You've heard it everywhere, but do you really know what it means? Is it really as bad as people make it out to be? I am of course talking about global warming. Global warming is dangerous and disastrous, but with enough effort we can stop it. You will discover all this in the paragraphs that follow. To begin with, what is global warming? Is it really real? Many believe that the Earth has not changed at all and that any science aimed at proving otherwise is completely false. (Magill) Despite these beliefs, evidence shows that global warming is real. But what is it? Global warming is exactly what it sounds like: the entire Earth is warming. This change in temperature may seem like only an increase of one or two degrees, but it's enough to melt the ice and dry up the rivers. (Parry) This heat comes from greenhouse gases. In this case, the greenhouse gas is CO2, or carbon dioxide. CO2 comes from fossil fuels that we release into the atmosphere. It is unable to escape into space and reflects back to Earth. The Earth does this naturally on its own, but it never did it at such a rapid rate before humans started burning fossil fuels. (The History Channel) As mentioned earlier, increasing temperature can melt ice caps and cause droughts elsewhere. These extreme weather conditions will have devastating long-term effects. Droughts cause water shortages and water prices will increase. For farmers, this means a smaller harvest. If the ice caps melt, there will be more water in the oceans. With rising oceans, coastal cities and communities will be submerged under water, causing many people to die and be forced to relocate. Of course it's not good, but how does it change us here in San Bernardino? On the one hand, the farmer's problem... middle of paper ... measures that have no effect, but if the entire population of the United States alone did their best to reduce fuels fossil fuel consumption, pollution would decrease considerably. In conclusion, global warming is real and it has harmful consequences on the health of the Earth. However, we as a population can put an end to it if we all work together. That's right, even if you think you're not doing much, you're helping. We can't wait any longer, the time to act is now.Bibliography• A Global Warming, The History Channel, 2001 documentary• Parry, Wynne. “Living warmer: how 2 degrees will change the Earth.” Science Live. TechMedia Network, December 8, 2010. Web. May 5, 2014.• Magill, Bobby. “Experts debate the moral and religious arguments for climate action.” experts debate moral and religious arguments for climate action | Climatic plant. Climate Central, October 9, 2013. Web. May 05 2014.