Anthropology Chapter 14

international conference held in Paris late in 2015

progress has been achieved during a huge international conference held in Paris late in 2015. This conference was attended by 40,000 people representing close to 200 nations. Although reaching agreement was complex, in the end, participants representing all these nations committed their countries to the following: • To stop the rise of greenhouse gases as soon as possible • To keep the rise in worldwide temperatures during this century to less than 2 degrees C (3.6 degrees F)—and actually even by more, by holding it to 1.5 C (2.5 F) • To have all nations submit detailed plans showing how they will reduce carbon emissions • To provide 100 billion dollars yearly to poorer nations to assist them in rapidly moving away from fossil fuels to renewable ones by 2020. The wealthy countries together will provide these funds. * many of the initiatives are voluntary*

combats to poverty

since 2005, leaders from both developing and developed countries have come together to discuss new ways of reducing global poverty, especially in sub- Saharan Africa. Additionally, some of the wealthiest people in the world (including Bill and Melinda Gates, George Soros, Warren Buffet, Richard Branson, and Ted Turner) have begun to invest their personal fortunes to help reduce poverty and poor health and thus to promote global peace and prosperity. Lastly, the degree of international cooperation shown at the 2010 conference on biodiversity is a hopeful development that could be a foundation for slowing species extinctions and maintaining natural habitats.

"tipping point"

a point beyond which the warming process cannot be reversed.

"human-driven global change"

. They also agree that as a consequence of such climate change, we are already experiencing severe fluctuations in weather patterns along with alterations in precipitation levels and these will dramatically accelerate in the next few decades. For example, the extreme drought in the United States in the summer of 2012 (the worst in 50 years) forced many farmers to sell their farms and livestock and has caused dramatic increases in food prices. Ultimately, this drought will costat least a few billion dollars. Likewise, the severe drought in California, as of 2015 in its fourth year, is also most likely a result of climate change.

50 mya

50 mya there were no polar ice caps, and much of the planet was covered by tropical forests

public perceptions of Climate Change

70 percent of Americans believe the climate is changing, and perhaps as many as 40 percent think this change is due to human activities. But this leaves around 50 to 60 percent (including many politicians and so-called "news commentators") who believe that the warming is part of a "normal" trend that has little, if anything, to do with human activities state officials in Florida have been instructed not to use the terms climate change or global warming in documents and policymaking discussions. The state of Wisconsin has implemented similar policies.

jet stream

A narrow band of strong winds that flow from west to east 6 to 8 miles above the earth. the northernmost, called the polar jet, is located in the northern part of the northern hemisphere. it can move farther south, causing cold temperatures and disrupting normal weather patterns.

Stephen Palumbi

According to biologist Stephen Palumbi (2001), humans are the "world's greatest evolutionary force." What Palumbi means is that we humans, like no other species before us, have had a profound effect on the evolutionary histories of almost all forms of life, including the potential to alter global ecology and destroy ourselves and much of life on earth. Even massive geological events and mass extinctions did not wreak the havoc that may result from modern human techno

family planning

Although world population growth continues, it appears that the rate of growth has slowed somewhat. It's common knowledge among economists that as income and education increase, family size decreases, and as infant and childhood mortality rates decrease, families have fewer children. In fact, one of the best strategies for reducing family size and thus world population is to educate girls and women. Educated women are more likely to be in the labor force and are better able to provide food for their families, seek health care for themselves and their children, and practice family planning.

the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development

Another major international meeting, the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, again attended by representatives from almost 200 countries, was held in June 2012 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. This ambitious conference, also called the Earth Summit, was widely anticipated as another major opportunity to advance serious global action on climate change and related issues. However, no major initiatives were approved, and most knowledgeable observers considered the conference a failure.

antibiotic fear

Antibiotics have now become the most significant selective factors causing many bacteria to evolve into more virulent forms. It's even likely that human technology and lifestyles are responsible for the deadly nature of some of the so-called new diseases that have arisen in recent decades, such as HIV/AIDS, dengue hemorrhagic fever, Legionnaires' disease, Lyme disease, and resistant strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Staphylococcus, and Escherichia coli. We could reach a point where we have no antibiotics capable of fighting dangerous bacteria that live and constantly mutate in our midst.

Human effects daring the Anthropocene

As an example of just how much our species has altered the planet, one current estimate suggests that as much as 43 percent of terrestrial habitats have been transformed to either agricultural or urban landscapes (and this does not include roads outside urban areas) (Barnosky et al., 2012). Like earlier major shifts in the earth's geology and biodiversity, the Anthropocene is comparable to the two planetary events mentioned earlier. These, however, were caused by gigantic asteroid collisions or super volcanoes; the Anthropocene ("the age of humans") is the result of human behavior

Human Species Run Down

By most standards, Homo sapiens is a successful species. There are currently 7.3 billion humans living on this planet. Even so, we and all other multicellular organisms contribute only a small fraction of all the cells on earth—most of which are bacteria. So if we see life ultimately as a competition among reproducing organisms, bacteria are the winners, hands down. humans have had an inordinate impact on the earth and its myriad forms of life

why is climate change so hard to conceptualize

Climate change is perhaps the most complex of phenomena because hundreds, if not thousands, of variables are involved.

Global Climate Change

Collectively they are called greenhouse gases because as they accumulate in the atmosphere, they reduce the earth's ability to radiate heat produced by the sun back into space. These greenhouse gases include water vapor, ozone, nitrous oxide, methane, chlorofluorocarbons, and carbon dioxide (CO2). Without them the earth would freeze, but in abundance they can raise temperatures to dangerous levels, and that is what is currently happening. We can say this unequivocally because climate scientists are virtually unanimous in their view that the earth is heating up; moreover, it's happening more quickly than predicted, and it's due to human activities. Chief among these activities is the burning of fossil fuels, especially oil and coal. Fossil fuels release CO2 when burned, and CO2 is the most significant contributor to global warming. Indeed, we currently release 35 billion tons of CO2 into the atmosphere every year.

contributions to extinctions of habitats

For at least the past 15,000 years, human activities such as hunting and clearing land for cultivation have taken their toll on nonhuman species, but species are currently disappearing at an unprecedented rate. Hunting, which occurs for reasons other than acquiring food, is a major factor. This is particularly true for nonhuman primates, tigers, elephants, and rhinoceroses. aside from being hunted for food, nonhuman primate and tiger body parts are widely used in traditional medicines, mainly in Asia, and infant animals are commonly funneled into the exotic pet trade. Rhinoceros horns are also popular in parts of the Middle East, especially as knife handles, and in Asia for medicinal purposes. And there has been an enormous resurgence of elephant hunting in Africa for their ivory tusks. Competition with introduced nonnative species—such as pigs, goats, and rats—has also contributed enormously to the problems that wild animals face. But in most cases, the most important cause of extinction is habitat reduction.

Forests

Forests can be viewed as renewable resources provided they're given the opportunity for regrowth. But in many areas, forest clearing was virtually complete and was inevitably followed by soil erosion, frequent overgrazing, and overcultivation, which in turn led to further soil erosion. In those areas, trees became a nonrenewable resource, perhaps the first resource to have this distinction.

humans and the impact of Culture

From the archaeological record, it appears that around 15,000 ya, influenced in part by climate change (not induced by human activity) and the extinction of many large-bodied prey species, some human groups began to abandon their nomadic hunting and gathering lifestyles and adopt a settled way of life. Moreover, by about 10,000 ya (and probably earlier), some societies had learned that by keeping domestic animals and growing crops, they had more abundant and reliable food supplies. The domestication of plants and animals is seen as one of the most significant events in human history, one that was eventually to have far-reaching consequences for the entire planet. Human impact on local environments increased dramatically as soon as people began to live in permanent settlements humans began to exploit and increasingly depend on nonrenewable resources.

Major cause of habitat loss is humans

Habitat loss is a direct result of the burgeoning human population and the resulting need for building materials, grazing and agricultural lands, and ever-expanding human habitations

financial benefits of ice melting

However, there are more than a few who see financial opportunities in the melting sea ice. The absence of sea ice will drastically reduce the time it takes for ships to travel between Asia and Europe. Furthermore, it will make oil drilling possible, and Russia, Canada, and the United States already have oil exploration projects in progress.

Typhoon in 1990

In 1990, a typhoon and subsequent flooding killed over 100,000 people in Bangladesh, and the flooding was at least partly due to previous deforestation in parts of the Himalayas of northern India

unexpected increase in the loss of Arctic sea ice

In 2007, scientists became alarmed at a sudden unexpected increase in the loss of Arctic sea ice. Unlike icebergs and glaciers that form on land, sea ice is frozen ocean water. The importance of sea ice to global climate systems can't be overemphasized because it reflects back into space about 80 percent of the sunlight (which contains heat) that hits it. But seawater absorbs approximately 90 percent of the sunlight that hits it. Therefore, as more ice melts, less sunlight is reflected and more heat is retained, resulting in yet more warming and more melting. Because of this, the polar regions are the most sensitive areas on earth to warming, and the loss of sea ice can dramatically accelerate climate change

2010 United Nations international conference

In 2010, the United Nations organized a large international conference to address pressing issues concerning biodiversity. The conference (an extension of the Convention on Biological Diversity) took place in October 2010 in Nagoya, Japan, and was attended by representatives from 193 countries. Unlike the lack of agreement that characterized the conferences focusing on global climate change, the results of the biodiversity meeting were quite encouraging. Conference members agreed to increase cooperation and to share financial benefits that come from the development of new drugs from wild plants and animals. What's more, they produced an impressive list of significant international goals to be reached by 2020, including an effort to reduce to half or bring close to zero the rate of loss of all natural habitats, to reduce pollution to levels that are not detrimental to ecosystems and biodiversity, to conserve at least 17 percent of terrestrial areas and 10 percent of coastal and marine areas in protected zones, to prevent the extinction of known threatened species, and to restore at least 15 percent of degraded ecosystems

NOAA FINDINGS AND MAXIMUM TEMPERATURE INCREASE

In 2012, scientists at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) reported for the first time that CO2 levels had reached 400 parts per million (ppm) in several northern locations. This figure vastly exceeds the natural range for the last 800,000 years of 180 to 300 ppm (Smol, 2012). This is highly significant because for several years, climatologists have warned that if we are to keep average worldwide temperatures from increasing more than 2.5°F, the level of CO2 must be kept at 350 ppm. In turn, keeping the increase below 2.5°F is important because many researchers consider that to be the maximum we can sustain without disastrous consequences for the environment and for thousands of species

United Nations sponsored the International Convention on Climate Change in Copenhagen, Denmark

In December 2009, the United Nations sponsored the International Convention on Climate Change in Copenhagen, Denmark; it was attended by representatives from nearly 200 countries. Leading up to this meeting, worldwide expectations ran high that earlier agreements (reached in 1997 at a prior international convention in Kyoto, Japan) would be expanded and strengthened with broader and more rigorous, binding agreements to cut carbon emissions. The world looked especially to the United States for leadership and, even more, for signs of real commitment. Yet nothing substantive occurred in Copenhagen. Most world leaders indicated that they were fully prepared to commit to major cuts in carbon emissions. But widespread lack of trust in American willingness to make real political commitments (that is, effective legislation passed by Congress) as well as weak support from China led to no formal and certainly no binding agreements. Instead, only a broad statement of goals was made, with no mechanisms to ensure that even these would be met.

Pope Francis

In May 2015, Pope Francis issued a papal encyclical, or policy statement, to officials of the Catholic Church, in which he strongly condemned humanity's destruction and exploitation of the natural environment and loss of biodiversity in the name of profit. This unprecedented action has called international attention to the issue of climate change in a way that most other efforts have failed to do.

Hurricane Haiyan 2013

In November 2013, another even more devastating typhoon (hurricane) struck the Philippines and other southeastern Asian countries. This Category 5 super storm, called Hurricane Haiyan, was the strongest storm to hit land ever recorded. Maximum sustained winds of 177 miles per hour were recorded, and in the Philippines alone more than 6,000 people died (not counting other affected countries, including Vietnam, southern China, and Micronesia). What's more, again just counting the Philippines, the United Nations estimated approximately 11 million people were directly affected. Scientists cannot state that global warming specifically caused any particular storm or severe weather pattern. However, they do say that weather will be increasingly unpredictable and that we can expect more extreme and destructive events as temperatures continue to rise.

Hurricane Sandy 2012

In late October 2012, Hurricane Sandy caused billions of dollars worth of damage along the northeastern coast of the United States. Streets in lower Manhattan and several subway tunnels were flooded, millions of households were without power, and thousands of homes were damaged or destroyed in New Jersey, New York, and several other states. Moreover, more than 200 people were killed

decrease in ice over time

In the first decade of this century, there was a sudden and alarming decline in the extent of sea ice during the summer months. Indeed, the six years between 2007 and 2012 (inclusive) saw the greatest declines in Arctic sea ice since the collection of satellite data began. The average minimum area covered by ice between 1979 and 2000 was 2.6 million square miles, but there was a significant change in 2005 when that figure was reduced to 2 million square miles. Just two years later, in 2007, the minimum was further reduced to less than 1.6 million square miles. Then, on September 16, the day that melting ceased in 2012, the extent of sea ice was 1.32 million square miles, 49 percent lower than the 1979‒2000 average. This difference of 1.28 million square miles represents an area nearly twice the size of the state of Alaska On February 25, the maximum extent of sea ice was reached, and at 5.61 million square miles, it was the lowest on record. The minimum sea ice extent for 2015 was reported on September 17 at 1.7 million square miles, the fourth lowest on record

expert global temperature prediction

In view of this fact, consider this prediction from an international group of experts: "The mean [average] global temperature by 2070 (or possibly a few decades earlier) will be higher than it has been since the human species evolved" (Barnosky et al., 2012, p. 54).

human population growth

Increasing population size is the single most important reason that our impact has been so great. As human population pressure increases, more and more land is converted to crops, pasture, construction, and human habitation, providing more opportunities for still more humans and fewer (or no) habitats for most other species.

sea ice maximum

in the Arctic, the greatest amount of sea ice that is present in one year. it occurs in march, at the end of winter, just as the ice stops forming and begins to melt.

earth's shrinking polar ice

One source of this concern is the study of ice core data, which show that there is significantly more carbon dioxide in the earth's atmosphere than at any time in the last 800,000 years

Pleistocene Epoch

Pleistocene epoch, which began around 1.8 mya, was characterized by intermittent periods of glacial advance and retreat throughout the Northern Hemisphere.

Professor Muller

Professor Muller became dissatisfied with the way global warming was being evaluated. So he organized a highly regarded research team and founded the Berkeley Earth Surface Temperature Project. The team collected temperature data dating as far back as 1753 from hundreds of reporting sites around the globe, with most of the information coming from the United States and United Kingdom (Science Insider, Science Magazine, 2011). The initial results were announced in 2011. From this intensive scientific research, Muller concluded that global warming is real and humans are almost entirely the cause

quantified human count

Scientists estimate that around 10,000 years ago, only about 5 million people inhabited the earth. By the year 1650, there were perhaps 500 million, and by 1800, around 1 billion . Today, we add 1 billion people to the world's population approximately every 13 years (Barnosky et al., 2012). That comes out to about 77 million every year and roughly 200,000 every day—or just about 9,000 an hour.

Those that don't believe in climate change

Several prominent people who deny that climate change is occurring or is the result of human activity call themselves "climate deniers" or "skeptics." Actually, skepticism is a necessary component of good science, but not when it's ideologically or financially based.

America vs other countries ecological foot print.

The average American uses an estimated 400 times the resources consumed by a resident of Bangladesh. The United States alone produces 25 to 30 percent of all carbon dioxide emissions that end up in the earth's atmosphere. In 2007, China caught up with the United States in this regard, but over 1.3 billion people live in China, compared with 319 million in the United States. In his book The Future of Life (2002), E. O. Wilson discussed the issue in terms of "ecological footprints," or the average amount of land and sea required for each person to support his or her lifestyle. This includes all resources consumed for energy, housing, transportation, food, water, and waste disposal. In non-industrialized nations, the ecological footprint per capita is about 2.5 acres, but in the United States it's 24 acres! much of the responsibility for the world's problems rests squarely on the shoulders of the industrialized West.

consequenses of glbal warming

The destructive results of changing temperatures and precipitation patterns are incalculable. They include loss of agricultural lands due to desertification in some regions and flooding in others, rising sea levels inundating coastal areas throughout the world, increased human hunger, extinction of numerous plant and animal species, and altered patterns of infectious disease. Regarding the latter, health officials are particularly concerned about the spread of mosquito-borne diseases such as malaria, dengue fever, and yellow fever as warmer temperatures increase the geographical range of mosquitoes. Another consequence of human-caused global climate change is increasing acidification of the oceans due to absorption of greater amounts of CO2. The global dangers to ecosystems from ocean acidification are potentially as great as global warming, so much so, in fact, that some marine biologists have termed it "the other CO2 problem" (Doney et al., 2009). Since the beginning of industrialization in the mid-1700s, ocean acidity has increased by 30 percent. If current CO2 emission rates continue, it could increase a further 150 percent by the end of this century, reaching levels not seen in the oceans for more than 20 million years

major extinction events

The geological record indicates that in the last 570 million years, there have been at least 15 mass extinction events, two of which altered all of the earth's ecosystems (Ward, 1994). The first of these occurred some 250 mya and resulted from climate change that followed the merging of all the earth's landmasses into one supercontinent and the worldwide effects of super volcanoes. The second event happened around 65 mya and eradicated tens of thousands of species, including most dinosaurs (recall from Chapter 5 that birds are their living descendants). A third major extinction event, perhaps of the same magnitude, is occurring now, and according to some scientists, it may have begun in the late Pleistocene or early Holocene (Ward, 1994). Unlike all other mass extinctions, this one hasn't been caused by continental drift or massive volcanoes or collisions with asteroids. Today it's due to the activities of a single species, Homo sapiens

most of the population growth comes from

The most recent United Nations report on world population notes that 95 percent of this growth is occurring in the developing world. Likewise, resources are not distributed equally among all nations. Only a small percentage of the world's population, located in a few industrialized nations, control and consume most of the world's resources. A 2011 study estimated that 48 percent of the world's population survive on less than $2 per day (Population Reference Bureau, 2011).

Anthropocene

The overall effects of human activities, particularly in the last 250 years, have had such a profound effect on the earth that many scientists are now recognizing these sudden and dramatic changes as marking a new geological era, called the Anthropocene

costa rica

The small Central American country of Costa Rica has recognized the economic importance of its abundant and beautiful natural resources. By developing ecotourism as a means of generating income, Costa Rica has been able, for the present, to preserve much of its forests and wildlife. In fact, ecotourism has become its primary industry, and Costa Rica's poverty levels are the lowest in Central America. Habitat destruction and poverty often go hand in hand. Although successes like those accomplished in Costa Rica can't be replicated everywhere, this small nation has been a model for making environmental concerns integral to social and economic development.

deforestation effects

There is also evidence that deforestation has contributed to continued erosion and flooding in China. And millions of people in Pakistan were affected by flooding in 2010, 2011, and 2015 that resulted in part from deforestation and dam construction along tributaries of the Indus River. This flooding affected one-fifth of the country and set back years of infrastructure development.

coral reef

Tropical coral reefs are particularly vulnerable to acidification. Coral reefs constitute the most diverse marine ecosystems on earth, including an estimated 1 millions species, which in turn represent up to 25 percent of all ocean-dwelling species. In addition to a tragic loss of biodiversity, there are direct economic effects of the destruction of coral reefs, because more than 100 million people depend on them for food. 20 to 25 percent of the animal protein consumed by humans comes from marine sources

DDT effects

When this insecticide was first developed, it was hailed as the best way to reduce malaria by eliminating the mosquitoes that transmit the disease. DDT was highly effective when it was first applied to mosquito-ridden areas, but soon mosquitoes evolved resistance to the powerful agent, rendering it almost useless in the fight against malaria. Moreover, the use of DDT proved disastrous to many bird species, including the bald eagle . In the 1970s, its use was curtailed and even banned in some countries, but the failure of other efforts to treat malaria has led to a recent call to begin using DDT again.

modern human beings are the result of

biocultural evolution

how people that don't believe in climate change deny it

climate change deniers take advantage of, because they can easily criticize what they see as contradictory results. When scientists publish results that appear to disagree with previous studies, they are reporting new conclusions based on more recent data analysis or more recently obtained evidence.

Charles Koch

denials of climate change. Most notably, billionaire Charles Koch, who is extremely partisan and ideological, provided considerable financial backing for the project. Nevertheless, in the end, good science won out.

Theodosius Dobzhansky (1973)

geneticist Theodosius Dobzhansky (1973) said, "Nothing in biology makes sense except in the light of evolution." Indeed, we can't afford to have even a single generation of scientists who are not fully informed about evolution.

increase of warming is occurring faster than expected

the increase in warming is occurring faster than computer models were predicting just a few years ago. Recent estimates held that the Arctic could be ice-free for part of the summer by as soon as 2030, but some scientists now fear that this could happen much sooner. It goes without saying that without sea ice in the summer, polar bears and several other species that depend on it may well become extinct in the foreseeable future.

sea ice minimum

the least amount of ice that is present in the Arctic in one year. sea ice is at its minimum in september, just as the summer melting season ends but before the ice begins to form again.

Holocene

the most recent epoch of the Cenozoic. Following the Pleistocene, it's estimated to have begun 10,000 years ago.

Senator James Inhofe

took a snowball onto the Senate floor in February, 2015. This was an attempt to demonstrate (enhanced by what he no doubt considered humor) that it was very cold outside. The snowball was evidence that scientific reports stating that 2014 had been the warmest year on record worldwide were nothing more than alarmist propaganda. The reason for the severe winter is the fact that the jet stream had changed from its normal course and was sending unusually cold temperatures farther south than normal. This change in the jet stream is believed to be due to warmer temperatures in the Arctic.* partially a result of global climate changes.

Summary of main points

• Humans are the product of millions of years of biocultural evolution; but in just the last few hundred years, we have exerted a huge influence on other life-forms and the planet itself. No other organism in the earth's history has had such an impact. • A major contributor to the scope of recent human disruptions of the earth's ecosystems is population growth. • Probably the most immediate and crucial challenge we face is to reduce our influence on global climate change.