The article, “Ocean Acidification” proposes the problem of how ocean acidification, caused by global warming and human activities is affecting the oceans, causing them to be increasingly acidic. When we burn fossil fuels, over 30% of the Carbon Dioxide dissolves into the oceans and harms marine life and interferes with coral and mollusk growth. The article explains that nearly all of the mass extinctions that happened in the past were caused increasing levels of CO2 and decreasing oxygen levels, which is happening now. Also, in the past, the levels of Carbon Dioxide were increasing at a rate that is 10 times slower than they are now, so if we continue with this many species of animals that live in the oceans could be wiped out fairly quickly. About 65 million years ago, when an asteroid hit earth, it caused great ocean acidification and ended the Cretaceous period.
This article was very interesting because it showed that our emissions are not only causing global warming, they are starting a problem that has caused mass extinctions in the past and it could happen again very quickly because of how fast we are emitting carbon dioxide.
posted for C. Gordon
I enjoyed reading Clark Gordon’s review of an article regarding the acidification of the ocean. Clark did a very good job summarizing the article. He gave me a good understanding of what it was all about. Also, Clark explained how carbon dioxide produced by the burning of fossil fuels negatively affects the ocean. Finally, Clark did a good job expressing his opinion on the topic and validating it.
ReplyDeleteTo improve this article, Clark could have gone into detail about the acidification of the ocean. Also, he could have related the article to our study of pH in our biology class.
One aspect of this article that impressed me was the fact that the asteroid that hit the earth caused acidification in the oceans and ended the cretaceous period. Humans should be aware of the history of the earth so we can better predict and prevent future catastrophes.