All categories - 8 August 2007

My own experiences have led me to believe that there is a consciousness that exists beyond this physical life. If you've had an "out of body" or "near death" experience and are willing to share, please do so here.

2007-08-08 09:36:09 · 2 answers · asked by merriman 3 in Religion & Spirituality

Unlike most apparently intractable problems, which have a tendency to go away when examined closely and analytically, the climate change predicament just seems to get bigger and scarier the more we learn about it.

Now we discover that not only are the oceans and the atmosphere conspiring against us, bringing baking temperatures, more powerful storms, floods and ever-climbing sea levels, but the crust beneath our feet seems likely to join in too.

Looking back to other periods in our planet's history when the climate was swinging about wildly, most notably during the last ice age, it appears that far more than the weather was affected. The solid earth also became restless, with an increase in volcanic activity, earthquakes, giant submarine landslides and tsunamis. At the rate climate change is accelerating, there is every prospect that we will see a similar response from the planet, heralding not just a warmer future but also a fiery one.

Several times in the past couple of million years the ice left its polar fastnesses
and headed towards the equator, covering much of the world's continents in ice sheets over a kilometre thick, and sucking water from the oceans in order to do so. As a consequence, at times when the ice was most dominant, global sea levels were as much as 130m lower than they are today; sufficient to expose land bridges between the UK and the continent and Alaska and Russia.

Each time the ice retreated, sea levels shot up again, sometimes at rates as high as several metres a century. In the mid 1990s, as part of a study funded by the European Union, we discovered that in the Mediterranean region there was a close correlation between how quickly sea levels went up and down during the last ice age and the level of explosive activity at volcanoes in Italy and Greece.

The link was most obvious following the retreat of the glaciers around 18,000 years ago, after which sea levels jumped back up to where they are today, triggering a 300% increase in explosive volcanic activity in the Mediterranean in doing so. Further evidence for a flurry of volcanic action at this time comes from cores extracted from deep within the Greenland ice sheet, which yield increased numbers of volcanic dust and sulphate layers from eruptions across the northern hemisphere, if not the entire planet.

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But how can rising sea levels cause volcanoes to erupt? The answer lies in the enormous mass of the water pouring into the ocean basins from the retreating ice sheets. The addition of over a hundred metres depth of water to the continental margins and marine island chains, where over 60% of the world's active volcanoes reside, seems to be sufficient to load and bend the underlying crust.

This in turn squeezes out any magma that happens to be hanging around waiting for an excuse to erupt. It may well be that a much smaller rise can trigger an eruption if a volcano is critically poised and ready to blow.

Eruptions of Pavlof volcano in Alaska, for example, tend to occur during the winter months when, for meteorological reasons, the regional sea level is barely 30cm (12in) higher than during the summer. If other volcanic systems are similarly sensitive then we could be faced with an escalating burst of volcanic activity as anthropogenic climate change drives sea levels ever upwards.

Notwithstanding the recent prediction by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) that sea levels in 2100 will be a measly 18-59cm (7-23in) higher, Jim Hansen – eminent climate scientist and director of NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies – warns that we could see a one to two metre rise this century and several more in the next. Other climate scientists too, forecast substantially greater rises than the IPCC, whose prediction excludes any consideration of future changes in polar ice sheet behaviour. A worst-case scenario could see a return to conditions that prevailed around 14,000 years ago, when sea levels rose 13.5 metres (44ft) - the height of a three-storey house - in the space of about 300 years.

Such a dramatic rise in coming centuries would clearly spell catastrophe for our civilisation, with low-lying regions across the planet vanishing rapidly beneath the waves. Just a one metre (3.28ft) rise would threaten one third of the world's agricultural land, two metres (6.56ft) would make the Thames flood barrier redundant and four metres (13.12ft) would drown the city of Miami, leaving it 37 miles (60km) off the US coast.

As sea levels climb higher so a response from the world's volcanoes becomes ever more likely, and perhaps not just from volcanoes. Loading of the continental margins could activate faults, triggering increased numbers of earthquakes, which in turn could spawn giant submarine landslides. Such a scenario is believed to account for the gigantic Storegga Slide, which sloughed off the Norwegian coast around 8,000 years ago, sending a tsunami more than 20 metres (66ft) high in places across the Shetland Isles and onto the east coast of Scotland. Should Greenland be released from its icy carapace, the underlying crust will start to bob back up, causing earthquakes well capable of shaking off the huge piles of glacial sediment that have accumulated around its margins and sending tsunamis across the North Atlantic.

The Earth is responding as a single, integrated system to climate change driven by human activities. Global warming is not just a matter of warmer weather, more floods or stronger hurricanes, but is also a wake-up call to Terra Firma. It may be no coincidence that one outcome of increased volcanic activity is likely to be a period of falling temperatures, as a veil of volcanic dust and gas reduces the amount of solar radiation reaching the surface. Maybe the Earth is trying to tell us something. It really would be worth listening before it is too late.

2007-08-08 09:36:02 · 12 answers · asked by GREAT_AMERICAN 1 in Politics

and why?

2007-08-08 09:35:49 · 61 answers · asked by Marvelissa VT 6 in Polls & Surveys

what do u look 4 in a girl ? there r not a lot of GOOD guys at my school n i already know what they think . so i was wonderin bout yall . b/t/w , my schools not bad , just reall redneck !!

2007-08-08 09:35:42 · 19 answers · asked by Nanner*Bell 2 in Singles & Dating

then wouldn't Judism be the one true faith? It's been around longer then Christianity. It's still here as a matter of fact. Perhaps its the one true faith after all because Christianity hasn't overshadowed it in any way.
Or Sumarian paganism. Sure it was stomped out for a while, but its make a pretty strong comeback. Perhaps the Gods just needed some recoup time but they are back stronger then ever.
I am partian to the Egyptian Gods myself and we have a lot of documentation at our fingertips. Our gods never left, as a matter of fact our holy texts were collected by Christians. It's been aroudn longer, so does that make it the one true faith?

Time spent on this earth with humans doesn't make any one faith true.Christianity is a BABY compared to other faiths. Find a new arguement.

2007-08-08 09:35:40 · 9 answers · asked by ~Heathen Princess~ 7 in Religion & Spirituality

2007-08-08 09:35:38 · 10 answers · asked by Tony M 1 in Other - Vietnam

Agree Or Disagree?

When People Ask Questions Like " If I'm On My Period, Can I Go Swimming In The Ocean Or Will I Attract Sharks?" Do They Or Do They Not Deserve A Dumb *** Answer! I Think They Do ..

People These Days Have No Common Sense ..

2007-08-08 09:35:34 · 16 answers · asked by Cole Marie' 3 in Polls & Surveys

2007-08-08 09:35:26 · 15 answers · asked by Anonymous in Friends

2007-08-08 09:35:12 · 5 answers · asked by Anonymous in Languages

im not sure waht i want to do yet. ive already thought of survivor, glamour, and music party and im considering them. any other good party themes for a 13 year old? 10 points to best answer

2007-08-08 09:35:12 · 6 answers · asked by Eat. Sleep. Run. ☼ 4 in Entertaining

Could I be sued for my "theories" even if I present them as fiction?

2007-08-08 09:35:11 · 6 answers · asked by Anonymous in Books & Authors

I had volleyball tryouts for the 2nd day and when I got home my ankle started hurting. It hurts when I walk when I run, and when I move it around. It also hurts when I stand. What doyou think might be wrong and what can I do for it, I have tryouts again tonight too. I'm also 14 so these are my freshman volleyball tryouts

2007-08-08 09:35:07 · 1 answers · asked by bananabunny97 1 in Pain & Pain Management

2007-08-08 09:35:01 · 8 answers · asked by gruz 3 in Polls & Surveys

I know they're going to ask me to go through verification, and that takes awhile. So once I submitted the fafsa does it go to my school instantly?

*I'm just a bit late doing this due to my dad's death.

2007-08-08 09:34:52 · 4 answers · asked by Anonymous in Financial Aid

I really need the money, and I'm not quite sure this is the push my boyfriend needs to get a job...
Thanks in advance for your answers!!!

2007-08-08 09:34:42 · 17 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pregnancy

Hi Im a 21 Year Old Female, Im about 5'0", I weight between 105-107lbs.. I wanted to lose 5-10lbs...
I was wondering if thats a good weight for me, and if not what should i do or what suppliments should i take to lose that weight... Mainly all my fat is at my tummy and a bit at my thighs and bum.. I really wanna lose the weight on my tummy, I've had it for years and I wanna know what i can do to lose that weight.. Thanks!.. :)

2007-08-08 09:34:33 · 4 answers · asked by Jen M 1 in Diet & Fitness

Rock on gun lovers! It's our right. Keep the government out our homes! Protect yourself!

2007-08-08 09:34:27 · 12 answers · asked by Anonymous in Law Enforcement & Police

ive got an itchy anus, n i dont know what causes it, or what 2 do about it? i wash myself atleast twice a day, and whenever im on my periods i was myself everytime i go 2 the toilet, so it cant be of hygenic reasons. has anyone else experienced the same thing? im 2 ashamed to do 2 the doctors, i thort it would just pass but it doesnt seem like its getting better.

2007-08-08 09:34:26 · 21 answers · asked by pretty g 2 in Women's Health

2007-08-08 09:34:18 · 5 answers · asked by Anonymous in Polls & Surveys

in movies or books or anything, that is sooo lame

2007-08-08 09:34:13 · 20 answers · asked by ? 3 in Polls & Surveys

Canada - I loved Ottawa for its relaxed chilled out feeling. Fancy Canada again this year but can only go Nov/Dec so out of Halifax and Montreal which is best for a weeks holiday if we base ourselves there but do not hire a car? Need enough to do for a week in terms of sightseeing and good transport to get out into countryside if we decide on it. Also, as we going in Nov what are the chances of snow? Had it in Sault St Marie in Oct last year but not much and wondering if this was a one off? I love the snow although not bothered about skiing etc.

2007-08-08 09:34:11 · 9 answers · asked by pinpin79 1 in Other - Canada

We were instantly attracted to each other's personality, and have huge fun whenever we get together. The problem is that he has a full head of pemature gray hair, and it's a turn off for me. I can't even let him kiss me because I hate his hair sooo much. He wore his head bald once, and it looked sooo sexy, but he says he won't bald it again and actually likes his gray hair. What can I do? I don't want to date someone who looks older than my dad; he doesn't want to change his hair for me; we REALLY like being together; but there's no hugging or kissing because the hair totally turns me off! Any suggestions on what to do? I REALLY like this guy otherwise, but I want to be able to be intimate too. Help!!!

2007-08-08 09:34:04 · 27 answers · asked by Foxy 1 in Singles & Dating

a. Finding a £20 note in your pocket that you had forgot about
b. Wrapping presents under a twinkling xmas tree
c. Waking up the morning after bringing home a newborn baby
d. Laughing so hard that your face hurts.
e. Waking up and realising you still have 4 hours left to sleep?
f. Hearing your all time favourite song on the radio?

Which one?

2007-08-08 09:34:03 · 36 answers · asked by lilmissdisorganised 6 in Religion & Spirituality

Is the Christian church representative of his intentions and teachings?

Do you think Jesus would have said or done anything differently as described in the New Testament, knowing back then how humans would interpret the scriptures over the next 2000 years?

What do you think he might want to go back and change or clarify a bit?

2007-08-08 09:33:59 · 15 answers · asked by Anonymous in Religion & Spirituality

In recent weeks, I've been offered to make a settlement on some of my unpaid credit card balances with a few of the collection agencies that have been calling my house frequently. Personally, I don't think that's a wise decision because it may affect my credit background with all three major credit bureaus. As we all know, collection agencies are known to hound consumers to death when it involves collecting money on bad debts and charged-off accounts from former creditors. I understand credit advisors across the country don't recommend a consumer to "settle" an account with neither a creditor nor a collection agency. I'd rather just face the music and pay the balance on record or if push comes to shove, maybe consider debt consolidation. Please advise what would be the best option to move forward with.

2007-08-08 09:33:54 · 5 answers · asked by Roderick C 1 in Credit

Is it worth it to read/watch this? I heard it was very good but I'm not sure if I should bother getting ahold of this series if it's just another slice of life.

2007-08-08 09:33:45 · 2 answers · asked by bobthevicious 3 in Comics & Animation

or anything else, what would you be? And why?

2007-08-08 09:33:41 · 8 answers · asked by Anonymous in Other - Arts & Humanities

Shut your smile?

2007-08-08 09:33:27 · 8 answers · asked by Anonymous in Polls & Surveys

I am going to be a senior this year and have never had a boyfriend...ONLY crushes. I have never been kissed and only have been on one date....and that was for prom. I am kinda a shy person but I thought that I would have a bf by now. All of the guys I like are preppy and popular and I am neither of that. Did anyone else not date much in high school but later on found some one?? I want to grow up and get married but based on high school...I will probably be an old maid. And I highly doubt I will get a bf my senior year. Someone....can you please give me advice? Thanks!

I am also very shy when it comes to expressing my feelings about hott guys around my parents. I have NEVER told my parents that I thought some guy was cute. I have told them that I don't feel comfortable talking to them about guys but I am interested in guys and I do have crushes at school. Do u think my parents will start to think that I am a lesbian even though I am not??

2007-08-08 09:33:26 · 16 answers · asked by Anonymous in Singles & Dating

I don't because I know it gets hot out and women need to be cool. However, they need to make sure their entire chest, stomach, back, and arm pits are covered, so that rules out tank tops and spaghetti dresses unless they have a shirt on underneath. I think this is being reasonable.

2007-08-08 09:33:25 · 21 answers · asked by Anonymous in Polls & Surveys