By Jens Dana
Add weather to the tabooed topics around the dinner table. A recent poll shows most Americans believe global warming is happening but disagree about how much is man-made.
A Fox News poll, taken early in November, showed that 77 percent of Americans believe global warming is happening. Clark Christensen, a BYU Physics professor, said there is no debate in this regard because scientists have shown the average global temperature has increased about 1 degree Fahrenheit over the past century.
The Fox News poll also revealed 46 percent of Americans think it is man-made, while 17 percent said the trend is the result of normal climate changes. Christensen said even though it has been proven that the average temperature is gradually increasing, it is difficult to determine exactly how much of the temperature change is man-made.
?It?s almost impossible to determine the contribution of man at present,? he said. ?We?re not smart enough.?
Christensen said the 20 percent increase in carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, during the 20th century is mostly attributed to man, but its long-term effects on the environment are still being studied. However, he said he did agree with the majority of people polled who think global warming is a significant problem.
?I?d call it a major problem at the moment,? he said. ?We?re probably a ways away from reaping any really disastrous consequences, but if we don?t turn the trend around we will reap some serious consequences ultimately.?
Matthew Bekker, BYU geography professor, said he agreed global warming is a major problem because, among other things, global warming has a connection to hurricanes. As temperatures increase, the average ocean temperature increases, which fuels stronger hurricanes, he said.
Bekker also said he disagreed with the 55 percent of polled Americans who think there isn?t anything they can do about global warming.
?It frustrates me that such a low number of people think there isn?t anything we can do about global warming,? he said. ?There are things you can do.?
Individual people need to make better choices because a billion individual choices can impact the world in a big way, Bekker said. For instance, students can walk or ride bikes to campus more often; it reduces carbon dioxide emissions and people get more exercise that way, he said.