L816Z Spring 2024 The Great Acceleration: Earth Since 1900

L816Z  The Great Acceleration: Earth Since 1900
Thursdays, 11:50—1:15, May 2—May 9
Two sessions
Instructor: Lee De Cola
This follow-up to the spring 2023 Great Acceleration course sees Earth experiencing accelerated changes in key ecological indicators. These include seven indicators measured for the past 120 years: solar irradiance, human population, CO2 emitted and in the atmosphere, global temperature, precipitation, and sea level. In session one, we discuss the data and interrelations among these changes. Session two covers how humans may respond to this new environment, ways the global economy might evolve in coming decades, and possible financial implications of this conjuncture.
Lee De Cola is a retired U.S. Geological Survey scientist who studies environmental change in space and time. He has studied land cover dynamics, spatial epidemiology, African development, and fractals; and has taught around the world, including George Mason University.