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Difficulty: EasyDebates about the Environment after 1900

"The greenhouse effect has been detected, and it is changing our climate now. ... We can state with high confidence that the global temperature is not a natural fluctuation but is related to a long-term warming trend caused by the accumulation of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere."

— James Hansen, NASA climatologist, testimony before the United States Senate, 1988

The warning in the passage was most directly a response to which of the following global developments in the twentieth century?

  1. The rapid rise in global carbon dioxide emissions from the burning of fossil fuels.Answer
  2. B
    The ecological damage caused by synthetic fertilizers and pesticides during the Green Revolution.
  3. C
    The homogenization of global cultures due to the expansion of consumerism.
  4. D
    The expansion of government control over mercantilist trade monopolies.

Answer

The rapid rise in global carbon dioxide emissions from the burning of fossil fuels.
The correct answer is correct because the accumulation of greenhouse gases, most notably carbon dioxide, was primarily driven by the dramatic increase in the burning of fossil fuels (such as coal, petroleum, and natural gas) to power twentieth-century industries, vehicles, and electrical grids.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the stimulus passage.
The passage identifies the 'greenhouse effect' and the accumulation of 'greenhouse gases' as the primary causes of a global warming trend in 1988.
Understanding the core scientific issue described in the stimulus is necessary to connect it to historical developments.
2
Link the scientific issue to twentieth-century industrial trends.
The primary driver of greenhouse gas accumulation since the Industrial Revolution, and accelerating rapidly in the twentieth century, has been the combustion of fossil fuels (coal, oil, gas) for energy.
This establishes the historical causation required by the question.
3
Evaluate the options to identify the correct response and eliminate distractors.
The option regarding fossil fuels directly aligns with the source of greenhouse gases. Other options represent different historical phenomena (the Green Revolution, cultural globalization, or early modern mercantilism) that do not directly cause the accumulation of atmospheric greenhouse gases.
Ensures that the selected answer is historically and scientifically accurate while resolving potential misconceptions.

Key Concept

Debates about the environment and climate change after 1900
Estimated Time:1m 0s
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Topics

Debates about the Environment after 1900

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