Here’s something we’d better not forget: There’s enough heat stored in the ocean to heat up the Earth as if 500 100-watt light bulbs were turned on at the same time by each of the 6.7 billion people on the planet.
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Climate change: First it was cow farts, now it’s the anesthesia they give you in the hospital? (Next thing you know, it will be blamed on vampires!)
Inhaled anesthetics widely used for surgery, particularly the anesthetic desflurane, make a measurable contribution to global warming. In fact, the anesthetics used by a busy hospital contribute as much to global warming as the emissions from hundreds of cars per year. While no one’s suggesting that patients shouldn’t receive needed anesthetics because of the risk of climate change, some simple steps could help to limit their environmental impact.
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As the weather heats up, conflicts between nations may heat up as well, at a time when less ice covers the than at any time in recent geologic history. It turns out that, despite past government denials about climate change, the military has been studying this threat for a long time.
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But the suburbs are EVEN HOTTER: Here’s why – Cities like New York are sweltering this summer, but if you live in suburbia, you’re in for a hot summer too! The number of very hot days is increasing worldwide, but the rate of increase is more than double in the most sprawling suburban-style metropolitan regions compared with more compact cities, even though one would think just the opposite effect would be the case. But this holds true regardless of the urban regions’ climate zone, population size, or rate of growth.
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