Science to the Rescue: Adapting to Climate Change

Like a row of dominoes, persistent and repetitive heat waves also threaten the environment, exacerbate current climate-related problems, stress a country's health system, damage its infrastructure, and strain its energy resources. Readers examine efforts, including drought and heat-resistant energy-efficient "smart" homes and buildings, green roof gardens, next-generation building materials, and alternative energy sources as well as technologically advanced climate modeling, weather prediction, and emergency warning systems. Also highlighted are governmental efforts that can be made to alleviate human suffering, including energy conservation initiatives, the opening of public shelters and cooling centers, and the organizing of neighborhood watch programs for heat-vulnerable residents. Most importantly, readers learn how they can learn to reduce their carbon footprint while also coping with increasing heat and remaining healthy.

At the current rate of extinction, more than one million species will be forever gone from Earth by the year 2050. Extinction is the greatest danger to biodiversity and to food webs. This book lays out the startling facts regarding the scope of this looming problem, but also provides necessary hope and encouragement-detailing the ways in which scientists, engineers, and climatologists are gathering the knowledge and testing the technologies necessary to slow and eventually reverse climate change, preserve vulnerable habitats, fight invasive species, create "doomsday" seed banks, and even clone endangered species. Readers will be empowered by learning practical, everyday strategies through conservation, volunteerism, political action, and a reduction in the carbon footprint of themselves, their family, and their wider community.

Water supplies are being drastically reduced and are suddenly not reliable. Millions of human beings have no regular water supply, and thousands-most of them children-die every day. The western parts of North America as well as huge areas of Asia, Australia, Africa, and parts of southern Europe are all especially prone to drought. This problem has plagued human communities since the beginning of history. But scientists say human activities-mostly the burning of fossil fuels that release carbon dioxide and other gases into the atmosphere-have caused climate changes that make droughts more likely, more severe, and more frequent. This book explores the cutting-edge research and innovative projects, and simple, everyday water conservation measures available to all.

The frequency and severity of tornadoes, hurricanes, tropical storms, thunderstorms, blizzards, ice storms, dust storms, and cyclones have all increased around the globe. Scientists have found evidence that these storms are likely triggered by an overall warming of the planet, due largely to human activity, particularly the burning of heat-trapping fossil fuels. Readers will survey the scope of the problem, learn about the mechanisms at work behind storms of increasing frequency and intensity, see the outlined steps being taken to combat the global warming that promotes intense storms, and learn about the cutting-edge technologies being developed to secure our homes, offices, and other buildings and structures as well as protect the human lives they contain.

The world's oceans have been slowly rising for many years because of factors related to global warming, this poses future threats of sea water surging into coastal cities, leading to devastating flooding and catastrophic water damage. Currently, there are 643 million people around the world living in low-lying coastal areas at risk from climate change-related flooding. Readers are provided with outlines of current research to adapt to these new challenges, including new flood-control infrastructures and technologies. Efforts to slow the process of global warming are also investigated. What you as an individual, community member, and citizen of the world can do to help reverse everyday habits and practices that have resulted in global climate change is revealed.

Malnutrition due to hunger is the number one risk to human health worldwide-greater than malaria, AIDS, and tuberculosis combined. Readers learn how, worldwide, 70 percent of all freshwater is used for agriculture as well as many other facts. During a drought, people can't get access to water, and food production suffers. One billion people in the world do not have access to safe water. Half of the world's hospitalizations are because of water-related diseases. Approximately one and a half million children die every year from water-borne diseases. Food production and water supplies are inseparably linked to the climate, and the Earth's climate is changing. Droughts used to occur every six to eight years in East Africa, but now they occur every one or two years. The average temperature in the United States has risen 2º F in the past 50 years, and it continues to rise. The coming changes are threatening our food and water supplies-higher temperatures and unpredictable rainfall will cause more drought and famine. Global stability and millions of lives are at stake-and we're responsible. Human activities like industry, agriculture, transportation, and deforestation are causing global warming and climate change. The brightest minds are working on ways to slow the effects of climate change, limit its impact, and adapt to the unavoidable changes that are on the way. International cooperation has made it possible to begin saving different seed types in the Svalbard Global Seed Vault in Svalbard, Norway, as a final safety net against global famine and food extinction. As of May 2010, the vault held samples of 526,000 unique crop varieties. Engineers are also perfecting methods to conserve water, such as special water tanks that harvest rain. And there are many promising innovations just around the corner, like artificial trees that absorb carbon from the atmosphere. Various cutting-edge green energy and construction, geoengineering, bioengineering, agricultural, hydrological, and conservation technologies and practices are discussed, as are the latest government regulations and international treaties and initiatives. What the reader can do to support and further these efforts at home, school, and around town are is also outlined in this beneficial resource. All of these and many more promising technologies, intriguing breakthroughs, and proactive strategies are examined in this volume, which ultimately provides readers with a sense of hope, cautious optimism, and an urgent call to arms, and it continues to rise.