• Main News
  • About Us
  • Contact
Premium Times Opinion
Monday, March 8, 2021
  • Home
  • Democracy and Governance
    • Bámidélé Upfront
    • Jibrin Ibrahim
    • Okey Ndibe
  • Economy
    • Ifeanyi Uddin
  • Issues of the Day
    • Adeolu Ademoyo
    • Aribisala on Tuesday
    • Dele Agekameh
    • Pius Adesanmi
  • Politics
    • Ebeneezer Obadare
    • Femi Fani-Kayode
    • Garba Shehu
    • Hannatu Musawa
    • Zainab Suleiman Okino
  • Guest Columns
  • Faith
    • Article of Faith
    • Sunday Ogidigbo
    • Friday Sermon
    • Elevated Sight
  • Home
  • Democracy and Governance
    • Bámidélé Upfront
    • Jibrin Ibrahim
    • Okey Ndibe
  • Economy
    • Ifeanyi Uddin
  • Issues of the Day
    • Adeolu Ademoyo
    • Aribisala on Tuesday
    • Dele Agekameh
    • Pius Adesanmi
  • Politics
    • Ebeneezer Obadare
    • Femi Fani-Kayode
    • Garba Shehu
    • Hannatu Musawa
    • Zainab Suleiman Okino
  • Guest Columns
  • Faith
    • Article of Faith
    • Sunday Ogidigbo
    • Friday Sermon
    • Elevated Sight
No Result
View All Result
Premium Times Opinion
Home Opinion

A Burning Earth: Rising Temperature, Climate Change and Entropy, By Abdulrazak Ibrahim

by Premium Times
January 19, 2021
3 min read
0

…the Climate Action Tracker (CAT)…focuses on temperature. For example, CAT projects that Biden’s plan would reduce greenhouse gas emissions by about 75 gigatons of carbon dioxide by 2050 and decrease global warming by 0.1°C by the end of the century… a decrease by 0.1 may seem too insignificant, but in the natural world and maintaining atomic integrity, that is quite huge.


The inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden tomorrow will set the stage for a new era, as the United States of America prepares to rejoin the Paris Climate Agreement, whose plan pledges to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. Tied to the ambitious plan is a $1.7 trillion investment in clean energy and green jobs, of which $400 billion is set aside for research on climate-relevant subjects in universities, in partnership with the private sector.

The global impact of this policy move of the U.S. would obviously be significant. Already, the launching of “Terra Carta” (Earth Charter) by the Prince of Wales has galvanised more stakeholders from the private sector to facilitate a sustainable planet trajectory.

However, despite the promising impacts of these global shifts and investment, there is still a huge gap in communicating the effect of climate change. Given the notable danger it poses to our survival as human species, a basic understanding of the science of climate change is imperative.

…like most things in the natural world, the impact of even the slightest change in temperature is of such significance that one degree rise in temperature may be enough to end life. You do not see these changes happening in real time because they are gradual. But even tiny chemical changes lead to big changes…


Indeed, a prerequisite to recognising the impact of climate change is an understanding of temperature and its relationship with atoms, the basic unit of matter and the defining structure of all elements, of which all things (solid, liquid, gas, and plasma) are composed. This means that the food you ate this morning; the tissues in your stomach that digest it; the oxygen you’re breathing in to be used in metabolising the food; the carbon dioxide that will be released from that metabolism; the organic matter that will result from this process when you defecate; the toilet seat; the tissue paper; water; the floor you walk on; and the car you drive, are all atoms held together. Everything comprises atoms.

Temperature is a measure of the motion of atoms. This means, for all atoms of ALL the things you see and feel to be in place, they must exist within a temperature (or temperature range). In other words, millions upon millions of atoms of everything are held together by forces that are stabilised by temperature. If a substance exists in a given space and time, increasing or decreasing the temperature within which it exists changes everything about it. With temperature, you can cool or boil water, move or stop engines, burn or accumulate energy, dry or freeze oceans, rub your palms to warm up, rub a tin on a coarse surface to open it, heat and release bullets to kill. It is endless.

But like most things in the natural world, the impact of even the slightest change in temperature is of such significance that one degree rise in temperature may be enough to end life. You do not see these changes happening in real time because they are gradual. But even tiny chemical changes lead to big changes. Imagine how a tiny amount of paracetamol (say 500mg), is enough to bring the body temperature down to save the life of a 70 kilogramme human!

From such initiatives as “two degrees” (of temperature), to Building Back Better, there has been an increased recognition that the threat of climate change we all face as species is real. And there are things we can do to confront that threat. At individual level, we may adopt behavioural patterns that can change thing…


Now, imagine human and non-human activities that have been going on for hundreds of years, leading to changes in the temperature of substances and therefore the forces holding them together. These activities have converged to cause changes in global temperatures, with consequences that are already showing.

Which is why the Climate Action Tracker (CAT), an analysis group that tracks government climate action, focuses on temperature. For example, CAT projects that Biden’s plan would reduce greenhouse gas emissions by about 75 gigatons of carbon dioxide by 2050 and decrease global warming by 0.1°C by the end of the century. Again, a decrease by 0.1 may seem too insignificant, but in the natural world and maintaining atomic integrity, that is quite huge.

From such initiatives as “two degrees” (of temperature), to Building Back Better, there has been an increased recognition that the threat of climate change we all face as species is real. And there are things we can do to confront that threat. At individual level, we may adopt behavioural patterns that can change things, even as we confront the enigmatic entropy captured in the famous Gibbs free energy equation: DG = DH – TDS

Abdulrazak Ibrahim (PhD), a genetic engineer, writes from Abuja. Email: biorazi@gmail.com. Twitter: @biorazi

Share this:

  • Tweet
  • Print
  • More
  • Pocket
  • Share on Tumblr

Related

Previous Post

Trump and Wole Soyinka’s Green Card, By Reuben Abati

Next Post

FIRS and SMEs: Fallacies and Ambiguities In the Finance Act (2020), By Innocent Okwuosa

Related Posts

Zamfara Gold As Commonwealth, By Zailani Bappa
Opinion

Sheikh Gumi, Governor Matawalle and the Sands of Time, By Zailani Bappa

February 2, 2021
June 12 As Democracy Day Needs To Be Reconsidered, By Bashir Tofa
Opinion

The Need To Act Now To Stop the Ethnic Conflagration!, By Bashir Othman Tofa

February 2, 2021
Kofi Annan: In Service of the World, By Ejeviome Eloho Otobo & Oseloka H. Obaze
Opinion

Biden’s Likely Policy Orientation Toward Africa, By Ejeviome E. Otobo and Oseloka H. Obaze

February 2, 2021
Agenda for ‘Born Again’ JAMB and TETFUND, By Tunde Musibau Akanni
Opinion

Oyeweso, A Celebrated Historian, Ascends the Sixth Floor, By Tunde Akanni

February 2, 2021
Before Nigeria Burns, By Akin Fadeyi
Opinion

Is President Buhari Presiding Over the Last United Nigeria?, By Akin Fadeyi

February 2, 2021
On A Soyinka Prize In ‘Illiteracy’, By Biko Agozino
Opinion

Obasanjo: Only Those Who Did Not Do Well Went Into the Military, By Biko Agozino

February 1, 2021
Next Post
FIRS and SMEs: Fallacies and Ambiguities In the Finance Act (2020), By Innocent Okwuosa

FIRS and SMEs: Fallacies and Ambiguities In the Finance Act (2020), By Innocent Okwuosa

Domestic Violence – Who Could Be Victim?, By Chinna Okoroafor

The Martyr Complex: A Psychological Phenomenon, By Chinna Okoroafor

Editorial

  • EDITORIAL: The Urgency of Tackling Nigeria’s Second Wave of COVID-19

    EDITORIAL: The Urgency of Tackling Nigeria’s Second Wave of COVID-19

  • EDITORIAL: Unearthing the Cogent Lessons In the NESG-CBN Economic Policy Imbroglio

    EDITORIAL: Unearthing the Cogent Lessons In the NESG-CBN Economic Policy Imbroglio

  • EDITORIAL: COVID-19: Calling On Nigeria’s Billionaires and Religious Leaders To Step Up

    EDITORIAL: COVID-19: Calling On Nigeria’s Billionaires and Religious Leaders To Step Up

  • EDITORIAL: Bichi Must Go; Buhari Must Halt Slide Into Despotism

    EDITORIAL: Bichi Must Go; Buhari Must Halt Slide Into Despotism

  • EDITORIAL: The Flaws In Governor Emefiele’s Five-Year Plan For Central Bank of Nigeria

    EDITORIAL: The Flaws In Governor Emefiele’s Five-Year Plan For Central Bank of Nigeria

Subscribe to our Opinion articles via email

Enter your email address to get notifications of new opinion articles as they are published.

Join 526,525 other subscribers

Most Popular

  • South Africa: What Is Malema’s Game?, By Rafiq Raji
    South Africa: What Is Malema’s Game?, By Rafiq Raji
  • Nnamdi Kanu and Buhari’s Purported Death: The Facts and Fiction (2), By Nonso Robert Attoh
    Nnamdi Kanu and Buhari’s Purported Death: The Facts and Fiction (2), By Nonso Robert Attoh
  • Islam and the Conditions For Marrying More Than One Wife, By Murtadha Gusau
    Islam and the Conditions For Marrying More Than One Wife, By Murtadha Gusau
  • The Qualities of a Good Leader In Islam, By Murtadha Gusau
    The Qualities of a Good Leader In Islam, By Murtadha Gusau
  • Islam Doesn't Allow A Husband To Beat Or Slap His Wife, By Murtadha Gusau
    Islam Doesn't Allow A Husband To Beat Or Slap His Wife, By Murtadha Gusau
  • What is the Nigerian Dream?, By Taiwo Odukoya
    What is the Nigerian Dream?, By Taiwo Odukoya
  • Restructuring In Nigeria: Why? How? When?, By Attahiru M. Jega
    Restructuring In Nigeria: Why? How? When?, By Attahiru M. Jega

Like us on Facebook

Like us on Facebook

Podcasts

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

  • Main News
  • About Us
  • Contact

© 2021 JNews - Premium WordPress news & magazine theme by Jegtheme.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Democracy and Governance
    • Bámidélé Upfront
    • Jibrin Ibrahim
    • Okey Ndibe
  • Economy
    • Ifeanyi Uddin
  • Issues of the Day
    • Adeolu Ademoyo
    • Aribisala on Tuesday
    • Dele Agekameh
    • Pius Adesanmi
  • Politics
    • Ebeneezer Obadare
    • Femi Fani-Kayode
    • Garba Shehu
    • Hannatu Musawa
    • Zainab Suleiman Okino
  • Guest Columns
  • Faith
    • Article of Faith
    • Sunday Ogidigbo
    • Friday Sermon
    • Elevated Sight

© 2021 JNews - Premium WordPress news & magazine theme by Jegtheme.

This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.