Science Article #15

Can Sea Level Rise and Fall With Lightning Speed?

Berardelli, P. “Can Sea Level Rise and Fall With Lightning Speed?” ScienceNOW Daily News. February 11, 2010. Retreived February 13, 2010 From http://sciencenow.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/2010/211/3

The fluctuations of ice ages have been quite perplexing as it is amusing for most paleoclimatologists. Some spend lifetimes defining the cycles of these ice ages. In fact, recent study ran into a brick wall in figuring out the behaviors of sea level during the last several ice ages. Inside a coastal cave off the coast of Mediterranean Sea on a Spanish Island called Mallorca, showed some evidence in a dramatic rise in sea level so fast that it is unthinkable to believe that ice can melt that quickly. This evidence was shown on stalactites encrusted with calcite and like bathtub rings, they measured the watermarks on them showing high and low water levels. They measured these encrustations and it indicated that the sea level might have risen 2 meters per century. In geologic time, glaciers melting that fast is probably considered lightning fast.

These findings were not exactly discovered recently but discovered back in 1970s. However, the lack of technology back then could not measure and date them accurately until now. This discovery is strange and mysterious enough to ask some serious questions that might do some rethinking about the earth’s dynamics. In other words, there is still a lot to learn on how Earth and its Cryosphere works.

#2 What Are You Passionate About? (freewrite, 10 minutes)

One of the things I enjoyed the most is being outdoors. Whether it is going hiking, camping, or even canoeing, I enjoy the heck out of it. I can’t say that I have tried kayaking but I would love to do that someday. In fact, during the snowstorm this past weekend my wife and I went trekking through massive amounts of snow because it is so beautiful and awe-inspiring. We even took photographs of different perspective of snow and cannot get enough of it. The more and more I am studying this new major other than finance, I am finding myself liking the world of Cryosphere – frozen parts of our world regarding to ice, snow, glaciers, sea ice, ice bergs, ice sheets, etc. This is why I loved being at Grand Teton Range in Wyoming that was filled with snow. Seeing the mountains and breathing the mountain air does my mind and soul good. Actually, I look forward to a weekend at the family cabin in the mountains about 2 hours from where I currently live. Wife and I briefly lived at the cabin for more than 2 months between February and April. It was one of the best experiences of my life. Another reason why I like snow so much is because not only it can be beautiful, it is also very serene and clean – kind of like a clean slate. Sure, it is cold but I rather deal with the cold than hot. Maybe I can link my passion for nature to a field that I could work and wake up everyday looking forward to a cold day at work!