[fastpat]

Originally posted by red-beard
Well, I have to disagree with you on that one. Life on this planet was largely changed due to organizims. The original makeup of our atmosphere did not contain large amounts of free oxygen. Somewhere around 3 billions years ago, the "plants" started producing oxygen, and "polluted" the otherwise pristine atmosphere. Interesting things happen when you get the partial pressure of oxygen above about 2.3 psi. Flames can occur naturally. Those stupid plants made a whole world where things can burn.

Decaying organic matter produces, among other things, Carbon Dioxide.

Back on discussion...

Warming is occuring. There is no question of this. How much warming is occuring is still under debate. What is the mechanism behind the warming is also still under debate. The graphs provided earlier in this discussion show that warming and cooling occurs in cycles. The present cycle doesn't look any different than the previous ones.

If, then, what...

If warming occurs, then, what will be the result? I know this one is up for debate. I can tell you one thing that seems to get missed. As the global temperature rises, the amount of moisture that the air can hold also rises. More moisture = less deserts. Higher temps will also mean that crops can grow farther north than they do now, and for longer periods of time.

Economically, during the mideval warm period (1100-1500 AD), life was much better. When the "Little Ice age" from 1530-1850 occured, disease, crop failures and other disasters followed. Since 1850, the world economy has grown more than ever before in history.

And the sea level changes? Hasn't the sea level been rising already for about 18K years? Since the last ice age, the sea level has risen about 400 feet (130 meters). This is about 2 feet per 100 years. And what is now being predicted for the next 100 years?

2-3 feet.

Look out everyone, red-beard's being rational again.