those are made, discussions about most likely impacts. There is even a chapter about risk and uncertainty, and how those are formulated and included in projections, for climate skeptics. The last chapters include discussions about the politics of climate change, with some sophisticated points about the global North-South differences in perception of this issue.
August 11, 2009
A clear guide to the science in climate change, accessible to the layman.
August 10, 2011
Perhaps not for the faint hearted but if you want to understand the fascinating science of climatology, this will take you there.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews