The Climate of Man-I (Summary)

In the article, The Climate of Man (I), Elizabeth Kolbert discusses tons of causes and effects of global warming. The information she uses to discuss her own opinion on the issue is taken from scientists and researchers that she has met and discussed the issue with. The article talks about different places and how the causes and effects are visible and explainable through the research done in those areas.
For example, Shishmarif is a town in Alaska. People normally hunt for seals, walruses, moose and rabbits there. The sea ice is dramatically changing as time progresses. The time when it forms and the time when the ice breaks is changing from what the people are accustomed to. The town is only 22 feet above sea level and terrible storms are the result of the fact that the sea is freezing too late. The people propose to relocate their city, however that option would run them about 180 million dollars. This thought becomes quite sad for some who feel a connection to their homeland and the sea.
According to the article, 1979 was the first study of global warming by the National Academy of Sciences. A panel was formed to study and they were called the Charney Panel. The strategy they had came off to many as a risky one because of the fact that they made predictions off their reasoning, yet wanted to wait for the events to prove them true. The findings and assumptions made by the NAOS have been proven true and 25 years later, the effects and downfalls are still on the move. It’s continuing to get hot and the current trends of society are continuing.
Fairbanks, Alaska was another place highlighted in the article. Fairbanks happens to be surrounded by many forests and every summer, lightning causes forest fires. A trench was formed the spruce trees growing nearby began to slouch and hang over in what in the article is mentioned as “odd angles.” These trees are called “drunken trees.” The forest fires actually last for quite some time.
Permafrost is key in giving details that air temperatures can’t. What you walk on in the arctic is known as the active layer. This supports the growth of plants, freezes in the winter, and thaws in the summer. The temperatures get so low that the plants and grass dies, yet do not “fully decompose.” New plants and grasses simply grow on top of the stubs and shrubs that are already rotting and present. Cyroturbation is when organic matter is pushed down beneath the active layer and into the permafrost and that can sit there for years. Permafrost, then seems to many like it’s holding the carbon that has been built up. This becomes a problem because this process can backfire and go in the opposite direction due to temperature increase. If that happens, carbon dioxide and methane will be released into the air. In parts of the Arctic, this process is already occurring.
The article discusses many other places and what is going on there in terms of global warming. I feel like the point of the article was to go in depth of how serious of an issue global warming is and to give detail and evidence as to important people who have researched it and know it to be true. Important scientists, geophysicists and researches such as Vladimir Romanovsky, Nicolai Panikov and Donald Perovich were noted throughout the text and contribute amazing information. I think the purpose of the article was to explain in detail the downs of global warming and make a statement that the world needs to wake up and do something.