Comments on: Ending the Ice Ages http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/gnxp/2012/02/ending-the-ice-ages/ Sun, 19 May 2013 15:58:00 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.4.2 By: Bob Knaus http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/gnxp/2012/02/ending-the-ice-ages/#comment-40683 Bob Knaus Sat, 25 Feb 2012 01:48:24 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/gnxp/?p=15839#comment-40683 No need for nukes. A sea level canal has been possible across Nicaraugua for more than a century, using current-at-the-time technologies. America's choice to make the canal in Panama had more to do with poliitics than technology. Recently, Panama (which has owned the Canal outright for more than a decade) completed a $5 billion project to widen the Canal and forestall any strategic threats from Nicaragua to construct a competing sea-level canal. $5 billion? That's chump change, compared to the costs of a nuclear-excavated canal! If that's all it takes to keep the competition at bay... you will not see nukescavation for a long time :-) No need for nukes. A sea level canal has been possible across Nicaraugua for more than a century, using current-at-the-time technologies. America’s choice to make the canal in Panama had more to do with poliitics than technology.

Recently, Panama (which has owned the Canal outright for more than a decade) completed a $5 billion project to widen the Canal and forestall any strategic threats from Nicaragua to construct a competing sea-level canal.

$5 billion? That’s chump change, compared to the costs of a nuclear-excavated canal!

If that’s all it takes to keep the competition at bay… you will not see nukescavation for a long time :-)

]]> By: jb http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/gnxp/2012/02/ending-the-ice-ages/#comment-40682 jb Fri, 24 Feb 2012 22:29:56 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/gnxp/?p=15839#comment-40682 I was kind of surprised when I first discovered that the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ice_age" rel="nofollow">ice ages</a> we are familiar with only go back to the beginning of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pleistocene" rel="nofollow">Pleistocene</a>, about 2.5 million years ago. This is really very recent! According to Wikipedia: <i>There have been at least five major ice ages in the Earth's past. Outside these ages, the Earth seems to have been ice-free even in high latitudes.</i> Five major ice ages in a 4.6 billion year history isn't a lot, so I think the fact that <i>we are in the middle of one of the five right now</i> really ought to attract more attention than it does. Especially in light of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snowball_Earth" rel="nofollow">Snowball Earth</a> hypothesis! If you think about it, it seems obvious that an ice age must entail the risk of runaway feedback, where more and more ice reflects back more and more solar radiation which results in more and more ice. So, has anyone seriously considered the possibility that, as a result perhaps of the rise of the Isthmus of Panama, the world might actually be heading into another Snowball Earth episode, resulting in the extinction of all complex life that doesn't make a living off of hydrothermal vents? If ice ages had happened hundreds of times in Earth's history we could shrug our shoulders at yet another one. But given how rare they are, how can we dismiss the possibility that number five could edge past the tipping point? The punch line? Wouldn't it be ironic if someone actually made the calculation, and determined that <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_warming" rel="nofollow">anthropogenic global warming</a> was in fact the only thing standing between the world and ultimate icy doom?!? :-) I was kind of surprised when I first discovered that the ice ages we are familiar with only go back to the beginning of the Pleistocene, about 2.5 million years ago. This is really very recent! According to Wikipedia: There have been at least five major ice ages in the Earth’s past. Outside these ages, the Earth seems to have been ice-free even in high latitudes. Five major ice ages in a 4.6 billion year history isn’t a lot, so I think the fact that we are in the middle of one of the five right now really ought to attract more attention than it does.

Especially in light of the Snowball Earth hypothesis! If you think about it, it seems obvious that an ice age must entail the risk of runaway feedback, where more and more ice reflects back more and more solar radiation which results in more and more ice. So, has anyone seriously considered the possibility that, as a result perhaps of the rise of the Isthmus of Panama, the world might actually be heading into another Snowball Earth episode, resulting in the extinction of all complex life that doesn’t make a living off of hydrothermal vents? If ice ages had happened hundreds of times in Earth’s history we could shrug our shoulders at yet another one. But given how rare they are, how can we dismiss the possibility that number five could edge past the tipping point?

The punch line? Wouldn’t it be ironic if someone actually made the calculation, and determined that anthropogenic global warming was in fact the only thing standing between the world and ultimate icy doom?!? :-)

]]> By: Paul Ó Duḃṫaiġ http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/gnxp/2012/02/ending-the-ice-ages/#comment-40681 Paul Ó Duḃṫaiġ Fri, 24 Feb 2012 19:55:57 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/gnxp/?p=15839#comment-40681 All this talk of using Nukes Reminds me of "Operation Plowshare" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Plowshare One of the proposals been to build a new sealevel canal through Nicaragua, as wiki says which was nicknamed "Pan-Atomic Canal" All this talk of using Nukes Reminds me of “Operation Plowshare”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Plowshare

One of the proposals been to build a new sealevel canal through Nicaragua, as wiki says which was nicknamed “Pan-Atomic Canal”

]]> By: Amused http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/gnxp/2012/02/ending-the-ice-ages/#comment-40680 Amused Fri, 24 Feb 2012 14:27:02 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/gnxp/?p=15839#comment-40680 Nuke the isthmus ? Is this a last ditch attempt to slow immigration? Besides, the world will need a cooling period after battling a virus called mankind. Nuke the isthmus ? Is this a last ditch attempt to slow immigration? Besides, the world will need a cooling period after battling a virus called mankind.

]]> By: Bob http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/gnxp/2012/02/ending-the-ice-ages/#comment-40679 Bob Fri, 24 Feb 2012 03:40:18 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/gnxp/?p=15839#comment-40679 Back in the Eisenhower administration - the 1950s - there was a proposed program called "Atoms for Peace". One of its elements was to blast a sea level canal across, I believe, Nicaragua with atomic bombs, so there must have been enough in the inventory, or at least feasible, to make it happen. There were some other clever proposed projects, too. Never did see the light of day, alas. Back in the Eisenhower administration – the 1950s – there was a proposed program called “Atoms for Peace”. One of its elements was to blast a sea level canal across, I believe, Nicaragua with atomic bombs, so there must have been enough in the inventory, or at least feasible, to make it happen. There were some other clever proposed projects, too.

Never did see the light of day, alas.

]]> By: Nick Rowe http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/gnxp/2012/02/ending-the-ice-ages/#comment-40678 Nick Rowe Thu, 23 Feb 2012 20:39:45 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/gnxp/?p=15839#comment-40678 The French attempted a sea-level (no locks) Panama canal in 1880. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panama_Canal#French_construction.2C_1881-1889 The French attempted a sea-level (no locks) Panama canal in 1880.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panama_Canal#French_construction.2C_1881-1889

]]> By: Ghoghogol http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/gnxp/2012/02/ending-the-ice-ages/#comment-40677 Ghoghogol Thu, 23 Feb 2012 20:33:15 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/gnxp/?p=15839#comment-40677 FYI his book is over 16 years old. What's the scientific community's response to his hypothesis since then... FYI his book is over 16 years old. What’s the scientific community’s response to his hypothesis since then…

]]> By: ackbark http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/gnxp/2012/02/ending-the-ice-ages/#comment-40676 ackbark Thu, 23 Feb 2012 18:42:54 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/gnxp/?p=15839#comment-40676 But warming the Earth is clearly what humans are here for, an ocean current is so last geological era. But warming the Earth is clearly what humans are here for, an ocean current is so last geological era.

]]> By: Brett http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/gnxp/2012/02/ending-the-ice-ages/#comment-40675 Brett Thu, 23 Feb 2012 17:54:57 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/gnxp/?p=15839#comment-40675 We easily have enough. The Soviets created Lake Chagan (408 meters in diameter, 100 meters deep) using only a single 140 kiloton device. The Isthmus of Panama is about 60 kilometers across at the narrowest, so it wouldn't be <em>too</em> difficult to blast an artificial waterway through it (especially if you used larger weapons buried into the ground). More seriously, I've read arguments for creating a waterway there along the lines of it stabilizing the world climate (while warming it up as well). We easily have enough. The Soviets created Lake Chagan (408 meters in diameter, 100 meters deep) using only a single 140 kiloton device. The Isthmus of Panama is about 60 kilometers across at the narrowest, so it wouldn’t be too difficult to blast an artificial waterway through it (especially if you used larger weapons buried into the ground).

More seriously, I’ve read arguments for creating a waterway there along the lines of it stabilizing the world climate (while warming it up as well).

]]> By: PeterR http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/gnxp/2012/02/ending-the-ice-ages/#comment-40674 PeterR Thu, 23 Feb 2012 14:52:20 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/gnxp/?p=15839#comment-40674 I'd rather not find out if we have enough nukes to reopen the isthmus...But it would be interesting. I’d rather not find out if we have enough nukes to reopen the isthmus…But it would be interesting.

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