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World ocean temperatures in 2021 were the hottest ever recorded

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Re: World ocean temperatures in 2021 were the hottest ever recorded

#21

Is anyone on HN reconsidering having children because of climate change? Recently I've had a big shift myself on this topic, probably influenced by not many women my age (younger than 30) having any interest in bringing a child into a world where they could potentially suffer real physical danger due to climate change.

Well, the birds aren't going to fix climate change.

I can't speak for the women you know, but the women I know in their 20s-30s tell me they aren't thinking about children at all probably thanks to the empowerment of women of the last 100 years.

Over my life, I've heard all kinds of excuses for all people to not consider children until they are in their late 30s or 40s, then it's a rush. I did the same.

I'm not sure it's climate change.

Re: World ocean temperatures in 2021 were the hottest ever recorded

#22

Is anyone on HN reconsidering having children because of climate change? Recently I've had a big shift myself on this topic, probably influenced by not many women my age (younger than 30) having any interest in bringing a child into a world where they could potentially suffer real physical danger due to climate change.

The irony of this is that the people who care about the wellbeing of the planet enough to question having children due to climate concerns are the ones who really should be having children. They are more likely to raise them to be conscious of issues like this, to look for solutions, and to minimize their impact.

Re: World ocean temperatures in 2021 were the hottest ever recorded

#23

I have the feeling that many people (especially politicians) think that global warming is a linear process. It's not. It might even be exponential since some sources for climate-warming are affected by warmer climate. For example, melting ice that reflects sunlight back to space [ https://arcticwwf.org/places/last-ice-area/ ]. I'm thinking about choosing a new place to live right now. Climate change is a big factor f…

Personally I would not buy property south of the 45th parallel anymore (in the northern hemisphere). Even north of that we have seen shockingly high temperatures. Anything south of that will become a hellscape within our lifetime.

Maybe the futurist should not hold real estate at all - keep wealth in stocks and rent and let the landlords place their bets on chaos theory.

Re: World ocean temperatures in 2021 were the hottest ever recorded

#24

Forecasts for +10C in Oslo Norway the next days, possibly melting all the snow and ruining skiing in the forests during lockdown, my best reason to go outside at the moment..

Wow, the forecast here in the upper peninsula of michigan is below 0c for the next 10 days, and oslo is way further north.

Re: World ocean temperatures in 2021 were the hottest ever recorded

#25
post #6

Chart has baseline at ~1995. They say we reached 200 zettajoules around 2019. 200 zettajoules => 2.0e23 J * 4.184 J/cal => 8.36e+23 calories They say this is the energy absorbed by top 2000 meters of the oceans. There are 84.8 million sq km of ocean. 2000m * 84.8e6 => 1.69e20 liters of water. 1000 calorie to warm 1L of water by 1 deg C. 1.69e20 L / 8.36e23 cal => warmed by 0.2 deg C since 1995.

That's alarmingly fast.

Re: World ocean temperatures in 2021 were the hottest ever recorded

#26

Is anyone on HN reconsidering having children because of climate change? Recently I've had a big shift myself on this topic, probably influenced by not many women my age (younger than 30) having any interest in bringing a child into a world where they could potentially suffer real physical danger due to climate change.

Yes. Interesting counterpoint from Scott Alexander: https://astralcodexten.substack.com/p/please-dont-give-up-on...

Re: World ocean temperatures in 2021 were the hottest ever recorded

#27

I have the feeling that many people (especially politicians) think that global warming is a linear process. It's not. It might even be exponential since some sources for climate-warming are affected by warmer climate. For example, melting ice that reflects sunlight back to space [ https://arcticwwf.org/places/last-ice-area/ ]. I'm thinking about choosing a new place to live right now. Climate change is a big factor f…

Personally I would not buy property south of the 45th parallel anymore (in the northern hemisphere). Even north of that we have seen shockingly high temperatures. Anything south of that will become a hellscape within our lifetime.

it depends if it's east or west. Chicago is 42o, similar to Madrid, but I think Madrid will have bigger problems.

Re: World ocean temperatures in 2021 were the hottest ever recorded

#28

Is anyone on HN reconsidering having children because of climate change? Recently I've had a big shift myself on this topic, probably influenced by not many women my age (younger than 30) having any interest in bringing a child into a world where they could potentially suffer real physical danger due to climate change.

If you are strong and capable you should have kids to help build a better tomorrow. There aren't many young women who want to have kids because there aren't many young men who seem strong enough to bear the responsibility.

Re: World ocean temperatures in 2021 were the hottest ever recorded

#29

I have the feeling that many people (especially politicians) think that global warming is a linear process. It's not. It might even be exponential since some sources for climate-warming are affected by warmer climate. For example, melting ice that reflects sunlight back to space [ https://arcticwwf.org/places/last-ice-area/ ]. I'm thinking about choosing a new place to live right now. Climate change is a big factor f…

It isn't even exponential, it might be much worse than that.

Tipping points have ability to change our climate in a very, very short time.

For example, Gulfstream breaking or redirecting can be a sudden event. Many people forget that Europe is very far north compared to its climate. If you chose a lattitude so that half Canadians live north of it and half south of it, that lattitude would intersect Croatia, Italy and Spain.

A sudden break in Gulfstream would bring immediate step change to European climate, complete crop and extensive infrastructure failure.

Re: World ocean temperatures in 2021 were the hottest ever recorded

#30

Is anyone on HN reconsidering having children because of climate change? Recently I've had a big shift myself on this topic, probably influenced by not many women my age (younger than 30) having any interest in bringing a child into a world where they could potentially suffer real physical danger due to climate change.

I wish you the best as you figure out the direction of your life.

I'm a bit older and have kids. They've positively impacted my life in ways I could not have imagined when I was younger. Having said that, the speed of climate change and what feels like a global political class that is incapable of taking meaningful action, I am very concerned for my kids' near future. I cannot imagine a life without them, but I do wonder whether they will suffer, or whether my grand kids will suffer due to climate change. And so I wonder whether the joy and fulfillment they bring me will be worth any suffering they will be forced to endure. I cannot successfully do this computation. I am left with a persistent concern that will not lift.

But then I think about people who had children during times of war and during famines. The urge to procreate is so amazingly strong.

By definition the adults who will tackle climate change have to be conceived by the adults who will suffer from it.

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