Question about 'global warming'

[DAPRS]

Hey all,

Now I personally don't believe the global warming bull that scientists today are trying to prove. But here's my question:

Can the heat from human bodies impact the climate of the earth? I mean, there are so many people on the earth right now; could it be possible that the collective heat generated by our bodies impacts the heat of the earth?

[EmpressStarXVII]

I never thought of it that way. It's a good theory that seems like it could hold ground. If scientists can blame cow flatulants; seems like they can also blame body heat.

[IamsSon]

It's interesting, but I read somewhere that insects outweigh humans, so I would think insect-generated heat would be more of a problem.

*Prepares to reduce the Global Warming issue by going into the yard and eliminating several mounds of red ants*

[undersquiggle]

well, i personally DO believe in global warming, since i have seen the effects of it first hand. on average, we used to get 2 - 3 feet of snow in a normal year. now we're lucky if we get one foot. ne how, as for the heat of people being a problem, i could see it being plausible. after all, stick enough people in a room and it gets real hot real quick.

[Legatus Legionis]

very good theory. and from my point of view global warming is a part of the earth's healing that has undergo it's own cycle ( global warming, other climate changing events maybe ice age, etc. )

[bigdog112]

I am sorry but I don’t see how the connection of increasing O2 content in the atmosphere and heat level rising on average a theory. its proven fact plane and simple, deal with it we are killing the planet. None of the data is fake embellished or fabricated its all real hard core science.

[Legatus Legionis]

right now i'm deciding wether to believe in Global warming are cause by humans or global warming speeded up by humans...

[magnetar]

The question, as some see it, is this.

Solar energy reaches the planet, through its atmosphere. That energy is variously absorbed, reflected, and re-radiated.

The question regarding energy is, no matter its source, solar, geologic, or extracted, how much is allowed to dissipate out to space?

A follow-up to that is if there is meaningful variation with either the Sun, or Earth's parameters. Scientists study the Sun, and ice cores from deep boreholes can give us clues to the climate of the past. And, complex modeling is required to project into the future.

Along the way, various and occasionally vested interests offer their opinions. And, some local programs, like rice paddy methane modification in China, or studying methane outputs by forests, can themselves drive new questions.

On a summer's day, cities are known as heat islands. That is local in effect, but should radiate excess heat to space. If not, then that is because of the atmosphere, unless the amount of heat is intially excessive. I believe, though, recent studies have said the Sun is still within currently normal values.

Just to mention one last thing- El Nino' weather anomaly is a cyclical problem, and currently in retreat.

[carini]

There is actually less sunlight reaching the planets surface right now then for anytime in the past 50-60 years, this is known as global dimming. Basically what it says is that the amount particulate matter in the atmosphere has reached very high levels. Nowhere near what a huge volcanic explosion or meteor impact would have, but it is still high. These particulates reflect sunlight back into space when it hits the upper levels of the atmosphere, thereby allowing less sunlight to reach the earths surface and warm it up. With the huge increases in co2, methane and other greenhouse gases we have actually counteracted this effect to some extent and the planet continues to warm. I perosnally think its a combination of natural changes and fluctuations and man made causes.

England a few centuries ago was hot enough to have vineyards, and we are headed back in this direction. The problem is that we are making it happen faster then what is natural.

I think my main concern with what humans are doing is that we are literally strip mining every living habitat on earth. In a few decades the earths population will hit 9-10 billion, and I can only foresee complete environmental destruction when this happens. Basically there will be no food left in many places on earth.

In 50 years I predict that all ape species, lions, tigers, bears, hippos, whales, basically every large mammal on earth will be driven to extinction. There might be a few holdouts here and there but by and large they will be completely decimated.

When the crap really starts hitting the fan and mass starvation sets in people will eat anything and everything in sight.

The global warming issue is basically an alarm bell showing people what is going to happen in their lifetimes. We will all experience some crazy times ahead. We have the knowledge to change it, but no one is going to stop it.

[Dr. Strangelove]

Hey all,

Now I personally don't believe the global warming bull that scientists today are trying to prove. But here's my question:

Can the heat from human bodies impact the climate of the earth? I mean, there are so many people on the earth right now; could it be possible that the collective heat generated by our bodies impacts the heat of the earth?

No, that's impossible. See, the whole point isn't so much the amount of heat being produced....it's how much heat gets out. C02 is stopping the heat from escaping, thus slowly raising the earth's temperature.

[Mr Slayer]

Hey all,

Now I personally don't believe the global warming bull that scientists today are trying to prove. But here's my question:

Can the heat from human bodies impact the climate of the earth? I mean, there are so many people on the earth right now; could it be possible that the collective heat generated by our bodies impacts the heat of the earth?

Wait, so you don't believe that 200 years of excess carbon emission can change the climate, but you think that human body heat can? That doesn't hold water at all.

[ninjadude]

right now i'm deciding wether to believe in Global warming are cause by humans or global warming speeded up by humans...

Global warming or Climate Change is not a religion that one believes in and faith that it is right. It's a scientific theory. That's something that is the best representation of the facts. Theories change over time to accomodate new facts.

Based on the facts represented, you can either agree that the theory is a good one or not. The facts are the facts. They don't change. The earth is getting warmer. Glaciers and parts of the polar ice caps are rapidly melting. CO2 is at the highest level ever recorded in the last 600,000 years. There does seem to be a correlation between CO2 levels and global temprature. Sea levels are rising. Humans do generate a tremendous amount of CO2 - especially in the US.

Can we reverse it or have an effect on it? I hope so. That's a belief.

Edited April 6, 2007 by ninjadude

[SMSgt Rock]

Hey all,

Now I personally don't believe the global warming bull that scientists today are trying to prove. But here's my question:

Can the heat from human bodies impact the climate of the earth? I mean, there are so many people on the earth right now; could it be possible that the collective heat generated by our bodies impacts the heat of the earth?

I believe in global warming and the sooner that we do something about it, the better. I hope you have seen Al Gore's case for it on TV. The impact of what we build on earth and what we tear down, besides the driving of huge vehicles has a great impact. I for one drive only hybrid vehicles and therefore do my part to cut down on the effect of my emissions on the planet. You may pay a little more for a hybrid, but the gas savings and higher trade in value are great!

[Guardsman Bass]

For the OP Poster:

Go to Real Climate Blog. It's run by a number of scientists working in the fields relevant to Global Warming, demonstrates the evidence for Warming, and debunks the common claims of many of the Skeptics.

[Doug1029]

For the OP Poster:

Go to Real Climate Blog. It's run by a number of scientists working in the fields relevant to Global Warming, demonstrates the evidence for Warming, and debunks the common claims of many of the Skeptics.

First, allow me to direct you to Jim Hansen's website at the Goddard Institute; it has a lot of good, solid information on global warming.

Second, I am working on several projects related to global warming. These include an analysis of temperature fluctuations in the southeastern United State over the past 40 years and a study of the number and intensity of ice storms in the same area. I note that temperatures in the cities I have chosen as index cities, including Wilmington, NC; Meridian, MS and Ft. Smith, AR tend to go up and down in concert with global temperatures. The difference is that the long-term trend in the global average is up (so is Ft. Smith's temperature - 1.4 degrees F since 1965) while for most of the southeast it is flat. This agrees with global warming theory which predicts that temperature rise will be greatest in dry areas - Ft. Smith is a lot dryer than elsewhere in the southeast. My source for temperature data is the National Climate Data Center operated by NOAA.

I note that there have been approximately 30 climate fluctuations since the last Ice Age and that in most respects, this is just one more of the same thing. As of now, the climate is still not as warm as it was during the Altithermal (about 8200 to 4200 years ago) or the Medievil Warm Period. Previous warming periods have been marked by sudden, rapid rise in global temperature over a period of several decades, followed by long, slow declines, often taking a century to return to the pre-warming temperatures. This warming trend appears to be repeating past cycles.

The current warming does have one difference from previous warming periods: temperature increase increases with distance from the Equator. The poles are getting warmer faster than the rest of the planet. This is something new.

The consensus among people I know who work on global warming is that the current warming is a natural phenomenon, perhaps slightly abetted by human activities. Atmospheric carbon, though, is redistributing that heat, moving it toward dry areas. The dryest areas on earth are the great deserts and polar and interior continental areas in winter. This is exactly where warming is the greatest. So, yes, global warming is real and people, while probably not the cause, are having an effect.

Time series analyses of climate proxies (oceanic cores laid down over the past 3000 years) predict a major rise in sea temperatures in the Sargasso Sea for the latter part of the 20th century - exactly what happened. These same series predict that the current temperature excursion will top out between 2006 and 2012. El Nino is expected to reach a maximum in 2009, so that is likely to be the hottest year of the current period of global warming.

Even though I think we will enter a period of cooling soon, temperatures are already high and will take a century or more to return to their 1975 levels. There will be a lot of heat problems in the meantime. This is likely to include melting of the Arctic ice cap. That, too, would be something new and could have long-lasting effects on world climates. At the moment, there seems to be no way to prevent this: it is already happening.

Any curtailment of atmospheric pollution that is within the range of feasibility is unlikely to have much effect on climate. Even a complete shutdown of industry will not restore the pre-1975 climate. There simply isn't much that can be done about it and all the hype from either side of the issue is not going to change that.

There are lots of good reasons for the US to kick its petroleum habit and for the world to clean itself up, but global warming isn't one of them.

--DJS

[Kalien]

right now i'm deciding wether to believe in Global warming are cause by humans or global warming speeded up by humans...

Yeah, that is the only question. Global warming IS happening but we aren't sure how much of it is our fault - if at all- . We still need to wisen up, stop polluting, clean our enviroment and so on, just because it is a healthier way for all to live. *hippie*

[dwayne12]

It is not actually the heat that is transmitted from the human body that is contributing to the global warming there are several other reasons which has made this problem. Global warming is definitely on now and the same can be evident by comparing the temperature charts of different countries in the last few years. The upward trend would then be clearly visible! Who knows after a certain period of time the world may not be such a beautiful place to live in.

[johnbee]

Hey all,

Now I personally don't believe the global warming bull that scientists today are trying to prove. But here's my question:

Can the heat from human bodies impact the climate of the earth? I mean, there are so many people on the earth right now; could it be possible that the collective heat generated by our bodies impacts the heat of the earth?

http://www.globalwarmingisafarce.com

[+DieChecker]

The facts do say that it is getting warmer, but they also say it has been getting warmer for hundreds of years. That we are speeding it up is likely, but if the planet didn't warm up by 2100 it likely would have naturally by 2200. The same weather changes and the same atmospheric changes would occur anyway, just latter. I still am not scared as it is easily within humanities ability to decrease this effect, stop it or even reverse it. It would take a small fraction of the industrial might of the US to change the atmosphere to whatever we wanted, at least on a global scale. The problem is that no one is going to front up that kind of money unless there is some kind of profit in it. Maybe eventually the EU or China will sponsor some global weather change project, but I doubt the US will for some time.

[MID]

Hey all,

Now I personally don't believe the global warming bull that scientists today are trying to prove. But here's my question:

Can the heat from human bodies impact the climate of the earth? I mean, there are so many people on the earth right now; could it be possible that the collective heat generated by our bodies impacts the heat of the earth?

I think there's a great deal of empassioned arguing about this "global warming" situation, most of which misses the point.

Global warming exists. We know that there's been a global increase in temperature on average over the past couple of decades. The argument is not about that. The argument is about the hypothesis that this period of warming is being caused by man. There are in fact more scientists arguing against this hypothesis than there are scientists arguing for it. The fact is, the evidence in support of the hypothesis is weak.

If that is the "bull" you're referring to, then I think you're correct.

As to your question, I think the answer is absolutely no.

Think about this:

The mass of all the human beings on this planet is approximately 3 trillionths the mass of the Earth.Another way to look at this is to think about the fact that the Earth is 3,000,000,000,000 times more massive than all the men on its surface. We humans occupy...in total, approximately 1/500,000 of the planet's surface.

Those are astronomically small numbers, of course. It may be a little difficult to visualize such numbers, but what it means is that all the humans on this planet are microscopic relative to the planet. We cannot be seen from orbit, for instance. We are insignificant relative to the scale of this planet, no matter how you look at it.

The idea that the body temperature of the population of this planet could effect the planet is rather untenable...

[laveticus666]

Hey all,

Now I personally don't believe the global warming bull that scientists today are trying to prove. But here's my question:

Can the heat from human bodies impact the climate of the earth? I mean, there are so many people on the earth right now; could it be possible that the collective heat generated by our bodies impacts the heat of the earth?

What?!? Its impossible. There arnt even that many humans on the planet today compared to many other species. Theres also no more life on averge than any other time span of life. And how could you not believe in global warming? Scienctist arnt trying to prove it anymore. Its already been prooven. Theres nobody denying human polutions have effected the climate. The question now is how impactive will the change be, and how to prevent it from getting worse.

[jdlsmith]

for some fun... Wikipedia on Global Cooling

Some have said that 'as long as the heat dissipates, it's ok'.

This is similar to saying that as long as my oven door is open, my oven won't get hot... Just because the heat dissipates, that doesn't mean it doesn't seriously affect our environment.

This means that anything that produces heat should be viewed as contibuting to global warming.

Also, sunlightprovides heat. Sometimes it is absorbed and used (reducing the net effect of the sunlight) and sometimes it is merely absorbed or reflected back. The difference a city makes is absolutely tremendous. I find the weather patterns that are caused by St Louis to be fascinating... the concrete and steel have a significant impact.

Anyway, all things considered, I'm not anywhere near panic mode yet, but we do need to be smart.

JS

[whitepanda2010]

well, i personally DO believe in global warming, since i have seen the effects of it first hand. on average, we used to get 2 - 3 feet of snow in a normal year. now we're lucky if we get one foot. ne how, as for the heat of people being a problem, i could see it being plausible. after all, stick enough people in a room and it gets real hot real quick.

Just because u havent gotten your normal amount of snow doesnt prove global warming. i live in ohio and we always get different weather in our winters. this year we got alot of snow; more than usual. i'm not saying that global warming doesnt exist, but u have some pretty weak first hand evidence.