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EG4310 Sustainability & Global Systems

EG4310 Sustainability & Global Systems. Lecture 1 Global Systems Dr Mark Cresswell (with some material from Dr David Lambrick) Winter 2009. Topics. Introduction Assignment 1 Global systems The importance of time Next week’s research seminar. Introduction. Why study this unit? Global

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EG4310 Sustainability & Global Systems

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  1. EG4310Sustainability & Global Systems Lecture 1 Global Systems Dr Mark Cresswell (with some material from Dr David Lambrick) Winter 2009

  2. Topics • Introduction • Assignment 1 • Global systems • The importance of time • Next week’s research seminar

  3. Introduction • Why study this unit? • Global • Systems • Sustainability • Expertise • Staff in EGS and CATE • Focus of material • Climate and climate modelling • Aviation

  4. Assignment 1 – Set Today!

  5. Global Systems • Earth System (biogeochemical system) • Interacting physical, chemical and biological cycles and fluxes • Materially closed system • Dominant energy source – Sun • Interactions are complex and dynamic with feedback and forcing mechanisms • Biology (and Humans) integral part • Time-scales vary and can be large

  6. Global Systems

  7. Global Systems

  8. Global Systems • Complex adaptive systems • Ecosystems & biosphere are adaptive • Macroscopic features such as robustness emerge largely from processes at lower scales of organization • Must try to relate processes and patterns occurring at various spatial and temporal scales and inherent organizational complexity

  9. Global Systems • The climate system is part of the earth system • Climate = the sum of all components of weather such as rainfall, temperature, cloud cover etc averaged over long time periods (30 years, 60 years or even centuries)

  10. Global Systems • Areas of study in global sustainability • Time-scales and temporal variability • Role of biology in a functioning system • Spatial patterns and variability in processes lead to gradients affecting oceans and atmosphere • Connectivity of systems over space and time: e.g. ENSO & teleconnections • Non-linearity (small amplitude forcing equals large change)

  11. Global Systems • Global scale change • Local changes can have global impacts • Recent human activity can create profoundly abnormal change • E.g. CO2 production in industrial regions has global atmospheric impacts

  12. Change requires time… 25 years

  13. Change requires time… 150 years

  14. Change requires time… 1000 years

  15. Change requires time… 12,000 years

  16. Change requires time… 450,000 years

  17. Change requires time… 5,000,000 years

  18. Change requires time… 65,000,000 years

  19. Change requires time… 500,000,000 years

  20. Seminar Next Week • Each pair of people prepare a side of A4 • 3 sections: • 1) List top 4 global systems in order of importance • 2) Spider (mindmap) diagram showing how your 4 systems are linked • 3) Find 1 key peer review scientific journal article dealing with each system (so 4 papers in total)

  21. Xmind – Free Software for MAC, Windows and Linux etc http://www.xmind.net/

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