The American Museum of Natural History (New York City, NY) is opening it's doors to the new exhibit entitled "Climate Change: The Threat to Life and a New Energy Future." The exhibition opens on October 18, 2008 and will remain open until August 16, 2009. After which, the exhibition will begin an international tour.
The exhibition is, as the curator, Edmond Mathez, stated, an effort to separate fact from fear and "demystify" climate change. With this examination of the most pressing scientific issues of our time, the exhibition's goal is to show how climate change is spurred by human activities which lead to the warming of the Earth. These issues could lead to drought, heavy storms, rising sea levels, and other events that may affect the natural world and the health of society.
29 billion tons of carbon dioxide is emitted by human activity per year from burning fossil fuels. - Photograph taken by Kenn W. Kiser
Hundreds of scientists and policymakers, who comprise a United Nations climate panel, have found with ninety percent certainty that human activities cause climate change, but even with proof some remain skeptical.
(Photo: A diorama of a large polar bear reduced to foraging through a garbage dump is a graphic illustration of how polar bears will be forced to invade human-populated areas in response to the dwindling of their habitat. Courtesy American Museum of Natural History.)
Mathez had stated that a few years ago he was frustrated with the fact that public awareness did not match the alarm within the scientific community, so he proposed the exhibition. "The news media was presenting climate change as a controversial issue, which is complete nonsense, it's not (controversial)," Mathez told Reuters at a preview of the exhibition.
"I'm sure there are some people that will condemn it out of hand," he said of the exhibition. "What's important to me as a scientist is my colleagues will walk through here and say we did it correctly, that we present the issue objectively."
Although the exhibition is overall showing depressing facts, it ends with a hopeful note toward the future world. Visitors may explore the various alternative energy sources, including geothermal, solar, nuclear, wind, and hydropower as well as carbon storage.
This exhibit will open visitors eyes to the fact that Earth needs to change environmentally for the better, not for the worst, and WE are the only animals on this planet that have the ability to slow it down. Unfortunately, we have already gone far enough to not being able to avoid what is coming to us.
Read more about this fascinating exhibition:
Climate Change: The Threat To Life & A New Energy Future
American Museum of Natural History
http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/climatechange/?src=h_h
Yahoo News:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20081014/sc_nm/us_usa_museum
Guardian
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/apr/05/climatechange.activists
References:
1. http://blogs.usatoday.com/weather/2008/10/climate-change.html?loc=interstitialskip
2. http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/apr/05/climatechange.activists
3. http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/climatechange/images/climatechange_300.jpg
4. http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20081014/sc_nm/us_usa_museum
5. http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/climatechange/?src=h_h
6. http://blogs.usatoday.com/./photos/uncategorized/2008/10/15/amnhexhibitxlarge.jpg
