Article Summary & Discussion Preparation Log
Name: Terrè Block
Article Title: A Shifting Band of Rain
Author/Source: Julian P. Sachs and Conor L. Myhrvold
A: List the major ideas, concepts or key points- point by point
Example:
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By tracing that history, we can gain a better understanding of how the ongoing buildup of
greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, rising air temperatures and changes in tropical
precipitation are likely to alter future climate patterns.
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The tropical rain band that wraps the globe north of the equator migrates as atmospheric
temperature changes, altering rainfall patterns worldwide.
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Pacific Island lakes show that the band is at 3°N to 10°N, as far north as it has ever been
in at least 1,200 years.
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At current warming rates, the band could shift north by five degrees by 2100, drying out
farmland for millions of people in Ecuador, Colombia and elsewhere.
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Multiyear drought conditions in the southwestern U.S. could persist as that area becomes
more like the semiarid region of northern Mexico.
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a band of heavy rainfall that circles the globe in the tropics and migrates north or south
seasonally with the angle of the sun. The area in which it moves is known as the Inter
tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ).
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small increases in the greenhouse effect can fundamentally alter tropical rainfall.
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Scientists can profile the sun’s strength from isotopes such as carbon 14 in tree rings and
beryllium 10 in ice cores and can reconstruct the historic profile of worldwide greenhouse
gases from air bubbles trapped in tubular cores of ice extracted from polar regions.
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a move of the rain band five degrees further north would endanger the hundreds of
millions of people who live near the equator and depend on subsistence agriculture, not to
mention tropical biodiversity
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coffee plants, much like vineyards, need a lot of rain at the beginning of the growing
season and require more than 1.8 meters in total to develop suitable beans.
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Colombia, however, is the world’s third-largest coffee producer, and as in Indonesia, less
precipitation could affect long-term coffee yields.
B: Summarize the AUTHOR’s main point or idea- at LEAST 1-2 paragraphs
The Inter tropical Convergence Zone is on the move, by 2100 several agricultural
depended villages, cities, and countries will be affected by serious droughts. The Inter tropical
Convergence Zone or ITCZ, is the area in which a band of heavy rainfall circles the globe. Due
to greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide the earth heating at a rapid pace, faster than any time
since 800 A.D. In America, South Western states are undergoing drought that is to be the normal
pattern for the 21st century, the appearance of these western states will take on Mexico’s desert
like environment. Research has begun to track the movement of the ITCZ, from the past through
measuring the ecosystems characteristics. Climate Scientists, Julian P. Sachs and Conor L.
Myhrvold, are studying the shift of the ITCZ by mapping equatorial precipitation from 800 A.D.
to present day. These scientist test seafloor sediments off the shore of isolated islands, these
samples contain evidence of the climate thousands of years ago. This method allows for the
scientist to simply fill in the blanks about the location of the ITCZ band over centuries. Water
samples are collected at different depths, where the hydrogen isotope ratio and chemical
composition of the water is determined. The ITCZ, is on the move this statement must be made
aware it could be said it is an overreaction, but as technology improves the more our evidence
becomes enhanced. If the ITCZ, moves at the rate recorded in 2100, many surplus crops will be
lost like coffee from Columbia and Indonesia and bananas from the Philippines and Ecuador,
there will be wide spread drought and hunger.
C: Write a reaction paragraph to the article stating your own thoughts on the topic
My Own Thoughts on the Topic:
The “ITCZ, is on the move!” The what? I was really confused with this article, and it did
not help I had never heard anything of the sort. The thought of going back so far in the past to
analyze climate sounds bizarre, but to understand the future you have to learn from the past and
use the data to find trends or patterns of the earth’s climate. This type of research tests both
theories that global warming is created from human impact or the cycle of the earth. Science has
shown again and again that the burning of fossil fuels, are accelerating the earth’s change. This
article also proves that the studying the environment is a great job, I wish I could work on the
shore off an island. However, fun might be involved in his job it is very crucial to solving crises
before they occur. I can imagine as the seafloor sediments begin to set thousands of years ago,
held deep within locked by a hard shell holding the secret to the past. It is a beautiful idea
knowing that answers to our questions about understanding the world around us, is held by the
earth. When I think of these greedy corporations I feel hurt and there is a big injustice, that no
one is trying to fix. When money comes into the situation people turn their head and will do
anything to ignore the truth, no solutions will be made to find sources of renewable energy to
stop the buildup of greenhouse gases or slowdown the movement of the ITCZ. Kids could starve
end up starving by 2100, many agricultural based countries are dependent on cash crops as their
main source of income, will see droughts and crops begin to dry then disappear.
So What?
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Says Who?
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What if..?
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What Does This Remind Me Of?
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