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Gr 9: How Many Bald People Would it take to Combat Global Warming? -…
Gr 9: How Many Bald People Would it take to Combat Global Warming?
Introduction
Addressing altering the Earth's albedo through increasing the albedo from human skin
leads to the hypothesis of people shaving their heads (skin has an avg albedo of 0.249)
Adding bald individuals to the ocean would increase albedo
Climate change is the most pressing global challenge
Is altering the Earth's albedo the best way to bring about change?
Albedo is the measure of how much sunlight is reflected off a surface
Climate change poses a threat to many factors of life
Ecosystems
Human Health
Economic Stability
Methods and Results
Used the Energy Balance Model by Mark Healy
Calculated cumulative heat energy
Global Temperature Change
Difference in Heat Flux
Used the Stefan Boltzman Law to calculate the change in Earth temp if bald people were to stand on the surface of the ocean
Values of 400, 800 billion, and 1.2 trillion people were calculated
It was found that adding bald people would decrease overall temperature
Discussion, Limitations & Assumptions
There is definite potential for change if albedo were to be decreased
While it is unrealistic to expect people to shave their heads, this study demonstrates that focusing on altering the Earth's albedo could make a definite difference.
Ethic and social considerations play into this
Limited in that there is an application of constant bald people in the ocean, which is also unrealistic
Assumes the average incoming solar energy is constant
Conclusion
Increasing albedo could make a real difference
Practical considerations are important
Logistical challenges exist in mitigating climate change through this method