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71 Cards in this Set

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Climate Change 2007, the Fourth Assessment Report (AR4)
the fourth in a series of reports intended to assess scientific, technical and socio-economic information concerning climate change, its potential effects, and options for adaptation and mitigation.
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
a scientific intergovernmental body[1][2] tasked with reviewing and assessing the most recent scientific, technical and socio-economic information produced worldwide relevant to the understanding of climate change
greenhouse gas
a gas in an atmosphere that absorbs and emits radiation within the thermal infrared range. This process is the fundamental cause of the greenhouse effect.[1] The primary greenhouse gases in the Earth's atmosphere are water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and ozone
Deforestation
the removal of a forest or stand of trees where the land is thereafter converted to a nonforest use
permafrost soil
soil at or below the freezing point of water (0 °C or 32 °F) for two or more years
Medieval Warm Period (MWP) or Medieval Climate Optimum
a time of warm climate in the North Atlantic region, that may also have been related to other climate events around the world during that time, including in China, New Zealand,and other countries lasting from about AD 950–1250.[
Little Ice Age (LIA)
a period of cooling that occurred after the Medieval Warm Period. While not a true ice age, the term was introduced into scientific literature by François E. Matthes in 1939.[1] It is conventionally defined as a period extending from the 16th to the 19th centuries,
urban heat island (UHI)
a metropolitan area which is significantly warmer than its surrounding rural areas
100,000-year problem
a discrepancy between the climate response and the forcing from the amount of incoming solar radiation
Adaptation
in the climate change context, adaptation implies an adjustment in natural or human systems in response to a changing/changed climate
Albedo
An index of the "reflectiveness" - a way of quantifying how much radiation is reflected back, as opposed to that absorbed. Low albedo ~0 absorb most of the radiation and high ~1 reflect it
Anoxic event
a period when the Earth's oceans are free of oxygen below the surface layer
Antarctic oscillation
a low-frequency mode of atmospheric variability of the southern hemisphere
Anthropogenic climate change
climate change with the presumption of human influence, usually warming
Anthropogenic global warming
global warming with the presumption of human influence
Anti-greenhouse effect
the cooling effect an atmosphere has on the ambient temperature of the planet
Arctic amplification
The effect of sea ice melting replace high albedo ice with low albedo sea that absorb the radiation from the sun get warmer and melt more ice
Arctic oscillation
the dominant pattern of non-seasonal sea-level pressure (SLP) variations north of 20 degrees N, and it is characterized by SLP anomalies of one sign in the Arctic and anomalies of opposite sign centered about 37-45 degrees N. See also NAO
Arctic shrinkage
the marked decrease in Arctic sea ice and the observed melting of the Greenland Ice Sheet in recent years
Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation
a hypothesised mode of natural variability occurring in the North Atlantic Ocean and which has its principle expression in the sea surface temperature (SST) field
Atmospheric sciences
an umbrella term for the study of the atmosphere, its processes, the effects other systems have on the atmosphere, and the effects of the atmosphere on these other systems
Atmospheric window
refers to those parts of the electromagnetic spectrum that are, with the Earth's atmosphere in its natural state, not absorbed at all
Attribution of recent climate change
the study of the causes of climate change
Carbon cycle
the biogeochemical cycle by which carbon is exchanged between the biosphere, geosphere, hydrosphere, and atmosphere of the Earth
Carbon diet
the act of reducing the output of CO2 to reduce impact on the environment
Carbon footprint
the total set of greenhouse gas emissions caused by an organization, event or product
Carbon offset
mechanism for individuals and businesses to neutralize rather than actually reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, by purchasing the right to claim someone else's reductions as their own
Carbon sequestration
proposals for removing CO2 from the atmosphere, or for preventing CO2 from fossil fuel combustion from reaching the atmosphere
Carbon sink
a natural or artificial reservoir that accumulates and stores some carbon-containing chemical compound for an indefinite period
Carbon tax
a tax on energy sources which emit carbon dioxide
Clathrate gun hypothesis
the hypothesis that melting methane clathrates could trigger runaway or very severe global warming
Climate
the average and variations of weather in a region over long periods of time.
Climate change
changes of climate in general, usually with no presumption of human influence. Note, however, that there is one important exception to this: the UNFCCC defines "climate change" as anthropogenic.
Climate change feedback
a natural phenomenon that may increase or decrease the warming that eventually results from a change in radiative forcing.
Climate commitment
how much future warming is "committed", even if greenhouse gas levels do not rise, due to thermal inertia, mainly of the oceans.
Climate ethics
an area of research that focuses on the ethical dimensions of climate change.
Climate legislation
legislation dealing with regulation of greenhouse gas emissions.
Climate refugee
a displaced person caused by climate change induced environmental disasters.
Climate sensitivity
how responsive the temperature of the climate system is to a change in radiative forcing.
Climate variability
climate change, with no presumption of cause.
Climatology
the study of climate, scientifically defined as weather conditions averaged over a period of time.
Desertification
the degradation of land in arid and dry sub-humid areas, resulting primarily from natural activities and influenced by climatic variations
Eco-efficiency
creating more goods and services while using fewer resources and creating less waste and pollution.
Earth's atmosphere
a layer of gases surrounding the planet Earth and retained by the Earth's gravity.
Earthshine
sunlight reflected from Earth and illuminating the dark side of the Moon.
Biofuels
a wide range of fuels which are in some way derived from biomass. The term covers solid biomass, liquid fuels and various biogases
Bioethanol
Bioethanol is an alcohol made by fermenting the sugar components of plant materials and it is made mostly from sugar and starch crops. Ethanol can be used as a fuel for vehicles in its pure form, but it is usually used as a gasoline additive to increase octane and improve vehicle emissions. Bioethanol is widely used in the USA and in Brazil
Biodiesel
made from vegetable oils, animal fats or recycled greases. Biodiesel can be used as a fuel for vehicles in its pure form, but it is usually used as a diesel additive to reduce levels of particulates, carbon monoxide, and hydrocarbons from diesel-powered vehicles. Biodiesel is produced from oils or fats using transesterification and is the most common biofuel in Europe.
Ecotax
fiscal policy that introduces taxes intended to promote ecologically sustainable activities via economic incentives.
El Niño-Southern Oscillation
a set of specific interacting parts of a single global system of coupled ocean-atmosphere climate fluctuations that come about as a consequence of oceanic and atmospheric circulation
'First-generation' or conventional biofuels
fuels made from sugar, starch, and vegetable oil.
Butanol
may be used as a fuel in an internal combustion engine. Because its longer hydrocarbon chain causes it to be fairly non-polar, it is more similar to gasoline than it is to ethanol. Butanol has been demonstrated to work in vehicles designed for use with gasoline without modification.[1] It can be produced from biomass (as "biobutanol")[2] as well as fossil fuels (as "petrobutanol"); but biobutanol and petrobutanol have the same chemical properties.
Distillation
a method of separating mixtures based on differences in their volatilities in a boiling liquid mixture. Distillation is a unit operation, or a physical separation process, and not a chemical reaction.
enzyme digestion
to release sugars from stored starches
ethanol production methods
enzyme digestion (to release sugars from stored starches), fermentation of the sugars, distillation and drying
Octane rating
does not relate to the energy content of the fuel (see heating value). It is only a measure of the fuel's tendency to burn in a controlled manner, rather than exploding in an uncontrolled manner. Where the octane number is raised by blending in ethanol, energy content per volume is reduced.
higher octane rating
allows an increase of an engine's compression ratio for increased thermal efficiency.
compression ratio
a value that represents the ratio of the volume of its combustion chamber from its largest capacity to its smallest capacity.

A high compression ratio is desirable because it allows an engine to extract more mechanical energy from a given mass of air-fuel mixture due to its higher thermal efficiency.
flexible-fuel vehicle (FFV)
an alternative fuel vehicle with an internal combustion engine designed to run on more than one fuel, usually gasoline blended with either ethanol or methanol fuel, and both fuels are stored in the same common tank.
Green diesel, also known as renewable diesel
form of diesel fuel which is derived from renewable feedstock rather than the fossil feedstock used in most diesel fuels. Green diesel feedstock can be sourced from a variety of oils including canola, algae, jatropha and salicornia in addition to tallow.
Vegetable oil
Straight unmodified edible vegetable oil is generally not used as fuel, but lower quality oil can and has been used for this purpose. Used vegetable oil is increasingly being processed into biodiesel, or (more rarely) cleaned of water and particulates and used as a fuel.
Bio ethers
are cost-effective compounds that act as octane rating enhancers. They also enhance engine performance, whilst significantly reducing engine wear and toxic exhaust emissions. Greatly reducing the amount of ground-level ozone, they contribute to the quality of the air we breathe.
Second generation biofuels
Supporters of biofuels claim that a more viable solution is to increase political and industrial support for, and rapidity of, second-generation biofuel implementation from non-food crops. These include waste biomass, the stalks of wheat, corn, wood, and special-energy-or-biomass crops (e.g. Miscanthus).
Third generation biofuels
Algae fuel, also called oilgae or third generation biofuel, is a biofuel from algae. Algae are low-input, high-yield feedstocks to produce biofuels.[35] Based on laboratory experiments, it is claimed that algae can produce up to 30 times more energy per acre than land crops such as soybeans,[36] but these yields have yet to be produced commercially.
Fourth generation biofuels
A number of companies are pursuing advanced "bio-chemical" and "thermo-chemical" processes that produce "drop in" fuels like "green gasoline," "green diesel," and "green aviation fuel." While there is no one established definition of "fourth-generation biofuels," some have referred to it as the biofuels created from processes other than first generation ethanol and biodiesel, second generation cellulosic ethanol, and third generation algae biofuel. Some fourth generation technology pathways include: pyrolysis, gasification, upgrading, solar-to-fuel, and genetic manipulation of organisms to secrete hydrocarbons.
Algaculture
a form of aquaculture involving the farming of species of algae
Aquaculture, also known as aquafarming
the farming of aquatic organisms such as fish, crustaceans, molluscs and aquatic plants
Dry mass factor
the percentage of dry biomass in relation to the fresh biomass; e.g. if the dry mass factor is 5%, one would need 20 kg of wet algae (algae in the media) to get 1 kg of dry algae cells.
Lipid content
the percentage of oil in relation to the dry biomass needed to get it, i.e. if the algae lipid content is 40%, one would need 2.5 kg of dry algae to get 1 kg of oil
bioreactor
any manufactured or engineered device or system that supports a biologically active environment
Biomass
a renewable energy source, is biological material from living, or recently living organisms,[1] such as wood, waste, (hydrogen) gas, and alcohol fuels.