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Washington Post (December 28)

2022/ 12/ 29 by jd in Global News

ChatGPT, which is “is conversant in a way previous chatbots haven’t been,” has captured the imagination and stoked new fears. “Humans today are still in control…. Ultimately, unleashing the full potential of the technology that appears tantalizingly close to our grasp comes down to this: What do we as a species hope to gain from artificial intelligence, and — perhaps more important — what are we willing to give up?”

 

New York Times (October 1)

2021/ 10/ 02 by jd in Global News

“As species disappear and the complex relationships between living things and systems become frayed and broken, the growing damage to the world’s biodiversity presents dire risks to human societies.” We are living through “one of the most explosive extinction episodes in history” with plant and animal extinction occurring “an estimated 1,000 times faster than natural rates.” Our course is unsustainable. “It is much less costly to protect and conserve nature than it is to restore it or suffer the consequences of its destruction.”

 

New York Times (April 20, 2013)

2013/ 04/ 22 by jd in Global News

“The central Arctic Ocean has been covered in ice for eons, but under the influence of global warming, nearly half of it is now open water for part of the year.” Humans must now step up with a treaty to protect this fragile ecosystem, which includes some of Earth’s last untouched fishing stocks. “No matter how severe, how austere, the Arctic may seem in our imaginations, it is almost unbelievably fragile, as are many of the species newly exposed under what is now open water. It is time, now, to intercede and protect this environmental oasis.”

 

The Economist (June 16)

2012/ 06/ 18 by jd in Global News

Glaciers are retreating and permafrost is thawing in the Arctic, where June snow cover is just 80% of what it was in the 1960s. As the habitat changes, some species will win and others will lose. “Perhaps not since the 19th-century clearance of America’s forests has the world seen such a spectacular environmental change. It is a stunning illustration of global warming, the cause of the melt. It also contains grave warnings of its dangers. The world would be mad to ignore them.”Glaciers are retreating and permafrost is thawing in the Arctic, where June snow cover is just 80% of what it was in the 1960s. As the habitat changes, some species will win and others will lose. “Perhaps not since the 19th-century clearance of America’s forests has the world seen such a spectacular environmental change. It is a stunning illustration of global warming, the cause of the melt. It also contains grave warnings of its dangers. The world would be mad to ignore them.”

 

BBC (August 20)

2011/ 08/ 23 by jd in Global News

Global warming is directly impacting many species. “Animals and plants are shifting their natural home ranges towards the cooler poles three times faster than scientists previously thought.” The study of 2,000 species found that “on average organisms are shifting their home ranges at a rate of 17km per decade away from the equator.” In addition, it appears the quest for suitable temperatures is driving some species upward to higher elevations.

 

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