Global warming, an irreversible cycle?

[Draco]

Ok I know there are a lot of global warming threads but consider this:
The increased levels of CO2 have caused temperatures around the world to rise.
One of the areas that have been affected most is Siberia, a place covered in permafrost. The permafrost starts to melt; plant material in the permafrost starts to ferment producing Methane, a greenhouse gas that is 21 times stronger than CO2.
The area of permafrost covers something like 10% of the surface of the earth. The more Methane released into the atmosphere the faster the permafrost melts, increasing the amount of Methane released, etc.

[hanhan2008]

Hehe, is it really worrisome? Global warming may have many unpredictable outcomes. But "unpredictable" is not the same as "bad". I'm eager to see what surprises Mother Nature can give us! Anyway, it's even difficult to prove that being alive is better than being dead, isn't it?

[Draco]

Yes but is this cycle that has been started irrevercible or can we prevent the accelerated melting of the permafrost?

[woolleyy]

Haha, good way to look at it hanhan.
I understand what you're saying draco, but I think there are many other factors involved, that we don't know about. There are probably many positive feedback loops involved in the production of greenhouse gases. But there may also be some negative feedback systems that save the day. Like I found out today that the methane that is released in the atmosphere is degraded by a certain system (kinda wishing I'd asked about the mechanism now... Sorry).

I think Mother Nature has got things firmly under control, she knows we're pumping out a lot of greenhouse gases, and she's gonna give us, like, 50 years to stop, then BANG! She's gonna iceage us back to square one...

[mith]

The earth doesn't care about global warming. We do. If all else fails, we die out. The earth will keep on humming.

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[Draco]

True, in the earths time we are relatively new while climate change has happened before.

[alextemplet]

Hehe, is it really worrisome? Global warming may have many unpredictable outcomes. But "unpredictable" is not the same as "bad". I'm eager to see what surprises Mother Nature can give us! Anyway, it's even difficult to prove that being alive is better than being dead, isn't it?

Using this logic, why don't you go ahead and kill yourself and see how much fun it is?

[MrMistery]

Agreed with Dave. After we kill ourselves(and i think we will) this big rock will continue to be here...

[mcar]

If we do not stop our exploitation of the nature.

[AstusAleator]

Eh I hope some humans survive and are forced to live in a world with only a handful of species. That way there will be some sorrow and self-defeating bitterness left for a few more thousand years.

[mcar]

What if you're one of them? would you wish dying instead? or live it up?

[Draco]

If we do not stop our exploitation of the nature.

But thats the problem. People are cutting down rainforests and planting palm oil plant so the palm oil can be used in bio fuels which they think are ecofriendly while in reality they are producing more CO2 by making and using biofuel than by using petrol.