Problems, Predicaments, and Technology

 This facade of the main street in Thurmond, West Virginia, looks impressive but hides the fact that this is a ghost town. No businesses actually exist in these buildings today and the entire town only has 4 or 5 residents today. More info can be obtained here  and here . One of the pernicious effects of the mainstream media regarding climate change and indeed, all the other predicaments under the banner of ecological overshoot, is the sheer level of denial presented. This can easily be detected in many articles about different predicaments such as climate change and I found one in particular  (out of thousands; this is just one of the most recent ones) that brings this phenomenon into focus, quote: " Climate experts warn that, without urgent action, climate change will continue to cause an increase in the intensity of extreme rainfall that can lead to severe flooding. An international research team have concluded that increases in  extreme rainfall  and associated flooding are pr

A new book is now available from Springer by author Alice Friedemann titled Life After Fossil Fuels - A Reality Check on Alternative Energy. The really great thing about this book is the fact that it explains so much about not only how society is powered today, what products are made from this energy, and what the future will look like, but also precisely WHY alternative energy from technological devices will fall way short of the mark with regard to powering society once fossil fuels become impossible to extract because the net energy they provide is equal to the amount of energy required to extract them (making them an energy sink rather than an energy source). Alice J. Friedemann is the creator of energyskeptic.com . Ms. Friedemann is perhaps best known for her book When Trucks Stop Running – Energy and the Future of Transportation published by Springer, and Peak Soil , which was edited by David Pimentel at Cornell, Tad Patzek at U.C. Berkeley, and Walter Youngquist (author of G

What is hydrogen sulfide and what does it have to do with extinction events? In my last entry where I discussed James G. Anderson, I pointed out how the current behavior of the climate system will be interrupted and inherently changed by the loss of Arctic ice and the cryosphere in general. This loss of ice in sea ice, permafrost, glaciers, and frozen lakes and rivers will dramatically speed up the process of warming not only in the Arctic, but the entire Northern Hemisphere and beyond. As it does this, eventually, the temperature difference between the poles and the tropics will disappear. Without the large temperature difference, winds will be diminished, causing the world's oceans to mix less. This will cause hypoxic conditions due to less circulation and less circulation will lead to stagnation, and general anaerobic conditions will lead to the production of hydrogen sulfide leading to sulfidic oceans, also known as the Canfield Ocean .  Understanding that the cryosphere  is

  Recently, I had an opportunity to repost a video which I viewed several years ago from Harvard Professor James G. Anderson regarding climate change. I have actually watched the video two or three times in the past, but there are certain parts that have now become more interesting as time has moved forward.  In the video, Anderson reveals why the term "global warming" is very inappropriate and doesn't accurately describe what is really happening. Then he describes what will happen as times moves forward with warmth and moisture entering the stratosphere as a result of climate change - as ice continues being removed from both poles, eventually the temperature difference between the tropics and the poles will disappear. This is a hugely important distinction, as the global climate system today utterly depends on those temperature differences for the way it behaves. I will go into more detail regarding this phenomenon in my next article and how it will affect the planet

  The Koocanusa Bridge is the only bridge connecting the east and west sides of Lake Koocanusa in Montana and is Montana's highest (215 feet above the river) and longest bridge. A bridge too far? What will be the consequences of energy and resource decline on the healthcare industry? Will medicines be affected? Unfortunately, energy affects every one of us in very distinct ways. While these questions are very important ones indeed, energy and resource decline will affect far more than just the healthcare industry. It  will affect parts of our daily lives in almost every way imaginable. Agriculture and food and water security will be one important area of concern. Another area of great concern will be climate change and collapse , as collapse will reduce the level of energy available to deal with the increasing incidences of extreme weather events and natural disasters caused by climate change. Think about a piece of infrastructure - ANY infrastructure - how did that piece of i

  Agriculture & Food and Water  Security New inoculation method can protect soybeans against devastating leaf blight Mustard, fries in short supply due to Canada climate woes New grafting technique could combat the disease threatening Cavendish bananas New models needed for food system transformation Mountain spring water isn't as clean as you think it is Arriving in mainland Malaysia, banana Blood disease now poised to spread throughout Southeast Asia Mitigating the environmental impact of herbicides NSF report guides research into climate change's effect on human security Citrus greening disease can infect an entire tree weeks before symptoms appear Study clarifies nitrogen's impact on soil carbon sequestration The heat is on: Researchers show ability to future-proof crops for changing climate Climate cycles create California precipitation uncertainty China's crops at risk: Climate change boosts spread of crop pests and diseases California's water supplies are