Showing papers by "Paul J. Crutzen published in 2016"
01 Jan 2016
TL;DR: The immediate effects of a global nuclear war are so severe that any additional longterm effects might at first thought be regarded as insignificant in comparison as discussed by the authors, however, their investigation into the state of the atmosphere following a nuclear exchange suggests that other severely damaging effects to human life and the delicate ecosystems to which we belong will occur during the following weeks and months.
Abstract: The immediate effects of a global nuclear war are so severe that any additional longterm effects might at first thought be regarded as insignificant in comparison. However, our investigation into the state of the atmosphere following a nuclear exchange suggests that other severely damaging effects to human life and the delicate ecosystems to which we belong will occur during the following weeks and months. Many of these effects have not been evaluated before.
195 citations
Australian National University1, Stockholm Resilience Centre2, Free University of Berlin3, University of Leicester4, British Geological Survey5, Scott Polar Research Institute6, Stanford University7, University of the Basque Country8, Max Planck Society9, University of Maryland, Baltimore County10, University of Birmingham11, Jan Kochanowski University12, Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies13, University of Leeds14, University of Rio Grande15, Institut de recherche pour le développement16, University of Washington17, University of Nairobi18, Harvard University19, Pace University20, Duke University21, University of Colorado Boulder22, Fridtjof Nansen Institute23, University of Vienna24, National Museum of Natural History25, University of Alberta26, Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research27
TL;DR: In this article, the authors explore two contrasting scenarios for the future of the Anthropocene, recognizing that the Earth System has already undergone a substantial transition away from the Holocene state.
Abstract: Stratigraphy provides insights into the evolution and dynamics of the Earth System over its long history. With recent developments in Earth System science, changes in Earth System dynamics can now be observed directly and projected into the near future. An integration of the two approaches provides powerful insights into the nature and significance of contemporary changes to Earth. From both perspectives, the Earth has been pushed out of the Holocene Epoch by human activities, with the mid-20th century a strong candidate for the start date of the Anthropocene, the proposed new epoch in Earth history. Here we explore two contrasting scenarios for the future of the Anthropocene, recognizing that the Earth System has already undergone a substantial transition away from the Holocene state. A rapid shift of societies toward the UN Sustainable Development Goals could stabilize the Earth System in a state with more intense interglacial conditions than in the late Quaternary climate regime and with little further biospheric change. In contrast, a continuation of the present Anthropocene trajectory of growing human pressures will likely lead to biotic impoverishment and a much warmer climate with a significant loss of polar ice.
121 citations
01 Jan 2016
TL;DR: This article showed that the warming of earth by the increasing concentrations of CO2 and other greenhouse gases is partially countered by some backscattering to space of solar radiation by the sulfate particles, which act as cloud condensation nuclei and thereby influence the micro-physical and optical properties of clouds, affecting regional precipitation patterns, and increasing cloud albedo.
Abstract: Fossil fuel burning releases about 25 Pg of CO2 per year into the atmosphere, which leads to global warming (Prentice et al. 2001). However, it also emits 55 Tg S as SO2 per year (Stern 2005), about half of which is converted to sub-micrometer size sulfate particles, the remainder being dry deposited. Recent research has shown that the warming of earth by the increasing concentrations of CO2 and other greenhouse gases is partially countered by some backscattering to space of solar radiation by the sulfate particles, which act as cloud condensation nuclei and thereby influence the micro-physical and optical properties of clouds, affecting regional precipitation patterns, and increasing cloud albedo (e.g., Rosenfeld 2000; Ramanathan et al. 2001; Ramaswamy et al. 2001).
43 citations
01 Jan 2016
TL;DR: Paul Crutzen as mentioned in this paper was born near the center of Amsterdam, the Netherlands, during a period of economic depression and World War II, during which he was not born with a silver spoon in his mouth.
Abstract: Paul Crutzen grew up near the center of Amsterdam, the Netherlands, during a period of economic depression and World War II. Clearly, he was not born with a silver spoon in his mouth. However, his family held up and made the best of it, using simple means to overcome the dif fi cult period. This included playing soccer in the streets and having arithmetic and language contests between father and son. Actually young Paul excelled in soccer, languages as well as mathematics, but could not develop these talents in full, at least not immediately. In such an envi- ronment practical solutions are needed, and he took up an education in civil engineering to design bridges in his water-rich country. This was a good career start because later Paul showed that bridges can also be built between scienti fi c disci- plines and communities.
26 citations
01 Jan 2016
4 citations
01 Apr 2016
TL;DR: Weber and Pöschl as discussed by the authors were the first to propose the idea of using gender-neutral pronouns in the context of women's sexual health and gender-related issues.
Abstract: Bettina Weber (1), Dianming Wu (1), Katharina Lenhart (2,3), Alexandra Tamm (1), Nina Ruckteschler (1), Emilio Rodríguez-Caballero (1), Wolfgang Elbert (1), Susannah Burrows (4), Tim Clough (5), Jörg Steinkamp (6), Hannah Meusel (1), Thomas Behrendt (7), Burkhard Büdel (8), Meinrat O. Andreae (9), Matthias Sörgel (9), Yafang Cheng (1), Paul Crutzen (10), Frank Keppler (11), Hang Su (1), and Ulrich Pöschl (1)
01 Jan 2016
TL;DR: Gurk and Crutzen as discussed by the authors were born in Amsterdam on December 3, 1933, the son of Anna Gurk and JozefCrutzen, a housekeeper from the industrial Ruhr region in Germany from East Prussia towards the end of the 19th century.
Abstract: I was born in Amsterdam on December 3, 1933, the son of Anna Gurk and Jozef Crutzen. I had one sister. My mother’s parents moved to the industrial Ruhr region in Germany from East Prussia towards the end of the 19th century. They were of mixed German and Polish origin. In 1929 at the age of 17, my mother moved to Amsterdam to work as a housekeeper. There she met my father. He came from Vaals, a little town in the south-eastern corner of the Netherlands, bordering Belgium and Germany and very close to the historical city of Aachen. He had relatives in the Netherlands, Germany, and Belgium. Thus, from both parents I inherited a cosmopolitan view of the world. Despite having worked in several countries outside the Netherlands since 1958, I have remained a Dutch citizen.