Summary
The modern world faces numerous environmental problems that appear as a result of human activities. However, people start to recognize the pernicious effect their actions might have on the state of our planet and want to know more about the processes that occur due to these very actions. The availability of information helps them to fill the gaps and acquire additional knowledge. Unfortunately, not all sources could be trusted. Some of them contribute to the appearance of wrong concepts, or myths. For this reason, there are also numerous attempts to explain the current situation, and the document under the investigation could be considered one of them.
The analyzed paper is called Debunking the myths: Myths about basic science. It revolves around the most popular fallacies related to CO2 emission, climate change, world temperature, and the effect all these processes have on our planet. It is written by Danny Chivers and published in May 2011 by New Internationalist.
Outline
- CO2, greenhouse effect, climate change, and warming.
- Perspectives on climate change.
- Oscillations of the worlds temperature.
- Main producers of CO2.
- Climate change and the effect it has on the planet.
- The credibility of computer models.
- Climate change, possible solutions, and population growth.
Delving into the paper, we could note that the author wants us to understand the true nature of processes that attract public attention nowadays. At the very beginning, Chivers eliminates the myth which states that CO2 is not a greenhouse gas. Providing a description of a simple experiment, he demonstrates that carbon dioxide has heat-trapping qualities and contributes to the significant increase in temperature (Chivers, 2011). He continues his cogitations related to climate change and CO2 emissions and outlines the fact that there were certain periods characterized by the increase and decrease of the average temperature in the history of our planet. There were different causes for these oscillations of temperature like solar activity, or kinks in the Earths orbit; however, every time they resulted in significant climate changes and impacted organisms that lived at that period of time greatly (Chivers 2011). In such a way, the author also wants to show that any objections about its importance are of doubtful nature, and scientists who try to decrease the meaning of these processes act unwisely. Furthermore, Chivers also admits the unique role people play in producing CO2. There are obviously some natural sources of this greenhouse gas, but they could not be compared to human activity. Finally, the author dispels myths about the positive and negative effects climate change might have.
Critique
Nevertheless, when analyzing the paper, we could, first of all, say that it is written by a competent carbon analyst and environmental writer Danny Chivers. He is famous for his numerous works devoted to the investigation of the effect CO2 might have on our planet and how climate change might affect our lives. He obviously creates his works to warn people about the great danger that comes from this very element and outline the necessity of immediate actions. This one paper is not an exclusion. Trying to eliminate the main myths peculiar to the given sphere, Chivers also educates people and provides them with the main facts related to this very sphere.
He uses articles as a platform to manifest his vision of the current situation and actions that should be performed to improve it. The article Debunking the myths: Myths about basic science is published by New Internationalist, which is known for its focus on issues like this one and attempts to make people think about the consequences of their actions. That is why the paper could be considered another work in a cycle that is aimed at the improved comprehending of the threat that exists nowadays. There are many other documents that also revolve around similar issues and delve into the main aspects of the greenhouse effect, climate change, etc. This fact evidences the extreme importance of the topic touched upon in the paper. The authors arguments are strong, and they are provided in a clear and coherent way for a reader to distinguish false and true information and make certain conclusions.
Altogether, the paper could be considered a credible source that is devoted to one of the most important problems of the modern world. From the very beginning of his work, Chivers outlines his own attitude to the problem by saying that CO2 is a greenhouse gas that is responsible for the increase of temperature and significant climate change. The thing which makes his arguments convincing is their scientific nature. The author uses the data obtained from the latest investigations and researches to show the nature of processes that occur under the impact of CO2.
Therefore, the exploration of the historical context to show the past oscillations of the temperature and the effect they had on our planet also results in the improved comprehending of the issue. Chivers (2011) admits the fact that there were different causes for the increases in the average temperature, but at the moment we are the main reason for the appearance of new climate patterns. In this regard, at the moment we are at the edge of another turn as the first signs of significant climate change could be admitted. Another thing that could be taken as the great advantage of the given paper that contributes to its improved understanding is the usage of graphs to demonstrate the behavior and main peculiarities of different processes. For instance, historical CO2 temperature and differences between various stages are demonstrated with the help of a very informative graph that is used to make the argument stronger.
The exploration of this visual appeal helps a reader to understand the cyclic character of climate change and think about the current stage of the environment. Finally, Chivers (2011) introduces other perspectives on the issues mentioned in his paper and refutes them using a scientific approach and pointing out the motifs that made people follow these false ideas. It is extremely important for the improved comprehending of true facts and the ability to distinguish myths and eliminate them. Additionally, it results in the increased credibility of the paper as the possible alternative to Chivers perspective is discussed and disproved.
The paper Debunking the myths: Myths about basic science could be considered a good example of an article that manages to persuade a reader and make him/her understand the false character of certain beliefs, perspectives, or theories. Chivers wants people to get rid of biased and stereotypical thinking related to environmental concerns and make them realize the great effect their actions have on the world. That is why he wants to dispel the main myths about CO2 emission, its impact on the climate, and perspectives awaiting us. The author uses strong arguments to make the paper more persuasive and attract peoples attention to the ideas provided there. In conclusion, Chivers managed to touch upon the most important problems related to the modern state of CO2, warming, and temperature and to create the ground for the further discussion about actions we might perform to save our planet.
Reference
Chivers, D. (2011). Debunking the myths: Myths about basic science. New Internationalist. Web.