Global warming packs heat

    Hypothetically speaking, let’s take a walk in an average GCSU student’s shoes. Her name is Jane, and the world she lives in is unlike the present.
    Grabbing a bottle of frozen water from her dorm room, she leaves to prepare for an academic challenge.
    The first thing she notices is the intensity of the air. The heat rises from the ground like steam in a sauna, and her rubber soled flip flops soften as an effect of the temperature in the cement.
    Covered in sun block, hiding behind oversized sunglasses, and wearing a baseball cap, the heat still burns at her skin. Sweat drips down her back, and she notices that her throat is dry and craving hydration.
    She pulls out her frozen water bottle; however, the temperature has melted her water. Disappointed but still thirsty, she gulps down the lukewarm water and continues to walk to class.
    Arriving at the Art and Sciences building, Jane quickly grabs a newspaper and runs up the stairs to her class.
    She slips off her book bag and checks the damage that the sweat has done to her shirt. While removing her sunglasses and hat, she notices a whistling sound, and wonders where it is coming from.
    With the temperature being in the record highs, the sound was that of the air conditioning struggling to produce a satisfying cooling sensation. The temperature was affecting everyone and everything, even the air condition unit.
    Having five minutes before class starts, Jane becomes intrigued by the main headline of the newspaper. “Arctic Ice Sheets No Longer Exist,” the headline reads. The ocean is rising.
    Frantically flipping to page six to see the continuation of the article, Jane discovers that the rise in the sea level has caused severe flooding to many costal regions. Just inches below the Arctic Ice Sheets article, is another interesting headline that reads, “Severe Warm Waters Cause Several Hurricanes.”
    Disturbed by the information revealed in the newspaper, Jane folds it back up and places it in her book bag. Class begins, and the topic on the floor is current events.
    One of Jane’s friends is quick to inform the class about how health risks have increased since the extreme temperatures have developed. Hantavirus, malaria, and dengue fever were just a few of the diseases she named as becoming more prevalent than ever.
    Jane sits and wonders what has happened to the world, and if this could have been prevented?
    This scenario is that of global warming and its many effects. If action is not taken now, this will be the future. Even as college students, there are small deeds that can be done to help against global warming.
    Global warming “is an issue that has come to the limelight in the last five to six years,” says Saugatta Datta, an GCSU environmental science teacher.
    Datta reveals that since 1975, population growth has been a factor in the amount of carbon dioxide that is now trapped in the atmosphere. The larger the population, the more energy is needed; hence, more products are produced through fossil fuel burning manufactories.
    A change in the global warming issue “can start from the root level of a family,” states Datta. Using less energy and burning fewer fossil fuels are the small things that add up to eventually making a difference.
    Brayli James, a GCSU biology major, agrees that, “global warming is a very serious issue.” She further explains, “We as a people have to be aware of what is going on around us.”
    James believes that “starting out with something small can grow to minimizing global warming.” One of her suggestions was “switching our regular lamps out with energy saving bulbs.”
    Julia Allen and Cayla McMicheal, GCSU freshmen, both agree that, “utilizing the public transportation provided and carpooling more often, will show a slowing of the global warming process.”
    Datta states, “whatever we can do will accumulate and have an overall effect.” The excessive release of carbon dioxide that is in the atmosphere is sadly irreversible. All countries must now work together to prevent a problem that will affect everyone regardless of who is to blame.

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Sep 14 2007. Filed under Features. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry