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Global Warming I: The Science and Modeling of Climate Change
  • Level Foundation
  • Duration 39 hours
  • Course by The University of Chicago
  • Offered by

About

This class describes the science of global warming and the forecast for humans' impact on Earth's climate. Intended for an audience without much scientific background but a healthy sense of curiosity, the class brings together insights and perspectives from physics, chemistry, biology, earth and atmospheric sciences, and even some economics"all based on a foundation of simple mathematics (algebra).

Modules

Welcome!

    • 1 Videos
    • 4 Readings
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1 Videos

  • Video Introduction

4 Readings

  • Resources
  • Debriefing Quizzes
  • Explainer Assignments
  • A Supplemental Class to This One

Heat and Energy

    • 3 Videos
    • 2 Assignment
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2 Assignment

  • Optional Problems: How Much Coal to Run a Light Bulb
  • Optional Problems: Comparing Energy Prices

3 Videos

  • Using Units
  • Units of Energy
  • Heat

Light

    • 3 Videos
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3 Videos

  • Units of Light
  • Light
  • Blackbody Radiation

Explainer

    • 1 PeerReview
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1 Peer Review

  • What is heat and how can you warm up something in space?

Models of Planetary Climate

    • 2 Videos
    • 3 Assignment
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3 Assignment

  • Optional Layer Model Problem: How Hot is the Moon?
  • Optional Layer Model Problem 2: A Stronger Greenhouse Effect
  • Optional Layer Model Problem 3: Nuclear Winter

2 Videos

  • Naked Planet Climate Model
  • The Greenhouse Effect

Debriefing Quizzes

    • 1 Assignment
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1 Assignment

  • Quiz 1

How The Greenhouse Effect Works

    • 2 Videos
    • 1 Assignment
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1 Assignment

  • Model Greenhouse Gases in the Atmosphere

2 Videos

  • Greenhouse Gas Physics
  • The Band Saturation Effect

What Holds the Atmosphere Up

    • 2 Videos
    • 1 Assignment
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1 Assignment

  • Model the Lapse Rate and Greenhouse Effect

2 Videos

  • Atmospheric Temperature Structure
  • Pressure in a Standing Fluid

Why It's Colder Aloft

    • 2 Videos
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2 Videos

  • Water Vapor and Latent Heat
  • Moist Convection

Big Whorls form Smaller Whorls

    • 4 Videos
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4 Videos

  • Heat Transport
  • Coriolis Acceleration
  • Geostrophic Motion
  • The Turbulent Cascade

Debriefing Quizzes

    • 1 Assignment
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1 Assignment

  • Quiz 2

How They Work

    • 5 Videos
    • 5 Assignment
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5 Assignment

  • Model Sunlight, Albedo, and Climate
  • Extract the Water Vapor Feedback from Climate Model Results
  • Model Clouds 1: IR
  • Model Clouds 2: Full-spectrum
  • Model Aerosols and Climate

5 Videos

  • Positive and Negative Feedback
  • Ice Albedo Feedback
  • Water Vapor Feedback
  • Clouds
  • Aerosols

What They Mean

    • 1 Videos
    • 1 Assignment
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1 Assignment

  • Calculate the Climate Sensitivity

1 Videos

  • Climate Sensitivity

Debriefing Quizzes

    • 1 Assignment
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1 Assignment

  • Quiz 3

Explainer

    • 1 PeerReview
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1 Peer Review

  • What are positive and negative feedbacks?

The Carbon Cycle and Climate

    • 3 Videos
    • 1 Assignment
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1 Assignment

  • Model the Global Carbon Cycle

3 Videos

  • The Weathering CO₂ Thermostat
  • The Goldilocks Planets
  • The Oceans in the Carbon Cycle

The Biosphere in the Carbon Cycle

    • 3 Videos
    • 2 Assignment
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2 Assignment

  • Model Ocean/Land CO₂ Uptake with ISAM
  • Model Intended vs. Greenhouse Yields

3 Videos

  • The Land Biosphere in the Carbon Cycle
  • The Battery of the Biosphere
  • Oxidation and Reduction of Carbon

Fossil Fuels

    • 3 Videos
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3 Videos

  • Coal
  • Oil
  • Natural Gas

Debriefing Quizzes

    • 1 Assignment
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1 Assignment

  • Quiz 4

Fossil Fuels

    • 1 Videos
    • 2 Assignment
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2 Assignment

  • Model Hubbert's Peak
  • Model Kaya Identity

1 Videos

  • Forecasting Future Emissions

Explainer

    • 1 PeerReview
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1 Peer Review

  • Fossilizing a Carbon Atom

Human Impact on the Carbon Cycle

    • 6 Videos
    • 2 Assignment
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2 Assignment

  • Model Methane and Slugulator
  • Model the Long Tail

6 Videos

  • Where Our Carbon Is Going
  • Ocean Buffer Chemistry
  • The Perturbed Carbon Cycle
  • Methane as a Greenhouse Gas
  • The Long CO₂ Tail
  • Why the CO₂ Tail Matters

Debriefing Quizzes

    • 1 Assignment
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1 Assignment

  • Quiz 5

Explainer

    • 1 PeerReview
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1 Peer Review

  • Burning a Carbon Atom

The Smoking Gun

    • 4 Videos
    • 2 Assignment
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2 Assignment

  • Make Maps of Climate Models Warming
  • Look for the Smoking Gun

4 Videos

  • Land Surface Temperature Records
  • Sea Surface Temperature Records
  • Satellite Temperature Records
  • The Smoking Gun: Warming Since the 1970s

Lessons from the Deep Past

    • 6 Videos
    • 3 Assignment
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3 Assignment

  • Browse the Global Glacier Length Data
  • Model Borehole Temperatures
  • Analyze Recent Solar Intensity Changes

6 Videos

  • Paleoclimate and Proxy Measurements
  • Tree Rings
  • Borehole Temperatures
  • Oxygen Isotopes
  • Solar Intensity and the Hockey Stick
  • Glacial - Interglacial Cycles

Debriefing Quizzes

    • 1 Assignment
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1 Assignment

  • Quiz 6

Explainer

    • 1 PeerReview
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1 Peer Review

  • Is it Warming? Is It Us? How Do We Know?

Fresh Water

    • 3 Videos
    • 2 Assignment
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2 Assignment

  • Water Stress in Climate Model Results
  • Model Permafrost

3 Videos

  • Global Weirding
  • Monsoons
  • Vegetation

Ice Sheets and Sea Level

    • 4 Videos
    • 3 Assignment
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3 Assignment

  • Model Changes in Sea Level
  • Play with an Ice Sheet Model, ISM
  • Short vs Long Term Sea Level Change

4 Videos

  • Impacts of Sea Level
  • Antarctic Ice Sheet
  • Greenland Ice Sheet
  • Paleo Sea Level Changes

Weather

    • 3 Videos
    • 3 Assignment
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3 Assignment

  • Find the Increase in Low-Level Humidity in Models
  • Extract AR5 Model Lapse Rates
  • Model Hurricanes

3 Videos

  • Water Vapor and Storminess
  • Hurricanes
  • Extreme Weather

Follow-On Effects

    • 2 Videos
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2 Videos

  • Ecosystem Impacts
  • Human Impacts

Debriefing Quizzes

    • 1 Assignment
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1 Assignment

  • Quiz 7

Explainer

    • 1 PeerReview
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1 Peer Review

  • Global Weirding

How Much CO2 is Too Much?

    • 3 Videos
    • 3 Assignment
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3 Assignment

  • Model Stabilization Scenarios
  • Model Temperature Targets
  • How well does Slugulator do at Slug Theory?

3 Videos

  • Stabilization Scenarios
  • Temperature Targets
  • Slug Theory

Options

    • 5 Videos
    • 4 Assignment
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4 Assignment

  • Model CO2 Sequestration
  • Model SRM Geoengineering
  • How Many Wedges?
  • How Much Carbon-Free Energy by 2100?

5 Videos

  • Geoengineering: CO₂ Capture and Sequestration
  • Geoengineering: Solar Radiation Management
  • Economics of Climate Change
  • Mitigation: Short-Term
  • Mitigation: Long-Term

Debriefing Quizzes

    • 1 Assignment
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1 Assignment

  • Quiz 8

Explainer

    • 1 PeerReview
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1 Peer Review

  • Is there Hope for the 11-year-old?

Term Project

    • 1 PeerReview
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1 Peer Review

  • Term Project: Explore Climate Data and Models

Research Survey: "Student Attitudes Toward Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs)"

    • 1 Readings
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1 Readings

  • Survey on Attitudes toward MOOC technology

Auto Summary

Discover the science behind global warming and its impact on Earth's climate with "Global Warming I: The Science and Modeling of Climate Change." This foundational course, taught by Coursera, integrates insights from physics, chemistry, biology, and more, making it perfect for curious learners without extensive scientific backgrounds. Over 2340 minutes, you'll explore climate change through simple algebra. Available subscriptions include Starter, Professional, and Paid options. Ideal for anyone eager to understand the science behind one of today's most pressing issues.

David Archer
Instructor

David Archer