HowStuffWorks.com is an excellent resource for information concerning a plethora of topics and the material found there works as an excellent primer. I found this to be a good place to start when looking to understand global warming.
The site defines global warming as "a significant increase in the Earth's climatic temperature over a relatively short period of time as a result of the activities of humans." Global warming, the site explains, involves rapid warming of the planet. This could mean a temperature increase of 1° C between one and two centuries. This increase in temperature, the article explains, can have a devastating effect on the climate. The sea level is rising due to melting glaciers and storms are getting fiercer. "While scientists have not observed an increase in the number of tropical storms," the authors point out, "they have observed an increase in the intensity of such storms in the Atlantic correlated with a rise in ocean surface temperatures."
As a primer on global warming, the article does a good job at explaining multiple opinions of the issue. It explains that some people don't believe global warming is happening due to a lack of "long-term historical climate data" or misinterpretation of current data. Some consider the current climate shift as natural and/or "due to other factors than greenhouse gases." Even though most scientists are sure that global warming is happening, there are some who "don't believe that it is anything to be worried about. These scientists say that the Earth is more resistant to climate changes on this scale than we think."
One section of the article is titled "Can We Stop Global Warming?" To answer the question, the authors explain how individuals can do their part to minimize the affects of global warming. "Basically, they all boil down to this: Don't use as much of the stuff that creates greenhouse gases." The authors recommend "using less energy." The authors do not go into global solutions being looked at. However, since this is global warming, this is a global problem. To affect the kind of change that many would like to see, countries would have to work together both domestically and internationally. At the end of the article, the authors provide links to alternate sources, one of which is The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The authors clearly understand the importance of international dialogue on the subject of climate change.
