Unfortunately the easiest version of this was Kauffman which involved a spreadsheet. However, as a reasonable scientist, he actually published a corrigendum and fixed the upside-down usage. So to show this you will have to delve into Matlab code for Mann et al 2008. Nevertheless, even without the code, it is easy to show some graphs of what the proxy looks like, and how IPCC used them upside-down.
You could describe what lake varves are, why they are showing cooling in modern times(contamination from farming), and how using them upside-down is wrong.
You could even finish with a tidbit that the IPCC used this proxy from Finland to describe temperatures in the Southern Hemisphere.
- explain the effects of Climate Change on animals, particularly their evolution. As the climate changes much more rapidly that during previous evolutionary episodes, many animals (and plants) will have little time to adapt (= evolve) naturally and thus become extinct.
The polar bear for example evolved from a normal bear. That evolutionary process took thousands of years during which the normal bear with a land-based diet became a bear with a white fur coat (great for hunting in the snow/ice) which feeds on seals (which give the polar bear the much needed fat to keep warm).
Were the Arctic region warming at the same rate at which the normal bear previously evolved into a polar bear, than it is very well possible that today's polar bears would evolve 'back' into a normal bear. However, one of the main risks of Climate Change is that the warming happens at a much faster rate: the planet is warming in 100 years the same amount of degrees as it previously warmed during a 1,000 years. It is this rate of warming which is particularly worrying (and misunderstood by many) as many living things on earth simply will not have sufficient time to naturally evolve and adapt to a changing environment (of which climate forms a key part).
More info in the links below.
Just discuss the basic science. That carbon dioxide traps heat
http://science.widener.edu/svb/ftir/ir_c...
And that according the law of conservation of energy, this means that temperatures will increase.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laws_of_the...
Temperatures. It seems that we are having problems defining how much of the 0.7C global average temperature increase in 133 years of instrumental measuring is actually from human emissions from industrialization.
http://www.drroyspencer.com/latest-globa...
Give them something to think about. Positive or negative feedback mechanisms that cause the Planet to warm or ones that keep the Planet from warming.
In one of my modules we have to do presentations based on topics, Mines Climate Change, we get to decide the question/area your going to present on but I don't have any idea on what would be a good idea. It's only a short presentation around 10 mins
Anybody have any suggestions, Interesting things to look at in relation to Climate Change?
