The Decline in Phytoplankton

ape descendant · 09-01-2010, 10:50 AM

This article is about the decline in Phytoplankton and global warming.

http://www.davidsuzuki.org/blogs/sci...e-catastrophe/

The Earth is the only planet known to support life. Most of the living things on Earth are in the oceans and if they go, it would be a gigantically horrible catastrophe.

What thinkest thou?

Ben Lahnger · 09-01-2010, 11:08 AM

Well, I like this quote from that blog:

"... a recent study by Dalhousie University oceanographer Boris Worm and his team found that phytoplankton populations in the ocean are declining at an alarming rate because of human activity and climate change. Why should we care? Well, these microscopic plants are the base of the food chain and account for half the production of organic matter on Earth. They also remove carbon dioxide from the air and produce more than half the oxygen we breathe."

But I'm not a fan of citing blogs to make the case; while they sometimes serve to put science information in terms a layman can understand, they're a notorious showcase for opinion and misinformation. And in this area, where there is so much obstructionist debate blocking the investment of real concern by the general public, I believe it s important to cite as much scientific data as directly as you can. So I'm posting this link (referenced in the blog post you linked to) as a more direct source of info:

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases...0728131705.htm

Thanks for posting this. I immediately presented it on my Facebook pages.

Saya · 09-01-2010, 11:12 AM

I heard about this a while ago and I can't help but think, WE'RE ALL GOING TO DIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

Fruitbat · 09-01-2010, 09:25 PM

Earth is fucked in so many areas of the environment that phytoplankton is just a noun on a list of other nouns that include global warming, global dimming, global cooling, water pollution, air pollution, soil pollution.

CO2 ppm are off the scale, even if we stop producing carbon tomorrow, there's no hope for us. Carbon sequestration is easy - organic matter in the soil but no one wants to listen because there is no money in it.

Spent five years of my life absorbed in ecological issues, know a lot of really great people who are changing their own ways of life to make a difference.

I really don't think David Suzuki being all doom and gloom is going to help anyone feel any better about how humans have completely stuffed up the only planet capable of carrying them for lightyears.

Honestly as far as a species goes, homosapiens are friggin' stupid (and I include myself in this basket)

Saya · 09-01-2010, 10:21 PM

David Suzuki isn't normally all doom and gloom though. I read his Green Guide and its mostly just him shouting "There's still time!"

This is majorly depressing though, not many ways you can spin it without reading between the lines, "We're DOOOOOOOOOOOMED."

Fruitbat · 09-01-2010, 10:32 PM

Saya A lot of David S's earlier work was doom and gloom until he finallly realised that no one wants to listen to Neil from the Young Ones "The world is ending" crap.

I remember being assigned to read one of his books in first year. I read a chapter then returned the book. it was negative. Sure there's probably no happy way to say "Oh yeah we've stuffed up the Earth" but there is a way you can say "We stuffed her up but lets unstuff her by x, y and z"

Whoops, batty's getting serious *shoves her soap box out of the way*.....

We may as well have fun while we still have our Earth to play with. After all she still is a hot, fabulous and beautiful mother, with a wonderful personality. Hell, I'm all ready to roll in her hay!
Aw, I think I'm in love...

Saya · 09-01-2010, 11:42 PM

O rly? Other than GG I only watched The Nature Of Things XD that was always happy for as long as I can remember. Once he showed a brain surgery, and the patient was a friend of a teacher of mine!

Fruitbat · 09-02-2010, 02:37 AM

I think the book was It's a matter of survival - and I've just looked it up, the first chapter was on how dire the situation is, so maybe that's where I get my biased opinion on Suzuki, but I've watched a couple of his early shows and they were pretty much "the sky is falling in"

But there were a lot of people in the 1990's who were like that. We were bombarded with the hole in the ozone, and how Australia was going to get crispy because of CFC's et al.

Suzuki's message changed when he wrote "Good news for a change: how everyday people are changing the planet".

I didn't spend a lot of my time studying Suzuki's work - we went into Steiner's work (which is more esoteric).

Hope the brain surgery was successful.