Thank you so much for taking the time to read our blogs and typing out so many helpful suggestions .  We really appreciate everything you have done to help us create this documentary.  We would love to have you visit us to watch the documentary.  Please RSVP to Mrs. Pomerantz as soon as possible, and thanks to those of you who have already RSVP’s yes!

Sincerely,

Kelsey W.

Ms. Pomerantz’s 8th Block English class.

I think that the introduction should be really catchy.  I’m not sure how many people are going to like this idea, but I was thinking about starting with a scene from the 1950s with a kid saying something like, “Gee, Ma!  It’s so hot outside I could fry an egg on the sidewalk!”  Then we could completely change the tone of the video with serious music and go into how someday that could be possible because the earth is getting so warm.  Then we could flash shocking statistics and catch the audiences attention for a second time to get them really interested in the topic.

1. Someone baking cookies who makes them with a nice balance of ingredients, but leaves them in the oven too long or turns the heat up too high so they get burns.  This represents the clean, nice earth which could have been beautiful (or “tasty” cookies) but was contaminated

2. We could have a globe revolving in the background and different causes pop up with intense music, then show each cause hitting the earth and leaving a burn.

3.  To catch the audience’s attention, we could do a spin-off of the skit that says, “This is your brain.  This is your brain on drugs” using a frying egg.  Instead we would describe the earth and show it frying when it is affected by global warming.

4.  Film several parts of the world showing everything that is the color green disappearing.  What would the world be like?

5.  I would like to use a metaphor that shows animal losing their habitats due to global warming, specifically of land animals like polar bears dying because of rising ocean levels.  We could show a polar bear one a huge piece of land which quickly gets eaten away by water as the ice around it melts.  Soon the polar bear is barely hanging on to its tiny piece of ice, struggling to survive, when the scene changes.  This is my favorite idea, because it would be hard to see but it is so real.

Our climate has always been changing, and humans have tried to cope with these changes over the last 2 million years.  Now, we are not only trying to deal with climate change, but we are trying to change the climate ourselves.  We are raising the global temperature every day just by flipping on a light or driving a car.  Once again, our species will have to adapt to a change in climate that we caused ourselves. 

More information on the greenhouse effect:

1. Solar radiation strikes the earth
2. atmosphere reflects some of it back into space
3. the rest is absorbed by land and sea
4. the heat that is reflected into space is in the form of infrared energy
5. some of this energy is trapped by transparent gases in the atmosphere
6. infrared energy heats gas molecules, which in turn heat the earth

4 major warming gases: water vapor, CO2, methane, nitrous oxide (humans mostly control CO2 emissions, but we also have a great effect on methane and nitrous oxide through farming and industrial practices)

There are some factors that add to global warming that cannot be controlled by humans.  The earth has been getting warming since the last ice age 12,000 years ago.  Other factors include changes in solar radiation and wobbles in the Earth’s orbit. 

 Scientists are working on several ways to stop CO2 from reaching the atmosphere.  One way could be to collect CO2 from the top of smokestacks and pump it underground, but this could add up to 50% of electricity plant costs and scientists do not know how long the CO2 would stay underground.  Also, it takes a lot of energy to do procedures like this, so it could end up emitting more CO2 trying to capture it.  Hopefully procedures like this will soon be worked out.

I liked this article because it gave me an overview of everything I have been researching but gave me more details and explained everything clearly.  I like how the article incorporated parts from all our groups and I definitely think this with help my segment on causes.

Almost 3/4 of the Earth is covered by ocean, which absorbs half of all the CO2 released into the air by fossil fuels.  This is becoming more difficult as the Earth warms.  As trees are being cut down, the ocean has to absorb more CO2 because the trees cannot.  The more carbon there is in the ocean, the warmer the ocean becomes.  As the ocean gets warmer, it expands in a process called thermal expansion, causing the sea level to rise.  Between 1993 and 2003, global average sea level rose 3.1 millimeters per year.  this was partially causes by Melting glaciers and ice caps.  This could affect many people who live close to their ocean because they are becoming much more vulnerable to flooding.  Also, gases are more soluble in cold conditions, so now the ocean is having trouble regulating the Earth’s temperature.  Because it has so much CO2, the ocean is becoming more acidic, which is harmful to ocean life, especially coral reef and phytoplanktons.  Eventually, “the erosion of beaches and coral bleaching will harm local fisheries and reduce tourism dollars” on small islands and in Africa.  Other areas will flood and many places will see a serious loss of biodiversity. 

I had no idea that the ocean was both a cause and an effect of global warming.  This definitely adds to the idea of a domino effect, which I have looked at before.  As the ocean becomes warmer because of global warming, it adds to global warming itself.  I definitely think that the ocean should be high on our list of priorities to prevent global warming.

by James Trefil

From previous research we can see that humans can change the climate through CO2 emissions because we already have.  Now we wonder if we should try to alter the climate to what would be most comfortable.  The energy the sun pours down is about 1,500 watts per square meter.  If we double the CO2 in the atmosphere, this will increase the sun’s energy by 4 watts per square meter.  Eruptions like the one from Mount Pinatubo in 1993 put sulfur compounds in the air, which reflects the sunlight and cools the earth.  Scientists are wondering if they can use sulfur compounds in jet engines or use special space mirrors to reflect light in a similar way.  The problem with this is that it is very difficult to predict what the possible side effects could be.  Other scientists are trying to actually remove the CO2 from the atmosphere.  There is a special type of plankton that lives in the ocean, but does not get enough iron to grow.  Scientists performed a test near the Galapagos Islands where they put iron into the region of the ocean.  The plankton was able to grow, so it took more CO2 from the atmosphere.  This 7-day trial removed about 100 tons of CO2 from the air.  Scientists hope that the CO2 will stay in the ocean after the plants die.  Like the other experiments, it is difficult to predict side effects because scientists do not know very much about fertilizing ocean plants.

I found this article very interesting because it talked about ways to actually stop global warming.  Most articles give tips on how we can prevent it from continuing, but this one showed how scientists are actually taking CO2 away from the atmosphere, instead of just preventing more from going in.  I think both the sulfur compound idea and the one about plankton are very interesting are will help the earth a lot if they work.  I definitely think we should include this in our documentary.  For our “causes” group we could talk about how we are polluting our oceans, which makes ocean plants have a lack of certain minerals and nutrients, such as iron.  This contributes to global warming because if the plants can’t grow then they cannot remove CO2 from the atmosphere.

Hello, my name is Kelsey W– and I’m a sophomore at Parkway North High School. My english class is creating a documentary about global warming, and I was wondering if you knew of a representative from St. Louis who would be willing to be interviewed on the subject.

If they help us contact someone…

Hello, My name is Kelsey W– and I’m a sophomore at Parkway North High School. My english class is creating a documentary to inform people, especially teenagers, about global warming. I am calling to ask if you would be interested in being interviewed on the causes and effects of global warming and teaching our class about ways to prevent it.

If they say no: Thank you for taking the time to speak with me. HAve a nice day!

If they say yes: Thank you very much! Is there a specific date or time that would be best for you? ….. Make plans to set up a meeting time. Thanks again, have a nice day!

letter to Karl Chauff, professor

(heading and date)

Dear Mr. Chauff,

My name is Kelsey W– and I am a sophomore student at Parkway North High School. My english class is creating a documentary to inform people, especially teens, about the causes and effects of global warming. I have noticed that as a professor of environmental sciences, you have shown great interest in the topic of global warming. I am writing to ask if you would be interested in being interviewed on the topic of global warming within the next month. Feel free to email me with any questions or concerns Sincereley, Kelsey W–(314) 555-5555 *email address*

(This will all be formatted like a real letter)