Charles Finch
March 2, 2012
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/04/opinion/sunday/the-best-part-about-global-warming.html#
When hearing about global warming, concern and fear comes to mind, but do you know what the best part about global warming is? It actually is that there has been hardly any cases of influenza during this mild winter. This past winter is the fourth warmest ever recorded in the United States, which proves the progression of the global warming considering the winter before brought blizzards and snowstorms frequently. Even though this is a scary occurrence, there are short term perks! Only 3 children have died do influenza, which is 119 less than last winter, and 345 less than in the overwhelming outbreak of it in 2009-2010. Hospitals and doctors feel such relief this season, because before there was such an extreme number of influenza cases that they were considering rationing out ventilators. Since it has been scientifically proven that the flu virus prospers and thrives in cold weather and low humidity. This explains why the virus is common in winter months more than any other time of the year, which means that if global warming continues, the flu viruses would not occur. On the other hand, some scientists are worried that after a few mild winters our bodies will become vulnerable to the flu even more than before because it is not as common. While much more research needs to be done, children, the elderly, the sick, and pregnant women will not be complaining. Thank global warming for the warm winter and less flu cases!
This shows an image of what we can expect more of, a warm winter!
Reflection: I found this article to be very interesting, considering most articles about global warming are warnings and show concern. This was a refreshingly positive outlook on something inevitable! I do love the snow and cold weather that comes along with the winter season, so this article has its pros and cons for me. However, of course everyone's health has to come before enjoyment, and I liked seeing that something that beneficial came out of this, especially when it comes to kids dying from the flu. It also does present some worrisome initiatives, such as that our bodies could be come more vulnerable to influenza. I think that this article celebrates some of the affects of global warming now, but shows some negative future outcomes, which worried me even more than I already was to begin with.
- Did this article make you more worried or more relieved about global warming?
- Do you think that the flu will eventually "die out" like other illnesses that were common in the past?
- Will you miss the winter weather or do you find the warmer weather better?
- How long does it take for the body to become more vulnerable to a virus it was once immune to?
Opinion/Reflection: WOW! I agree, normally when one hears global warming, many people complain and talk about the negative effects. However, I enjoyed this article because it focused on the few positives. Such as, flu cases dereasing and warmer winters. To connect with my own life, I hate catching that common cold, and I'm sure the flu is worse, so I'm glad that global warming is decresaing flu virus rates. It really does have a positive outcome because less children, and adults are getting infected by the flu. Even though, global warming may be seen as negative in most peoples' opinions, we do need to remain a little optimistic. Yay global warming for helping derease our flu rates!
ReplyDeleteExpand: I found this super interesting article called "The Top 5 Positive Effects of Global Warming." It shares some other positive outcomes, such as global warming decreasing the amount of hurricanes and obviously, more summer fun. Check it out here: http://www.environmentalgraffiti.com/offbeat-news/the-top-5-positive-effects-of-global-warming/728?image=1
Answer: #4: Of course I will miss the winter weather! I am gal who loves both, summer and winter (and of course, fall and spring!). However, winter reminds me of being a kid again, sledding and drinking hot coco and snowball fights! Even though it is a chilly season, it is a blast!
Opinion/Reflection
ReplyDeleteI love how twisted this article was. I never thought that there could be positive sides to Global Warming, but this article proves that there is a very good side to Global Warming. It's terrible that so many people had to die from the flu but in another way, it's crazy that global warming could help stop that this past winter! It is such a relief that the numbers of poeple dying from that have gone down dramatically. It also tells us that we have a serious problem though on our hands. If Global warming has gotten so bad to the point where less people are getting sick, we need to do something. I know that sentence probably came out wrong, but I wish there was another way to stop the people from getting sick signifigantly, without Global warming being the solution!
Question #1
This article really worries me about Global Warming. It's great that it deceased the amount of people dying and getting sick from the flu but there should be other ways to handle that. If this issue with Global Warming gets so far it could be making people sick rather than making them better/ not sick in the first place.
My own questions
1.) What could help stop Global Warming from increasing at this point?
2.) Is it a healthy thing that Global Warming is preventing people from getting sick? Or is it more environmentally damaging?
3.) Do you think next winter could be worse or better in concerns of both Global Warming and the flu?
Opinion/Reflection
ReplyDeleteI always thought that global warming only had negative impacts, but reading this article did give a more positive look at global warming. Global warming does have a negative impact, but at the same time there is also a positive impact that influenza wasn't a major problem this year. I love the winter months, but the flu and colds that come along with it aren't as much fun. Although the influenza virus was not high this year it worries me that our immune system will become more vulnerable to the virus. It is good to have less of the virus but it allows the immune systems to become more vulnerable which can become an even bigger problem resulting in more deaths. This affects me because the warmer weather will prevent my immune system to build up against different sicknesses. Although I did enjoy this article, I still think global warming is a big problem and I think people should focus on the negative effects a little more than the positives.
My Questions
1. Are there other sicknesses that were not as common due to the warm winter this year?
2. When we think of global warming should it be thought of as negative or positive?
3. Are there any viruses that thrived due to the warmer winter?
Expand
I found this article that looks at both the advantages and disadvantages of global warming. I thought it was neat seeing the amount of disadvantages were greater than the advantages.
http://geography.about.com/od/globalproblemsandissues/a/advantages.htm
Opinion/Reflection
ReplyDeleteWow when I hear about global warming I always hear about how bad it is and how we can fix it. This article has shown me a way that global warming can actually help mankind and some other species. I still think though that we should still try to fix it. I like cold snowy winters not only do we skip school at some point but we get to see something that only happens during certain months. Well it might help mankind but what about all those wood land creatures that really need snow to happen. I don't know which wood land creatures but definitely some creatures need it. Yes the winter brings more dieses like influenza, colds, and some other flu's but it would actually help us humans to build a stronger immune system. Yes some people would not be able to fight it off and die but it would help with our population rate.
Expand
http://climatechange.procon.org/
On this website it tells the pros and cons of global warming and how we can stop it.
My Questions
1. Are there any sicknesses that were related to warmer weather?
2. Are there any more positive things to say about global warming?
3. What was the highest amount of people dying of influenza?