Christopher Hutchins
Mr. Ippolito
AP Biology - Current Event 8
11/13/18
Plumer, Brad. “Clean Energy Is Surging, but Not Fast Enough to Solve Global Warming.” The
New York Times, The New York Times, 13 Nov. 2018,
www.nytimes.com/2018/11/12/climate/global-energy-forecast.html.
In this article, “Clean Energy Is Surging, but Not Fast Enough to Solve Global Warming”, Brad Plumer
discusses the newly popular renewable forms of energy that are predicted to become the world's leading
energy sources in a near future. The traditional fuels such as coal and oil are dangerous as they emit CO2
into the atmosphere, contributing to climate change. Plumer adds that the world is nowhere near fixed.
There is an estimated 25 years before the interest in oil begins to drop. “But don’t expect coal to disappear
altogether. While the era of rapid coal growth is fading, the agency projects that global coal consumption
could stay flat for decades.” Coal is beginning to plateau and within 2-3 years, its relevance may also
begin to drop. Although the current use of wind and solar energy is beginning to increase, it is not
replacing the consistent sources for energy that come with coal and oil.
discusses the newly popular renewable forms of energy that are predicted to become the world's leading
energy sources in a near future. The traditional fuels such as coal and oil are dangerous as they emit CO2
into the atmosphere, contributing to climate change. Plumer adds that the world is nowhere near fixed.
There is an estimated 25 years before the interest in oil begins to drop. “But don’t expect coal to disappear
altogether. While the era of rapid coal growth is fading, the agency projects that global coal consumption
could stay flat for decades.” Coal is beginning to plateau and within 2-3 years, its relevance may also
begin to drop. Although the current use of wind and solar energy is beginning to increase, it is not
replacing the consistent sources for energy that come with coal and oil.
The current situation with climate change is extremely important to take note of. Without everyone
doing their part, the world may cross the point of no return. Humans may find themselves with an
Earth that will never be the same. Therefore, the importance of spreading word of these events is very
important. The more funding for similar projects, the quicker we may find solutions to our impending
problems. By reading this article, the audience may see the power and influence of investing in wind
and solar power, which will benefit and help close the gap between fossil fuels and natural gas.
doing their part, the world may cross the point of no return. Humans may find themselves with an
Earth that will never be the same. Therefore, the importance of spreading word of these events is very
important. The more funding for similar projects, the quicker we may find solutions to our impending
problems. By reading this article, the audience may see the power and influence of investing in wind
and solar power, which will benefit and help close the gap between fossil fuels and natural gas.
The author does a very good job separating his evidence and making his argument clear. Plumer groups
the topics into understandable categories that can be compared. The first is the increase of wind and
solar energy. Then he mentions the decline of coal, followed by the decline of fossil fuels, concluding
with how each affects global warming. These sections make it very simple for the reader to understand.
On the contrary, the writing only discusses the predictions of the future; it never mentions the current
situations of the wind and solar systems. Some context about the present would have greatly added to
the article.
the topics into understandable categories that can be compared. The first is the increase of wind and
solar energy. Then he mentions the decline of coal, followed by the decline of fossil fuels, concluding
with how each affects global warming. These sections make it very simple for the reader to understand.
On the contrary, the writing only discusses the predictions of the future; it never mentions the current
situations of the wind and solar systems. Some context about the present would have greatly added to
the article.
Szilvia Szabó
ReplyDeleteMr. Ippolito
AP Biology
November 14th, 2018
Plumer, Brad. “Clean Energy Is Surging, but Not Fast Enough to Solve Global Warming.” The
New York Times, The New York Times, 13 Nov. 2018,
www.nytimes.com/2018/11/12/climate/global-energy-forecast.html.
After reading about the effects of global warming on our oceans in the last current event I reviewed, I was left wondering more about the other ramifications global warming might have on our earth. So, the title of the article that Chris reviewed caught my eye. I think that Chris did a really good job reviewing this article, as he very clearly outlined the specific facts that the audience should know when discussing this topic. For example, he states, “The traditional fuels such as coal and oil are dangerous as they emit CO2 into the atmosphere, contributing to climate change.” He then goes on to say how it is likely we will continue to use fossil fuels and coal despite the clear problems they arise. Additionally, I think that Chris did a good job in explaining to his audience why we should care. He touches on how, “Although the current use of wind and solar energy is beginning to increase, it is not replacing the consistent sources for energy that come with coal and oil.”, which debunks any argument saying that we are straying from using coal and oil for more environmentally friendly alternatives. He then goes on to warn his audience if no measures are taken to prevent global warming from continuing down the path it is currently on. In a rather chilling paragraph, he says, “Without everyone doing their part, the world may cross the point of no return. Humans may find themselves with an Earth that will never be the same.”
Although Chris did a good job at evaluating and discussing his article, I felt like his language and sentence structures were a bit too simple. I found this to be mostly true in his introduction, as he says things like, “Plumer adds that the world is nowhere near fixed. There is an estimated 25 years before the interest in oil begins to drop.” Although it is important for his audience to understand his topic, I felt he oversimplified it a little bit, which contributes to his more simple language and syntax. Additionally, I felt that Chris could have incorporated more information on clean energy. It seems to be a pretty big part of the article, as it is directly mentioned in the title, but he only briefly discusses it once in his first and second paragraph. Basically, Chris only says that solar and wind power will help prevent global warming from continuing past the point of no return, but he gives no actual facts or statistics about these energy sources. If the author decided to name his article “Clean Energy Is Surging, but Not Fast Enough to Solve Global Warming” then choose not to bring up any facts or information about clean energy, then I feel Chris should have incorporated that when he talked about what he thought the author could have done better.
Overall, I think that global warming is a really pertinent issue that needs to be addressed more and Chris reiterated this rather well in his article. It is really important that we take care of our environment and think long term. Although coal and fossil fuels might be easier and cheaper sources of energy to use than solar or wind power, it will be worth it in the long run to invest in clean energy. Personally, I am not hearing a lot of new information on this topic, so I wanted to read more about it to get a better understanding of where we are at right now and what the future could look like if we continue down the path we are currently on. Hopefully the amount of coal and fossil fuels we use will continue to drop and we will smoothly switch to cleaner energy sources before we become too dependent on coal and oil. Before we know it, we might not have a choice.
Charlotte Cagliostro
ReplyDeleteMr. Ippolito
AP Biology / Current Event 8
11/15/18
Plumer, Brad. “Clean Energy Is Surging, but Not Fast Enough to Solve Global Warming.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 13 Nov. 2018, www.nytimes.com/2018/11/12/climate/global-energy-forecast.html.
Chris Hutchins did a great job reviewing Brad Plumer’s NY Times article, “Clean Energy Is Surging, but Not Fast Enough to Solve Global Warming.” There are three main aspects of Chris’ piece that I particularly liked. First, Chris wrote in a sophisticated, engaging manner that made me want to keep reading. Sometimes when writing scientific articles and reviews, it can be difficult to captivate the reader, but Chris was absolutely able to do so with his enthralling writing style. Secondly, Chris did a great job in his second paragraph when discussing the importance of climate change and global warming. He was able to create a connection with the reader by explaining how climate change will impact his or her life. Finally, I liked Chris’ critique of Plumer’s article. While it was on the shorter side, it provided a detailed analysis of Plumer’s writing.
Although Chris wrote a fine review, I think he could have improved it in two ways specifically. I believe that Chris should add more detail to his first paragraph, which gives an brief overview of Plumer’s article. If he were to add even just a couple more sentences of description, he could have constructed a far more thorough summary. Additionally, I believe that Chris should have integrated more pieces of evidence into his review. The review was a bit short and lacking a bit of evidence, so if Chris were to have added more quotes and statistics from researchers, he would have crafted a more informative piece.
One thing I learned through reading Chris’ review is that although new clean sources of energy have been on the rise, it is impossible for them to stop global warming since energy sources from coal and oil are more widely utilized. It is definitely scary to think that our planet is heading towards a major climate crisis, and there is nothing we are doing to stop it.
Anna Normand
ReplyDeleteMr. Ippolito
AP Biology
14 November 2018
Current Events #8 Review
Plumer, Brad. “Clean Energy Is Surging, but Not Fast Enough to Solve Global Warming.” The
New York Times, The New York Times, 13 Nov. 2018,
www.nytimes.com/2018/11/12/climate/global-energy-forecast.html.
Climate change is an incredibly important issue in our country and in our global community at the moment, and so I was excited to read the article chosen by Chris and his subsequent review. I thought that both were incredibly interesting, and Chris did a great job summing up the basic information presented in the article. I thought one thing Chris did well was outlining facts very specifically which pertained to the author’s argument, such as his fact about the 25 years it will take to lose interest in oil energy completely. I also thought Chris did a nice job outlining the problem suggested by the author and his data- he notes that, although clean energy is becoming more popular, the main point of the argument was to show that we need to be doing more to slow global warming. Finally, I liked the way that Chris brought the article back to current events, and explained clearly and concisely what implications these results have for humans and the future of global warming.
Though I thought Chris’ connections to current events was interesting and provided plenty of relevant information, I was curious about the further implications of this study. I wish that Chris had included information about what the possible consequences could be if we do not curb global warming, as this may have tied together his argument well. I also thought the review could have been improved if he had provided possible solutions for decreasing reliance on fossil fuel and moving into clean energy sources.
Overall, I was shocked to learn that our dependence on oil and coal based energy cannot be halted in time to stop global warming. I was interested to know, however, the growing sources of clean energy and the implications they have for global warming. Overall, I thought this was a very interesting and informative article and relevant to our current global crisis.
Renewable forms of energy are becoming increasingly more popular among the nations of the world- while solar power, wind power, and water power were previously seen as far too expensive and less reliable than other more traditional forms of energy such as coal or fossil fuels, opinions have recently began to turn in favor of more sustainable energy forms. This changing public opinion is reflected in the article “Clean Energy is Surging, but Not Fast Enough to Solve Global Warming” by Brad Plumer and the corresponding review by Chris Hutchins. There were multiple aspects of his review that Chris executed very well- for example, his summary is very concise, encapsulating the entire general idea of the article without going into unnecessary detail. He states, “The traditional fuels such as coal and oil are dangerous as they emit CO2 into the atmosphere, contributing to climate change.” He is able to describe the threats of coal and oil-powered energy simply and effectively relates them to the greater topic of climate change. Additionally, Chris’ analysis of how and why renewable energy is significant to our world today is very persuasive- by offering a glimpse into a future where our environment is so greatly altered that it could become almost inhospitable to human life. Chris describes, “Without everyone doing their part, the world may cross the point of no return. Humans may find themselves with an Earth that will never be the same.” This threat of a chaotic world without energy is an ominous pathway that our world could take if we do not ameliorate our issues with unsustainable energy in the present. Lastly, Chris’ critique of the article’s strengths were accurate and comprehensive- his observation that Plumer separated the article into “understandable categories that can be compared” is evidently shown throughout the article in the way that he discusses the topics in a logical and organized manner.
ReplyDeleteDespite its successes, there are a few weaknesses that should be addressed in Chris’ review. One of the problems with his review is that his critique of the article’s weakness is not accurate- he states that “the writing only discusses the predictions of the future.” However, the article does indeed discuss the state of affairs in the current time, as it references facts that are extremely relevant right now (e.g. the “World Energy Outlook” paper that was recently published by the International Energy Agency). He could rectify this issue by commenting on a different weakness instead, such as the lack of information regarding the temporary drawbacks of sustainable energy. Chris’ summary of the article could also benefit from more details related to the article as it sounds more similar to a statement of widely-known facts rather than a summary of an article. For instance, he comments that, “Although the current use of wind and solar energy is beginning to increase, it is not replacing the consistent sources for energy that come with coal and oil.” He could add an explanation for why coal and oil are so “dependable” and how renewable energy sources can be improved upon in order to ensure that sustainable energy becomes the dominant form of energy in the future.
Reading this article and review only reinforced my notion that sustainable energy is the path to a brighter future for Earth- not only for the natural world, but for human beings as well. I chose to read this article in particular because I find the topic of renewable energy (such as solar power and wind power) fascinating- it is a way in which we can sustain ourselves without having an overwhelmingly negative impact on the rest of the world. Although the future for sustainable energy appears to be somewhat bleak, we have the power to make the change from pollutants such as fossil fuels to eco-friendly energy sources like hydropower. It is entirely up to us to decide what kind of future that we want for our Earth- and it is my hope that when the time comes, we will choose sustainability for all over indulgence for few.
Michael Grieco
ReplyDeleteAP Biology
Current Event 9 - Comment
November 26, 2018
Plumer, Brad. “Clean Energy Is Surging, but Not Fast Enough to Solve Global Warming.” The
New York Times, The New York Times, 13 Nov. 2018,
.
https://bronxvilleapbiology.blogspot.com/2018/11/christopher-hutchins-mr.html
In his review, Chris is very brief and concise with his points. He summarizes the main ideas of the article very efficiently. For example, he summarizes the general idea of the article in one sentence, stating that it “discusses the newly popular renewable forms of energy that are predicted to become the world’s leading energy sources in a near future.” Additionally, Chris emphasizes the importance of the issue he researched, sparking my interest. He talks about the consequences that the article discusses and expands on many of the ideas. Finally, Chris’ critique of the article is also important to take note of. He says that the author does not give much context towards the problem. I believe that this could become problematic for someone who doesn’t know much about the topic.
Chris’ conciseness can become an issue in this reading, as he leaves out some details and his expansion on these ideas would enrich the article by both giving his own take and giving a more thorough summary. If he expanded upon the “point of no return,” for example, he could have improved this review. Additionally, he could enrich the article by giving more details and evidence directly from the article. There are many details in the article that Chris did not include, and if he included them, he could enrich a reader’s comprehension of his review.
This article has sparked my interest regarding global warming as a whole and what some potential fixes are. I was able to gain a more thorough understanding regarding the topic in the present day, and this review helped summarize some of the details. The most outstanding detail is that even with how much clean energy we plan to use, it still won’t be enough to solve global warming. Therefore, we will have to brainstorm potential solutions outside of using different sources of energy.
Alisa Kanganis
ReplyDeleteAP Biology
November 23, 2018
Current Event 9
Plumer, Brad. “Clean Energy Is Surging, but Not Fast Enough to Solve Global Warming.” The
New York Times, The New York Times, 13 Nov. 2018, www.nytimes.com/2018/11/12/climate/global-energy-forecast.html.
I enjoyed reading Chris’ review of “Clean Energy is Surging, but Not Fast Enough to Solve Global Warming” by Brad Plumer. His writing is very concise, and gets to the point quickly. However, his review is very informative, so I was still able to grasp a good understanding of the topic at hand. Another aspect of Chris’ review that was well done was his inclusion of statistics to emphasize that renewable energy sources are really not becoming popular quickly enough to solve global warming. He added that “there is an estimated 25 years before the interest in oil begins to drop.” I think this just really added a new element to his argument. I also like how Chris criticized the author by suggesting that “some context about the present would have greatly added to the article.” I completely agree with this.
As for areas of improvement, two things come to mind. I wish Chris included some more information in his summary. It was concise, which I always like, but still could have gone more in depth. I found it lacking the substantial evidence needed to truly strengthen his claims about renewable energy. I also think it would have been a good idea to include some more information on why he chose this subject and why it is important to him. Also, why exactly are renewable energy sources not as popular as we need them to be?
This topic is of course very important, so I always enjoy reading about it. Everyone learns about renewable energy, but not many know how or why it works, and I feel it is essential to spread this knowledge. Chris mentions that the Earth may be nearing a point of no return, and no doubt he is right. We need a renewable energy revolution.
Anabel Maldonado
ReplyDeleteIppolito C Even
Current Event #9
11/23/18
Plumer, Brad. “Clean Energy Is Surging, but Not Fast Enough to Solve Global Warming.” The
New York Times, The New York Times, 13 Nov. 2018, www.nytimes.com/2018/11/12/climate/global-energy-forecast.html.
Chris’s review was very insightful. He was very successful when explaining the reasoning and roles behind coal and oil. He did not assume that his audience knew much about this topic. As result, he describes everything in simpler terms - such as “the traditional fuels such as coal and oil are dangerous as they emit CO2 into the atmosphere, contributing to climate change.” Another thing Chris succeeded with was when explaining society’s role with this dilemma. There have been many current events based on climate change. Yet, several of these current events do not catch their readers attention - they don't have a persuasive call to action. However, Chris clearly addresses his audience’s role by writing “By reading this article, the audience may see the power and influence of investing in wind and solar power, which will benefit and help close the gap between fossil fuels and natural gas.” Although these are just several examples, his writing helps persuade his audience to make a difference. In addition, Chris was very successful when illustrating Plumer's strengths. He clearly explained several strengths and then later wrote about how he was able to succeed with his writing.
Chris was very successful when writing his review, but there is some space for improvement. One thing that he could improve upon is in the last paragraph, he described some things that Plumer should improve upon: “These sections make it very simple for the reader to understand. On the contrary, the writing only discusses the predictions of the future; it never mentions the current situations of the wind and solar systems.” But, he does not clearly state how he thinks Plumer should improve upon this. If Chris were to include some examples on how to improve, this could easily be fixed. Another thing that Chris could improve upon is by personalizing his review and including his opinion. If he were to explain why he chose this topic and how important it is to him, he would have captured the viewers attention more.
This topic is very important in our present day world. I have read countless reviews writing about climate change. But Chris’s review opened my eyes even more to this topic. I know the repercussions that follow several environmental issues, yet his review reminded me of them. As a result, I will be more cautious and observant of these issues.
Grace Sperber
ReplyDeleteMr. Ippolito
AP Biology - Current Event #9
11/26/2018
Plumer, Brad. “Clean Energy Is Surging, but Not Fast Enough to Solve Global Warming.” The
New York Times, The New York Times, 13 Nov. 2018,
www.nytimes.com/2018/11/12/climate/global-energy-forecast.html.
For this week’s current events I read Chris Hutchins’ review of “Clean Energy Is Surging, but Not Fast Enough to Solve Global Warming” by Brad Plumer of the New York Times. This review was outstanding in emphasize on the humanitarian and societal implications of global warming, its topical grouping of the complex subject matter tackled in the article and its critique of the author’s failure to address the present day status of global warming and CO2 emissions. I think that, what sets climate change apart from other topics in scientific scholarship is the urgency it employs due to its extensive impact: all life on earth can be affected by changes to the global climate--this encompasses all animals and all spheres of human existence including economics, society and government. I think that Chris perfectly captured the urgency of finding sustainable alternative resources in his review. Another strength of this review was its clear break down of the topics into three categories: renewable resources, fossil fuels and coal. Hutchins then ties all of these topics together through their respective impact on climate change and their projected commercial and environmental influence. This technique focuses the reader's’ attention and neatly synthesizes the information presented in the article. Lastly, this review impressed me with its insightful critique of the author’s omission of information concerning the current status of fossil fuels, renewable energy and coal. When reading the article, I hadn’t noticed that this information was omitted and I agree that it could have enhanced the author’s argument and brought another layer of analysis to the piece.
Although this was an overall strong review, I think Hutchins could have improved on his summary of the article’s information and his reaction and connections to the implications of the article. The first paragraph of this review which covered the information presented in the article was a bit crudely organized, hard to understand, repetitive and included a superfluous quote. I would have liked to have seen the facts referenced more concisely with an emphasis on significant facts and statistics. Additionally, the implications of this article could have been improved by focusing on the behavior of certain industries and companies in the future and what policies could be undertaken employing the message of the article’s author. While I agree with Hutchins that climate change is a dangerous phenomenon that must be stopped, I would have liked to see more specific reasoning and solutions.
Reading the original article and Chris’ review reiterated the urgency that we must all adopt when facing the issue of climate change. I was impacted by the author’s point that our efforts towards renewable energy, while admirable and certainty point in the right direction, are not being carried out fast enough or with enough aggressive. This article implies that, considering our current global warming status, complete overturn of corporate and government policy is the only way to salvage the earth as we know it now that the point of no return has been crossed.
Paul Magaud
ReplyDeleteMr. Ippolito
AP Biology
Current Event #10
12/3/18
Plumer, Brad. “Clean Energy Is Surging, but Not Fast Enough to Solve Global Warming.” The
New York Times, The New York Times, 13 Nov. 2018,
www.nytimes.com/2018/11/12/climate/global-energy-forecast.html.
Chris Hutchins's review of Brad Plumer's "Clean Energy Is Surging, but Not Fast Enough to Solve Global Warming" was both insightful and concise. I appreciated how he got straight to the point with his review, which helps the reader understand only what is necessary to understand his point. Another thing that I think made Chris's review unique was the way he addressed his own audience. For instance, he writes "By reading this article, the audience may see the power and influence of investing in wind and solar power, which will benefit and help close the gap between fossil fuels and natural gas," which clearly brings the audience into the matter and encourages the reader to make a difference themselves. I also like the fact that Chris was willing to criticize the author of the article, arguing that more context was necessary for certain parts.
Although I appreciate how concise the review was, it may have hindered it in some regards. In some spots, more specific detail and reference to the article could have deepened his argument. Another thing that may have enriched his review is a personal component -- by referencing himself and his own experiences, he may have enhanced his own review.
Climate change is among the most relevant scientific issues of our generation, and reading Chris's review reminded me of how important it really is.