OPPapers.com

A Convenient Look At The Truth

CORTEZ, David
English 90
Mr. Disbrow
April 09, 2008
A Convenient Look at the Truth

“You look at that river gently flowing by. You notice the leaves rustling with the wind. You hear the birds; you hear the tree frogs. In the distance you hear a cow. You feel the grass. The mud gives a little bit on the river bank. It’s quiet; it’s peaceful. And all of a sudden, it’s a gear shift inside you. And it’s like taking a deep breath and going... 'Oh yeah, I forgot about this'. ”  

        — Al Gore in the opening monologue of An Inconvenient Truth

An Inconvenient Truth focuses on Al Gore and his travels, to support his efforts on educating the public about the severity of the climate crisis. It weaves in events that changed his world view, including his college education, his sister’s death, and his son’s near-fatal car accident. For comic effect, Gore even intersperses cartoons to explain how global warming works. In the slide show Gore reviews the scientific opinion on climate change, discusses the politics and economics of global warming and describes the consequences he believes will be produced if CO² emissions are not significantly reduced in the future. The statements provided in Al Gore’s documentary An Inconvenient Truth, provide a credible presentation on the threat of global warming.
Many ask what scientific methods does Gore use in his presentation.   Gore presents specific data that supports his presentation including: the Keeling Curve, which measures CO² emissions, photographic proof of receding glaciers, temperatures recordings and a survey dated in 2004 of 928 peer reviewed articles. Although it is hard to determine something as simple as the weather, how can we have any confidence in the projections based for the climate a hundred years from now? The answer is simple. Climate and weather are different. Weather refers to temperature, precipitation, and storms on a given day in a particular place. Climate reflects a long term average over a...