Global Warming

Introduction

Our earth’s temperature becomes warmer and warmer. According to some studies, the earth’s temperature has risen unusually fast in the past century.

What Is Global Warming

According to The National Aeronautics and Space Administration in the U.S.A (NASA), global warming is the long-term heating of Earth’s climate system since the pre-industrial (1880-1900) period due to human activities, primarily the burning of fossil fuels that pump carbon dioxide (CO2), methane and other greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.

As we know, Carbon dioxide (CO2) is a minor but very important component of the atmosphere, carbon dioxide is released through natural processes and through human activities such as burning fossil fuels. Humans have increased CO2 level in the atmosphere by 47% since the Industrial Revolution began. This is the most important long-lived “forcing” of global warming.

According to the data of NASA, average global temperature has increased by about 1 degree Celsius over the past 100 years. On average, our Earth has become warmer.and some studies predict the temperature of the atmosphere will continue to rise.

This picture illustrates the change in global surface temperature relative to 1951-1980 average temperatures , while the temperature in 2016 has reached the highest.

This video shows the temperature changes from 1880 to 2019. The global surface temperature in 2019 was the second warmest and 0.98 degrees Celsius warmer than the baseline (1951-1980 average temperatures).

The average temperature was continued the earth’s long-term warming trend: the past five years have been the warmest of the last 140 years.

Global warming is significantly harmful. Global warming will lead to the warming of the ocean and partially melt glaciers and ice sheets, increasing sea level. Ocean water also will expand if it warms, contributing further to sea level rise. Rising sea level could flood coastal areas around the world. Weather patterns could change, making hurricanes more frequent. Severe droughts could become more common in warm areas. And species unable to adapt to the changing conditions would face extinction. As global warming is so dangerous! We must pay attention to it.

The Causes Of Global Warming

What are the causes of global warming? The most important cause is human activities. On Earth, human activities are changing the natural environment. Over the last 150 years, the burning of fossil fuels like coal and oil has increased the concentration of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2). Because the coal or oil burning process combines carbon with oxygen in the air to make CO2. Generally, human activities has increased concentrations of greenhouse gases.

The industrial activities that our modern civilization depends on have raised carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere in the last century. Scientists show that there’s more than 95 percent probability that human-produced greenhouse gases have caused much of the observed increase in Earth’s temperatures over the past 50 years.

In addition to human activities, there are also Natural processes can lead to global warming.

1) Internal variability (e.g., cyclical ocean patterns like El Niño, La Niña and the Pacific Decadal Oscillation) ;

2) External forcings (e.g., volcanic activity, changes in the Sun’s energy output, variations in Earth’s orbit).

Personal Strategies To Reduce Global Warming

Global warming is so serious! Governments and organizations advocate cutting greenhouse gases emissions to reduce the impact of global warming. Every one can help!

There are some personal strategies to reduce global warming. 

1. Power your home with renewable energy. 
2. Invest in energy-efficient appliances. 
3. Drive a fuel-efficient vehicle.
4. Pull the plug(s) after use.
5. Actually eat the food you buy—and consume less meat.
6. Speak up!

Of course, speaking up and taking actions are the most important. These simple changes may help keep the earth cooler in the future.

Conclusion

Since our earth speed up rising the temperature in recent hundred yars, particularly in recent 5 years. And our planet will become warmer and warmer in the future. Global warming is such a serious problem which is mainly due to human activities. We must take some steps to reduce global warming.

References

IPCC Fifth Assessment Report, 2014

NASA,  “Verview: Weather, Global Warming and Climate Change”, viewed 24/11/2020, <https://climate.nasa.gov/resources/global-warming-vs-climate-change/&gt;.

NASA,  “Video: Global warming from 1880 to 2019”, viewed 24/11/2020, <https://climate.nasa.gov/climate_resources/139/video-global-warming-from-1880-to-2019/&gt;.

NASA, “The Causes of Climate Change”, viewed 24/11/2020, <https://climate.nasa.gov/causes/&gt;.

NRDC,  “How You Can Stop Global Warming”, viewed 24/11/2020, <https://www.nrdc.org/stories/how-you-can-stop-global-warming&gt;.

Petrol Price Rising Recently Above $1.67 Per Litre

Price rising

Oil price has already risen a lot recently, reaching $1.67 per litre and will keep rising in the future while the highest national average over the past six months was 150.0 cents a litre. There are many different reasons, such as the global oil prices rising sharply.

Shell Coles Express raised its unleaded prices by a whopping 30 cents overnight on May 8.

New South Wales and Queensland motorists found that leaving fuel at 167.9 cents a litre – 30 cents more than then the price of unleaded fuel May 8.

Meanwhile, prices in Adelaide hit 165 cents that week, in Melbourne the average price was 158.3 cents, while Sydney – which is in the cheaper part of its price cycle – had an average price of 139.2 cents a litre for unleaded on May 9.

Oil price in Perth and Hobart were going more than 150 cents a litre, while Darwin – which in the past four months has become the nation’s cheapest capital city for petrol – was at 144.9 cents a litre for unleaded.

General manager of price monitoring service fuelTRAC, Geoff Trotter said, ‘It’s a new era all right. We’ve never seen prices go so high so quickly and with record margins.’

NRMA spokesman Peter Khoury said it was a common practice in the fuel industry for prices to rise at the end of a fuel cycle. And the oil price is trending upwards. Fuel cycles are different depending on which part of the country you are in.

According to the NRMA, it was 142.0 cents a litre May 3 in Melbourne. It’s at 156.9 cents a litre in Melbourne on May 9. The average regular unleaded price in Sydney for the current cycle should range between 138 cents per litre and 156 cents per litre.

Petrol prices hit $1.445 a litre in the week leading up to the Easter holidays, rising more than 3.5 cents in just a seven-day period to a 22-week high.

However, Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane saw pump prices lift by 7 cents to 21 cents a litre in the week before the Easter holidays, according to Commsec analysis.

According to the Australian Institute of Petroleum (AIP), a couple of months ago, unleaded fuel in the capital cities was an average $1.20 a litre.

In a statement, Viva Energy said: “Retail fuel prices in Australia are reflective of market forces that have recently included a sharp increase in oil prices.”

As the rapid rising in oil price, more and more people have different options for transportation. At the same time, Electric cars are very popular throughout the world. In some countries, the government regarded Electric cars as big issue, even setting international organisations and funds for development.

 

Reason and Influence

 US-Iran: supplies decline

Washington also said it would place sanctions on any country that continues to buy Iranian oil after May 2.

U.S. decided to send warships to the Middle East is an ominous sign of a potential escalation in conflict with Iran. U.S. national security adviser John Bolton said that the U.S. was sending a carrier strike group and a bomber task force to the Middle East to send a message to Iran that any attack on U.S. interests would be met with “unrelenting force.”

U.S. officials had expressed confidence that those who have been operating under waivers to buy Iranian oil will be able to find alternative supplies when those waivers expire soon.

U.S. is aiming to cut Iranian oil exports to zero. According to Bank of America Merrill Lynch, after sanctions waivers expired, Iran’s exports and volumes would fall below 500k barrels per day in 2019 and could even reach zero.

At the end of the first week in May, U.S. oil benchmark lost nearly 3 percent.

 OPEC: supplies decline

OPEC-Russian production cuts and supply disruptions in Libya, Sudan and Venezuela, have seen crude oil prices lift for six consecutive weeks to be up 40 percent.

 China-US: demand decline in Asia

Oil prices fell sharply on May 7 as the China-US trade war continues, sparking fears that global growth will be disappointing.

What should we do

 The ACCC suggests that if we understood petrol price cycles better we could pinpoint the best times to buy. These cycles can vary hugely between capital cities and regional areas.

In Sydney, there was 26 days in its recent price cycle, which had lately been shrinking in duration.

Brisbane’s regular cycle was 30 days (which had also recently shortened) while Melbourne was way (quite suddenly) up at 43 days.

Max, one of the customers, said, “It is so helpful for customers to use the Apps to find the best place when we want to get oil. Anyway, we’d better buy enough oil before we start.”

There are several apps that we can use to find an appropriate spot. For example, Motor Mouth is a price monitoring app that receives data from both drivers and the industry. And people can also use a free app Petrol Spy Australia, where users report what petrol stations are charging.

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Reference:

1. https://thenewdaily.com.au/money/your-budget/2019/05/09/petrol-prices-high-coles-express/
2. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7008179/Fill-Petrol-prices-surge-30-cents-overnight-worse.html
3. The Courier Mail
4. https://thenewdaily.com.au/money/your-budget/2019/05/09/petrol-prices-high-coles-express/
5. https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-News/World-News/Oil-Falls-After-Third-Consecutive-Crude-Build.html

Ghost Tunnels of Central Station

Have you ever heard the Central station’s mysterious underground world?

Photo by Fancycrave.com on Pexels.com

Most of commuters can go through platform 1-25. But sitting between underground platforms and the Central station concourse, there are the mysterious disused platforms 26 and 27. The platforms were built in the 1970s on the site of the old Devonshire Street Cemetery.

The platforms are never used and not accessible to the general public, holding a rich history and some creepy tales.

Photo by Colin Schmitt on Pexels.com

In the unbelievable platforms, there are abandoned bathrooms and offices of an era past and, it is said that someone can hear the ghostly sounds of children playing.

“This is the area that is supposed to be haunted.” Tony Eid, director of operations with Sydney Trains said. “On one occasion I was down here with a radio crew and we all heard children playing.”

In 1916, a battle took place at this station, a bullet hole in the marble near platform remaining.

Gunfire took place between the rebelling soldiers and military police. Soldiers rebelling against camp conditions had raided hotels in Liverpool and travelled to the city by train. After that they destroyed the facilities at Central. Finally, one of the rebelling soldiers was killed and several others were injured.

Photo by Kaique Rocha on Pexels.com

8 Amazing Noodles Around Ultimo

1. Osan Ramen: 401 Sussex St, Haymarket, Sydney

It’s one of the hottest spots in Chinatown. It is famous for its miso-base broth. All ramen are made in house that people can watch it. There are 3 types of soup to choose from- fish soup, pork broth, chicken soup.Customers can have a meal at $10.

2. Gumshara: Eating World Food Court, 25-29 Dixon St, Haymarket, Sydney

The boss of Gumshara is Mori Higashida, a Japanese expat who made authentic ramen noodles in Sydney. Most folks stopped by for the signature dish, tonkotsu ramen. The stock for the dish is made by simmering 120 kilograms of pork bones. The soup is made in a very traditional way and very special. The soup of ramen is very special. People can ask to be made of light soup and thick soup.

3. Meng Chongqing Gourmet: 9/13 Hay St, Haymarket, Sydney

The boss is a very famous Chinese prime time television host. It is Chinese flavour noodles.  A lot of customers come for his reputation.

4. The Fifth District of Pipe Mill: shop 1/33 Ultimo Rd, Haymarket, Sydney

Very Chinese flavour noodles. If you are interested in Sichuan food, it is a really good choice. And there is some very special food, like ’Naohua’ in this store! If you are interested in it, you can have a try.

 

5. Mikirin: Upper Ground, World Square, shop 12/123 Liverpool St, Sydney

It is a really popular noodle bar in World Square. The boss are two sisters graduating from Le cordon bleu and coming from Shanghai, China. They develops Shanghai noodles. The most typical noodle is yellow croaker fish fillets wonton noodle soup – crispy fillets with delicious broth. There are so many nice food I loved in this spot.

6. Hakata-Maru Ramen: Level 3, Market City, 9-13 Hay Street, Sydney

Hakata-maru ramen offers ramen in three flavors: white (tetrose), red (miso) and black (black garlic oil), usually no more than $10 a bowl. The soup base making in hours, has the aroma of milk and pork meat. It is so delicious, serving with barbecued pork, fine flour and soft boiled eggs, dousing with garlic oil and a handful of sesame seeds.

 

7. Ippudo: Lower Ground; Central at Central Park, 28 Broadway, Chippendale

Founded by internationally renowned Shigemi Kawahara, Ippudo has topped the list of most popular ramen shops over the years. His noodles include vegetarian ramen with vegetable broth, and there are 11 ramen options. But what’s the most distinctive is Akamaru/Shiromaru Special with red/white meatball: a rich and mild broth of pork bones combined with a traditional bodo style of extra-fine noodles. Ramen tastes so nice serving with a special pork belly, half-cooked eggs, dried bamboo shoots, scallions and skirt vegetables.

8. Yasaka Ramen: 126 Liverpool Street, Sydney

Yasaka, whose motto is “no ramen, no life”, offers seven different types of ramen, such as grilled Char siu, spicy scallions, kakuni and so on, There are three different flavours for customers to choose from: soya sauce, salt and miso. The noodles are made fresh every day.

 

Jiuqu Hongmei -Longjing Black Tea From West Lake, Hangzhou

Jiuqu Hongmei comes from West Lake district in Hangzhou, China. Longjing is one of the best green tea in China, while the black tea is made from the same bushes.

The dry leaves of Jiuqu Hongmei are tightly twisted into thin, brittle curls, matte black, with a hint of the distinctive citric smell of the plum. The acidity and sweetness are balanced with a unique but slight astringency. The liquor carries forth that aroma with the added depth of a black tea.

In 1915, Jiuqu Hongmei was awarded prize in the San Francisco Panama-Pacific International Exposition.

 

 

 

 

It is a romantic name. Jiuqu Hongmei means Plum from the Nine Bends.

It is said that some tea producers from the province of Fujian, in particular from the Wuyi area, took refuge in the new kingdom and in its new ideology, to have moved to a rural area 200 km south of Hangzhou, the then “Heavenly Capital”. They made the tea with their own tea skills. They named it after the place that they came from- Jiu Qu River in Wuyi.

Hot Polar Bear at A Utah Zoo

High temperatures spread in Salt Lake City, USA, ranging from 11 to 25 ^oC during the first week of May.

 

Utah’s Hogle Zoo in Salt Lake City posted a clip of their polar bear on May 6. The bear, Nora, took a break from eating fish and entertaining visitors to roll around in a pile of ice cubes in the video posted to social media. She was enjoying the ice in the adorable video. The zoo said Nora was recovering from surgery to repair a broken bone.

 

Nora was staying in a limited space during playtime instead of her usual habitat to keep herself re-injuring.

 

The zoo said Polar bears sometimes overheated to stay so warm, and had to cool off in the cold Arctic waters.

Zoo website:    https://www.hoglezoo.org/

A Revolutionary War Hero Who Served Alongside Washington May Have Been Intersex

A recent research shows that Casimir Pulaski, who is one of the most famous generals in American Revolutionary War, have been identified to be intersex through DNA tests.

Pulaski was known as the “Father of the American Cavalry”, but new evidence suggests that the general may not have been male even he was regarded as a male before.

Pulaski was born into nobility in Warsaw in 1745, when the Poland was the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. There, he began his early military career before Benjamin Franklin ultimately recommended that he join the American Revolution. Pulaski reached Massachusetts in July 1777, and made a name for himself only a few months later at the Battle of Brandywine, where he was credited with leading a charge that helped save George Washington’s life and the Continental Army from a disastrous defeat.

Washington made Pulaski a general, and the young commander set to work remaking the Colonial cavalry. He died after being wounded at the Siege of Savannah, Georgia in 1779.

He stood 5-foot-1 to 5-foot-4, and appears in portraits with dark hair, a strong brow and a slender mustache.

Pulaski’s bones had been kept in a metal container underneath a monument in Savannah, Georgia.

When the monument was temporarily removed about two decades ago, researchers were able to exhume and study his skeleton.

The skeleton belonging to Pulaski’s appeared to be that of a woman in DNA tests. The scientists concluded that he may have been intersex.

Charles Merbs, who was a forensic anthropologist at Arizona State University said that he examined the bones with forensic scientist Dr Karen Burns from the University of Georgia.

“The skeleton is about as female as can be,” he said.

Recently, three other researchers proved that the skeleton’s DNA was “identical” to that of Pulaski’s descendant.

The UN says that up to 1.7% of the world’s population are born with intersex traits – meaning they are born with both male and female sex characteristics.

Dr Merbs says it is unlikely that Pulaski, who was raised male, ever believed he was female or intersex.

“Back in those days, they just didn’t know,” he said.

Interview of Harmony Day

 

Intro: I’m Peggy from Radio GAGA at Sydney TAFE Radio. It’s Harmony week this week at TAFE. There is a celebration for this festival. I interviewed Deb Smith at TAFE student association.

 

1. Do you know what Harmony Week is?
2. What do people do on Harmony Day?
3. Why?
4. What do you think about Harmony Week?
5. What do you usually do on Harmony Week?

 

Outro: Harmony Day is an important celebration for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. Orange is the color representing Harmony Day. People got together with friends and families and through schools and so on to celebrate it.

 

Reflection:

Deb Smith, who is the staff work for TAFE student association, organise the celebration of Harmony Day every year. She introduced the Harmony Day and her job. She was very pleased to have this interview. She showed me some documents and pictures about it. I learned a lot about the Harmony Day and the importance of it. She cooperated with me very well. During the interview, Deb Smith showed her professional and generous.

I think the preparation before the interview are very important. So it is very important to make a good preparation.

 

Sydney Free Trees Giveaway- Reduce Carbon Pollution

Our planet’s gain is everyone’s gain.
Nature not only provides us with the things we need to live – from the air we breathe to the water we drink – but also makes our lives better. However, its growing loss puts this under threat.
Offsetting the amount which we are not able to avoid empowers us to take full responsibility for our carbon pollution, which is our contribution to climate change. In this context, we can plant trees.

The City of Sydney will give away 1,000 trees to our residents* on Saturday 30 March. And people can enjoy a sausage sizzle and chat to City staff about tips and advice on how to plant trees and general tree maintenance.

Where
Sydney Park, Alexandria
Website: https://www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/live/trees/free-tree-giveaway

When
Saturday 30 March 2019 from 10am to 2pm, or until all the trees are gone.

What
Free trees

Who is eligible?
Trees are only available to eligible City of Sydney residents in: Alexandria, Annandale*, Barangaroo, Beaconsfield, Camperdown*, Centennial Park, Chippendale, Darlinghurst*, Darlington, Dawes Point, Elizabeth Bay, Erskineville, Eveleigh, Forest Lodge, Glebe, Haymarket, Millers Point, Moore Park, Newtown*, Paddington, Potts Point*, Pyrmont, Redfern, Rosebery*, Rushcutters Bay, St Peters, Surry Hills*, Sydney, The Rocks, Ultimo, Waterloo, Woolloomooloo and Zetland.
*Some streets are located in neighbouring council areas.

Why
Encourage residents to help government reach target of increasing the city’s tree canopy to 50 per cent by 2030.

How to get?
Please bring identification on the day that clearly shows current residential address. Each eligible household is entitled to up to 2 free trees, before they run out.

Theresa’s Deal Failed, Brexit Delayed

Theresa May’s deal failed twice to get through The British Parliament. MPs are expected to have the third chance to approve it. If they do, Brexit will happen with a deal on 22 May. If they don’t, Parliament should consider alternative options to tell the EU what it wants to do next by the 12 April. If the UK then wants a longer delay, it would need to take part in the European elections in May.

Brexit (short of ‘British exit’) is the withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU). It was due to happen on 29 March. The deal was agreed by the UK and the EU in November 2018, needs approving by British MPs. However, they have voted against it twice so far. On 15 January they rejected the deal by 432 votes to 202, which was considered as the largest defeat for a sitting government in history. Then on 12 March, after Theresa May had gone back to the EU to secure further legal assurances, they rejected it again. One of the most controversial part of this deal is how to avoid the return of a physical border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland when it becomes the frontier between the UK and the EU.

A reader Russell said’ It’s their right for The British to make efforts to do what they want to do.’

Recently eleven senior cabinet members agreed that Theresa may should resign, and some candidates were considered to replace her. But the candidates denied later. They still spoke highly of Theresa.

More than one million people have demonstrated in central London to demand a second referendum on the Brexit deal. And millions of people signed up to keep Britain in the EU.

According to a survey released on March 25 by the CBI and accounting firm PWC. The 84 major financial firms surveyed saw their business decline at the fastest rate since September 2012. And the outlook for Britain’s financial sector is the worst since the 2008 financial crisis.

A critic Sam said:’ Brexit will not be solved even if the prime minister steps down. People call for a reversal of the referendum, which could lead to social unrest if they do. Brexit has not been yet in effect, and the impact is primarily preparatory and psychological. It will bring endless debate in Parliament, with many Brexit-related issues such as immigration and free trade agreements causing widespread controversy.’

Reflection:

This is an important international news as Brexit will bring huge possible future impact. It has also caused a huge impact upon the world and a huge number of people have been involved in it. The result of this deal caused great conflicts among Teresa, the government and people. I combine the consequences of the Brexit deal, the history of the deal, process, government’s attitude, people’s attitudes and outlook of British in the article. I interviewed the two people in the story because their opinions would add valuable weight to the article.