Climate Change and Engineering

by | Feb 24, 2022 | Engineering

  1. (a) From 1980 to 2010, atmospheric CO2 concentrations rose from 340 ppm to 390 ppm.
    Assuming a fixed Henry’s law constant for CO2 for the temperature in the North Atlantic
    of kH = 0.050 mol · kg−1
    · bar−1
    , calculate the increase in dissolved CO2 in the surface
    layer of North Atlantic water due only to the change in atmospheric concentrations. [2
    marks]
    (b) Calculate the change in pH given the enhancement of dissolved CO2 calculated in
    part (a). Recall that dissolved CO2 will be in equilibrium with bicarbonate and carbonate
    according to the reactions:
    CO2(aq) + H2O ←−→ H
  • + HCO3
    − (1)
    HCO3
    − ←−→ H
  • + CO3
    2−, (2)
    where the equilibrium constants for these reactions are K1 = 9.1 × 10−7 mol · kg−1 and
    K2 = 5.2 × 10−10 mol · kg−1
    respectively. Assume that the carbonate concentration in the
    ocean, which is buffered by other reactions, remains constant over this time period, at
    [CO3
    2−] = 2.4 × 10−4 mol · kg−1
    . [2 marks]
  1. (a) Assume an initial input of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere E. The temperature
    response without including any carbon cycle feedbacks is
    ∆CA = E (3)
    ∆T = α∆CA, (4)
    where CA denotes atmospheric concentration of CO2 and α is a constant proportional to
    the climate sensitivity. Let us examine the temperature response ∆T considering only β
    feedbacks in the carbon system (i.e. carbon cycle responses to increased CA only). In this
    case, ∆CA depends on additional carbon fluxes to the ocean (FAO) and land (FAL) caused
    by the initial atmospheric carbon perturbation.
    ∆CA = E − FAO − FAL (5)
    FAO = βO∆CA (6)
    FAL = βL∆CA, (7)
    where subscripts A, O, and L denote atmosphere, ocean, and land, respectively. Compare
    the temperature response with and without β feedbacks. [2 marks]
    (b) Now let us examine the temperature response considering the coupled β and γ feedbacks (i.e. carbon cycle responses to ∆CA and ∆T together). Here, the ocean and land
    fluxes are further dependent on changes in temperature.
    FAO = βO∆CA + γO∆T (8)
    FAL = βL∆CA + γL∆T. (9)
    1
    Compare the temperature response in the coupled system (with both β and γ feedbacks)
    to the temperature response with only carbon (β) feedbacks. [2 marks]
    (c) To which parameter (α, βX, γX) is the ratio of the temperature response in the coupled system (with β and γ feedbacks) to the temperature response in the uncoupled
    system (with β feedbacks only) most sensitive? Typical values of the parameters are
    α = 0.0060 K · ppm−1
    , βX = 1.2 GtC · ppm−1
    , and γX = −3 GtC · K−1
    . Show your work.
    What does this tell you about carbon cycle feedbacks? [2 marks]

Sample solution

Dante Alighieri played a critical role in the literature world through his poem Divine Comedy that was written in the 14th century. The poem contains Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso. The Inferno is a description of the nine circles of torment that are found on the earth. It depicts the realms of the people that have gone against the spiritual values and who, instead, have chosen bestial appetite, violence, or fraud and malice. The nine circles of hell are limbo, lust, gluttony, greed and wrath. Others are heresy, violence, fraud, and treachery. The purpose of this paper is to examine the Dante’s Inferno in the perspective of its portrayal of God’s image and the justification of hell. 

In this epic poem, God is portrayed as a super being guilty of multiple weaknesses including being egotistic, unjust, and hypocritical. Dante, in this poem, depicts God as being more human than divine by challenging God’s omnipotence. Additionally, the manner in which Dante describes Hell is in full contradiction to the morals of God as written in the Bible. When god arranges Hell to flatter Himself, He commits egotism, a sin that is common among human beings (Cheney, 2016). The weakness is depicted in Limbo and on the Gate of Hell where, for instance, God sends those who do not worship Him to Hell. This implies that failure to worship Him is a sin.


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God is also depicted as lacking justice in His actions thus removing the godly image. The injustice is portrayed by the manner in which the sodomites and opportunists are treated. The opportunists are subjected to banner chasing in their lives after death followed by being stung by insects and maggots. They are known to having done neither good nor bad during their lifetimes and, therefore, justice could have demanded that they be granted a neutral punishment having lived a neutral life. The sodomites are also punished unfairly by God when Brunetto Lattini is condemned to hell despite being a good leader (Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). While he commited sodomy, God chooses to ignore all the other good deeds that Brunetto did.

Finally, God is also portrayed as being hypocritical in His actions, a sin that further diminishes His godliness and makes Him more human. A case in point is when God condemns the sin of egotism and goes ahead to commit it repeatedly. Proverbs 29:23 states that “arrogance will bring your downfall, but if you are humble, you will be respected.” When Slattery condemns Dante’s human state as being weak, doubtful, and limited, he is proving God’s hypocrisy because He is also human (Verdicchio, 2015). The actions of God in Hell as portrayed by Dante are inconsistent with the Biblical literature. Both Dante and God are prone to making mistakes, something common among human beings thus making God more human.

To wrap it up, Dante portrays God is more human since He commits the same sins that humans commit: egotism, hypocrisy, and injustice. Hell is justified as being a destination for victims of the mistakes committed by God. The Hell is presented as being a totally different place as compared to what is written about it in the Bible. As a result, reading through the text gives an image of God who is prone to the very mistakes common to humans thus ripping Him off His lofty status of divine and, instead, making Him a mere human. Whether or not Dante did it intentionally is subject to debate but one thing is clear in the poem: the misconstrued notion of God is revealed to future generations.

 

References

Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). Dante’s inferno: Seven deadly sins in scientific publishing and how to avoid them. Addiction Science: A Guide for the Perplexed, 267.

Cheney, L. D. G. (2016). Illustrations for Dante’s Inferno: A Comparative Study of Sandro Botticelli, Giovanni Stradano, and Federico Zuccaro. Cultural and Religious Studies, 4(8), 487.

Verdicchio, M. (2015). Irony and Desire in Dante’s” Inferno” 27. Italica, 285-297.