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The Well-Mannered Politics Thread

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So it is your contention that while humans and animals are adaptive the earth is not?
Even within such a small window?

why would the earth "adapt" i mean what does that even mean?

but anyway - 2 degrees is an arbitrary number tbh - we've got about 1.5 degrees likely locked in already even if our emissions magically drop to 0 - but from 2-3 degrees is where stuff starts going really wrong... but we cant afford for it to get beyond 3 really at all - paris set the quotas for countries with targets that if they were all followed would keep us just under 3 but i think they are going to get together and renegotiate to help and aim for 2

but we cant keep going the way we are going because we will literally destroy the planet/make it unlivable

by the end of the century the world needs to have very near to zero carbon dioxide emissions
 
I remember taking an environmental science class. The difference in temperature changes, CO2 emissions, and greenhouse gases is incredibly stark from the time of the industrial revolution until now.
 
Evolution.
Be it micro or macro.

that may be so - but major changes in living things as complex as a human take around 1 million years for changes to properly accumulate - obviously that would be sped up by the environmental factors because humans arent built to thrive in whatever massive climatic changes occur - humans will probably survive but it wont be much fun
 
that may be so - but major changes in living things as complex as a human take around 1 million years for changes to properly accumulate - obviously that would be sped up by the environmental factors because humans arent built to thrive in whatever massive climatic changes occur - humans will probably survive but it wont be much fun
I don't think he understand how evolution works in the slightest bit (and it doesn't sound like you have a full grasp, either) if he's going to say that the Earth can evolve.
 
I live in Florida, and I can assure you the locals down here have noticed a difference.

My logic is, if we can implement healthier environmental habits then why wouldn't we? What would it hurt?
 
So, biochemistry major here. Do you understand how the process of evolution works?

Probably not, but you tell me.
As a species continues to evolve the "unnecessary " become less prominent. And the "needed to survive " becomes strengthened.

It is my understanding humans had tails.
We didn't need them so they eventually went away.
It is also my understanding humans had not always had the muscle mass we currently have, that is something gained through time.

Am I far off?
 
The earth CAN'T evolve ?
The Earth itself can't evolve. Evolution happens as things pass down their genetic code and as far as I know, Earth does not produce baby planets.

It's a little more complicated than that, but that's how I understand it.
 
Probably not, but you tell me.
As a species continues to evolve the "unnecessary " become less prominent. And the "needed to survive " becomes strengthened.

It is my understanding humans had tails.
We didn't need them so they eventually went away.
It is also my understanding humans had not always had the muscle mass we currently have, that is something gained through time.

Am I far off?
So, the process of evolution is this idea of "survival of the fittest." We naturally assume "fittest" means "fit", like they are healthy and active. To a degree, this is true. But what "fit" really means is the ability to reproduce.

There are going to be small evolutionary changes over time due to mutations or the such, but let's say I had a pack of rabbits migrate to the arctic and we have a mix of gray, brown, and black, but every once in a while there is a mutation or gene that shows that makes the rabbits white. Those white rabbits have a competitive advantage to live and pass on their gene pool to the next generation. Thus, more white rabbits will be produced and more will live and reproduce. Black rabbits which stand out in the snow will not survive because they are easily spotted and will not be able to reproduce.

Ever heard of the Galapagos finches? There was a single species of finches that migrated to the Galapagos Islands and over probably millions of years, we developed 15 different species based on their beaks. Some had beaks to break nuts open, some had long beaks to dig in the dirt for insects, and some had beaks better designed for pecking through wood for insects, etc. The birds that were best suited to eat, survive, and pass on their gene pool did so and passed on the genes for those beaks to their offspring.

In that sense, the Earth can't adapt. The atmosphere can't adapt to the greenhouse gases. The ocean can't become better adapted to retain less harmful gases. The ground itself can't adapt to harmful waste.

There's several different means by which animals, bacteria, viruses, etc. evolve. It's a pretty complex process.
 
The Earth itself can't evolve. Evolution happens as things pass down their genetic code and as far as I know, Earth does not produce baby planets.

It's a little more complicated than that, but that's how I understand it.

So the earth has not changed in multiple millions of years since the bang, but everything else has.
That is your claim ?
 
So, the process of evolution is this idea of "survival of the fittest." We naturally assume "fittest" means "fit", like they are healthy and active. To a degree, this is true. But what "fit" really means is the ability to reproduce.

There are going to be small evolutionary changes over time due to mutations or the such, but let's say I had a pack of rabbits migrate to the arctic and we have a mix of gray, brown, and black, but every once in a while there is a mutation or gene that shows that makes the rabbits white. Those white rabbits have a competitive advantage to live and pass on their gene pool to the next generation. Thus, more white rabbits will be produced and more will live and reproduce. Black rabbits which stand out in the snow will not survive because they are easily spotted and will not be able to reproduce.

Ever heard of the Galapagos finches? There was a single species of finches that migrated to the Galapagos Islands and over probably millions of years, we developed 15 different species based on their beaks. Some had beaks to break nuts open, some had long beaks to dig in the dirt for insects, and some had beaks better designed for pecking through wood for insects, etc. The birds that were best suited to eat, survive, and pass on their gene pool did so and passed on the genes for those beaks to their offspring.

In that sense, the Earth can't adapt. The atmosphere can't adapt to the greenhouse gases. The ocean can't become better adapted to retain less harmful gases. The ground itself can't adapt to harmful waste.

There's several different means by which animals, bacteria, viruses, etc. evolve. It's a pretty complex process.

First two paragraphs I am down with and if my example did not indicate that IS my understanding, ( that you didn't think I had )
 
The Earth CANNOT, but the living beings on the Earth CAN. However, the rate at which things such as temperature, CO2, fossil fuels, greenhouse gases are being emitted, evolution isn't likely to be able to catch up.

Trees, plant, bacteria in the water and in the soil. Can evolve right?
The sun, the wind, the rain can all effect the environment. Clearly. The plants the trees even the rocks are effected by their environment, no?
 
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