Friday, May 29, 2015

Earth is more than a pretty postcard

It's deeply heartbreaking realizing how uncaring and disconnected people have become from the planet that sustains all of us.  It seems that the Republican/libertarian crowd despise our Earth and everyone who cares about her in the bargain.  I don't get it, though I keep struggling with understanding it and failing to find the words to describe both the resentful attitude Republicans have adopted towards our life giving Earth and to convey a sense of the wonder that people like me feel for our home planet.

Sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words, but when it comes to something as grand as our dynamic living planet it takes thousands of pictures to begin to touch on it's complex magnificence.

That's why I want to share three standout documentaries that are available on YouTube.  They are standouts because of how well they convey a realistic impression of this global organism we are all dependent on, and how it operates, along with a glimpse at how we are changing her.  Sure, there are some flaws and certain items I could take issue with, but learning is a cumulative process so minor flaws don't detract from the overall quality of these rich fact-based stories about our planet and it's ways.  All worth watching by those who are interested in learning about our mother Earth.
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Our Global Heat and Moisture Distribution Engine


 

Mirrored by Documentary Galaxy on Oct 28, 2014


NOVA Program Description
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/earth/earth-from-space.html

"Earth From Space" is a groundbreaking two-hour special that reveals a spectacular new space-based vision of our planet. Produced in extensive consultation with NASA scientists, NOVA takes data from earth-observing satellites and transforms it into dazzling visual sequences, each one exposing the intricate and surprising web of forces that sustains life on earth. 

Viewers witness how dust blown from the Sahara fertilizes the Amazon; how a vast submarine "waterfall" off Antarctica helps drive ocean currents around the world; and how the Sun's heating up of the southern Atlantic gives birth to a colossally powerful hurricane. From the microscopic world of water molecules vaporizing over the ocean to the magnetic field that is bigger than Earth itself, the show reveals the astonishing beauty and complexity of our dynamic planet.

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Human Planet How the Earth changed History

Ollie Schultz Published on Jul 24, 2014

Narrated by Geology Professor Iain Stewart.  
Discover how man & the forces of nature have had a powerful influence on history. Iain Stewart's YouTube channel

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Crude - The Incredible Journey Of Oil


http://www.abc.net.au/science/crude/resources/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e44ydPIQGSc 
In2hardcore  |  Published on Apr 7, 2013

From the food on our tables to the fuel in our cars, crude oil seeps invisibly into almost every part of our modern lives. It is the energy source and raw material that drives transport and the economy. Yet many of us have little idea of the incredible journey it has made to reach our petrol tanks and plastic bags.

Filmed on location in 11 countries across five continents, the program's award-winning Australian filmmaker Richard Smith consults the leading international scientific experts to join the dots between geology and economy and provide the big-picture view of oil.

Crude takes a step back from the day to day news to illuminate the Earth's extraordinary carbon cycle and the role of oil in our impending climate crisis. Nearly seven billion people have come to depend on this resource, yet the Oil Age that began less than a century and a half ago, could be over in our lifetimes.

Released: 2007

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bonus:

Iain Stewart considers climate's impact on people while looking at Scotland's contribution to the industrial revolution along with some cascading consequences.



Published by xMaTx4 on Aug 15, 2013

BBC - Making Scotland's Landscape 5 of 5 The Climate: Professor Iain Stewart concludes a landmark five-part series in which he reveals how Scotland's unique and beautiful landscape has been shaped over the centuries. During the Industrial Revolution, Scottish scientists and engineers helped unwittingly set off a chain of events that today we know as climate change - a process that is transforming our atmosphere and warming our planet. Professor Iain Stewart looks at how Scotland is on the verge of another revolution: the transformation of a carbon economy to a green one.

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