If your friends can’t understand why you don’t believe in manmade global warming, give them this simple, five-question quiz. They may realize they don’t know as much about global warming as they think.
1. The primary greenhouse gas in the atmosphere is:
[a] Nitrous Oxide
[b] Carbon Dioxide
[c] Methane
[d] Water Vapor
2. Carbon dioxide comprises what percentage of the Earth’s atmosphere?
[a] 400%
[b] 40%
[c] 4%
[d] 0.04%
3. When reviewing our planet’s long geologic history, the current level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is:
[a] Among the highest levels ever recorded
[b] Among the lowest levels ever recorded
[c] About average
4. Each new molecule of carbon dioxide added to the atmosphere traps:
[a] The same amount of heat as the previous additional molecule
[b] More heat than the previous molecule
[c] Less heat than the previous molecule
5. In the twentieth century, solar output was:
[a] The same as it’s always been
[b] The lowest in 1,000 years.
[c] The highest in 1,000 years.
ANSWERS:
1. [d] Water vapor. Roughly 80% of the Earth’s “greenhouse effect” is sustained by water vapor.
2. [d] 0.04%. Carbon dioxide is a minor constituent in the atmosphere, which is dominated by Nitrogen (78%) and Oxygen (21%).
3. [b] Carbon dioxide levels are currently among the lowest ever recorded in Earth’s 4.5-billion-year history.
4. [c] Less heat. Carbon dioxide follows a logarithmically declining function. That means, it exponentially loses the ability to trap heat as its concentration increases.
5. [c] The highest in 1,000 years. Starting in the latter part of the 1800s, solar activity ramped back up to the peak output previously seen during the Roman Warm Period (250-400 AD) and the Medieval Warm Period (950-1250 AD).
If you get more than two answers wrong, start reading Climate Change Dispatch regularly for a crash course in climatology.
