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Koung Kham
Professor Altman
English 113A
8 December 2014
A Global Destruction
Our beautifully crafted planet Earth is changing as we know it. It first started off as a
forestation in every continent containing different kinds of species relying on each other for
survival. Earth continues to make changes over time. The human race was born and began to
create a life based off human themselves, ignoring the fact that we shared the planet with other
species. We began to change the way we lived into a more sufficient and simpler lifestyle.
Global Warming has become a huge issue over time. There were changes such as: the Industrial
Revolution, wars fought by other nations, etc. Humans did not realize the consequences of their
actions and continued with their plans to make life a better place for the human race. They did
not care about the living of other species and ignoring the fact that we need them for our
survival. The burning of many fossil fuels contributes most to the release of carbon dioxide.
Although that is a bad thing, plants and trees naturally absorb carbon dioxide to help make Earth
clean. Due to a lack of trees nearby, the amount of carbon dioxide being absorbed changed
causing the ratio to be imbalanced. Since the topic of global warming is crucial to our future, we
must discuss about it. Although many people claim that Global Warming does not exist, Global
Warming is a huge problem. Our air is has become more polluted and our earth’s temperature is
increasing, and a result of this is many species will lose their natural habitats.
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We breathe air that has been polluted by the burning of fossil fuel. When The Industrial
Revolution occurred, factories were burning tons to fossil fuel as power. Due to the Industrial
Revolution, many trees were being cut down to make room for industries and factories to be
made. “... anthropogenic activities, CO2 concentration in the atmosphere has increased rapidly
since the Industrial Revolution” (Zhang 1). At the start of the Industrial Revolution, more people
are beginning to burn fossil fuel because that’s the only source of fuel they know that works best
at that time. Many people didn’t know about the consequence of burning fossil fuel until later on.
People did realize that the air near the factories, were hard to breath and the air quality is
horrible. In one of Sholtz article, he said, “…a recent survey from the Pew Research Center finds
that 26% of Americans believe there is no solid evidence that the average temperature on earth
has been getting warmer.” Soon, people who lived near the factories adapted to the air while
people living in the suburban area were not. During the Industrial Revolution, the factories were
not the only ones burning fossil fuel. There were cars, boats, etc. The use of fossil fuel became
common and is used by the whole world. Those driving around from place to place contribute to
global warming unknowingly. We can help reduce the amount of carbon dioxide being released
into the atmosphere. We need to stop cutting down trees and start to plant more trees. Trees are
the key to having a better and safer air to breath. We have adapted to driving and we cannot take
that away, but we can do other things such as: driving a car that burn less fuel, drive an electric
car, for use a bike to get to places not far away.
The Earth’s temperature has been increasing dramatically from the last time it was
recorded. “Because of the greenhouse gas effect, more longwave radiation is trapped within the
earth system, leading to a higher global mean surface temperature” (Zhang 1). Due to the lack of
trees and plants, carbon dioxide isn’t being consumed by them; instead it goes out and fills our
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atmosphere and breaking the layers from protection that protects us from the harmful rays of the
sun. Temperature changes can lead to many disastrous consequences that will affect that will in
the future. “First, the continuous increase in ambient temperature is predicted to have a direct
effect on the animal, as well as on food and nutrition security,” (Scholtz 3). As the temperature
increase, many possible scenarios can happen. We can lose at least half of our known species.
The animals are the one going to suffer the most from the damage we have done. We rely on
animals more than we think. They have become a part of our food chain, and if it becomes
imbalanced, it will cause a significant amount of damage. Some people argue that the increase in
temperature is nothing but the phases Earth is going through. “… faster continental drift brought
the carbon dioxide levels of the Early Cretaceous atmosphere to more than six times those of
today, allowing life to flourish more than it had ever done since the early Paleozoic,” (Jutras 14).
If it were to be true, the lack of trees around cities and countries makes it much harder for carbon
dioxide to be absorbed. The lack of trees is one of the reasons why there is a hole in the northern
atmosphere. Due to the hole in the northern atmosphere, there a gateway for radiation from the
sun to enter and makes us vulnerable to UV lights from the sun. UV lights are one of the causes
for skin cancer.
Animals are the one that’s will be affected by Global Warming. Global Warming is a
serious problem because it effect how animals lives in their natural habitats. Many animals have
been extinct due to many reason, one of them involve Global Warming. Each animal relies on
each other for survival due to the food chain. If one animal disappears, it will cause the chain to
be change and will cause the other extinction of other animals. “Climate change also poses both
immediate and long-term threats to the life-support systems upon which all people depend –
food, water, habitat, health and the ecosystem – as climate change is taking place faster than
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originally thought,” (Scholtz 1). Climate changes effects everyone living on Earth because of the
ecosystem we were born in. There are debates saying that animals did not disappear, it’s because
the amount of animal being consumed. That is not true because there is a balance in the
ecosystem and it has been maintained before we were born. We have lost some animals due to
climate change and it already changed the food chain. It does not only affect other animals, it
also affects us in many ways. We eat animals such as chicken, cows, pigs, etc. Those animals
rely on other animals in such a way that it is crucial for their survival.
We need to stop be inconsiderate about other species inhabiting this planet and share it
like it everyone’s property. The Earth does not need us, we need it. We need to have a smarter
way of living such as: installing solar panels, biking to close places, and burn less fossil fuel as
possible. This planet is a special planet because of the cycle it’s been through and all the changes
that has occurred thousands of years ago. We need to put this type of information in the
education system and teach our younger generation about how Earth is becoming hotter. They
might have an idea to help return Earth the way it used to be back then. We need to take care of
other species because they are the cause of cycle in nature. Every single animal relies on them
for survival and if one of them goes missing, it will ruin the cycle and maybe even cause some
species to be endanger. The amount of carbon dioxide that is in the atmosphere right now is
more than ever before. We need to plant trees so that it can absorb carbon dioxide and help clean
our atmosphere and the air we breathe. Temperature change will have an effect on everyone
including us, the ones who plays the majority role in the increase of carbon dioxide in our
atmosphere. We need to take a stand and help change the world to a better place for generations
to come. Create a planet that we want our future kids to live in and make sure that we share the
planet with other animals.
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Works Cited
Jutras, Pierre. "What Geological History Tells Us About Global Warming." Atlantic Geology
43.(2007): 13-14. Academic Search Premier. Web. 24 Nov. 2014.
Scholtz, M. M., et al. "Research And Development On Climate Change And Greenhouse Gases
In Support Of Climate-Smart Livestock Production And A Vibrant Industry." South
African Journal Of Animal Science 44.5 (2014): S1-S7. Academic Search Premier. Web.
24 Nov. 2014.
Song, Xiaoliang, and Guang J. Zhang. "Role Of Climate Feedback In El Niño-Like SST
Response To Global Warming." Journal Of Climate 27.19 (2014): 7301-7318. Academic
Search Premier. Web. 24 Nov. 2014.
The Gardian. “How Much Can We Really Trust Climate Models to Tell Us About the Future?”
www.thegardian.com. Yale Environment 360. 18 January 2011. Web. 16 November
2014.
Zhang, Lei, and Tim Li. "A Simple Analytical Model For Understanding The Formation Of Sea
Surface Temperature Patterns Under Global Warming*." Journal Of Climate 27.22
(2014): 8413-8421. Academic Search Premier. Web. 16 Nov. 2014.