Table of Contents
You should probably read this part first… 9
1 Snowfall & Volcanoes
About the Early History of the Climate
The Old, Old Earth 12
The First Two Billion Years 14
The Snowball Effect 16
Long Live Carbon 18
What Finished Off the Dinosaurs? 20
Farts from the Sea 22
2 Erratics & Mammoths
About Ice Ages and So On
Welcome to the Ice Age 26
At the Bottom of the Bering Sea 28
At the Bottom of the Coral Sea 30
At the Bottom of the North Sea 32
Winter in the Summertime 34
Make Your Own Ice Age 36
Volcanic Dust and Sunspots 38
3 Air Bubbles & Tree Rings
About Research Into Climate Change
Time for Some Research 42
Wandering Stones 44
The Discoverers of the Greenhouse 46
The Breath of the Earth 48
The Growing Hockey Stick 50
Trapped in Ice 52
The Fingerprint of CO2 54
4 Chimneys & Cow Farts
About the Causes of Climate Change
Wood 58
The Water-Vapor Engine 60
Mashed Marsh Plants 62
Crushed Sea Creatures 64
People, People Everywhere 66
Out of the Chimney 68
Out of the Exhaust Pipe 70
Out of the Cow 72
5 Meltwater & Heat Waves
About the Consequences of Climate Change
Climate Confusion 76
One Degree Warmer 78
Melting Poles 80
Weird Water 82
Rivers in the Sea 84
Acid Oceans 86
Stormy Weather 88
And So On 90
On the Brink 92
6 Calamity & Disaster
About the Consequences of the Consequences of Climate Change
The Good News 96
Disappearing Islands 98
Cities under Threat 100
We Want Water 102
The Wind That Brings the Rain 104
Ticks, Mosquitoes, and Pollen 106
Spoilsports 108
Food for Everyone 110
Water Fights 112
7 Pika & Cephalopod
About the Consequences for Nature
Pika Boo, I See You! 116
Meet the Bee-Eater 118
Not Just the Polar Bear 120
Yay for the Yucca 122
The Last Golden Toad 124
Up from the South 126
Colorless Coral 128
8 Hydrogen & Insect Burgers
About Measures to Tackle Climate Change
Okay, So This Is What We Know Now 132
Ready for the Future 134
Do It Yourself 136
Food for Thought 138
From Frying to Flying 140
Driving on Electricity 142
9 Windmills & Water Power
About the Energy of the Future
Dear Coal, Natural Gas, and Oil 146
Candidate 1 Sun 148
Candidate 2 Wind 150
Candidate 3 Water 152
Candidate 4 Biomass 154
Candidate 5 Geothermal Energy 156
Candidate 6 Nuclear Energy 158
And the Winner Is… 160
10 Oh Yes, It Is! Oh No, It Isn't!
About the Squabbling about Climate Change
Bogus the Bear 164
It's No Big Deal 166
It's All Their Fault 168
It's Not the First Time 170
It'll All Be Okay 172
The Plane Will Fly Anyway 174
What Difference Does It Make? 176
Climate Bingo 178
Thank You 180
Index 181
