Self-study
Global warming has contributed to a rise in global sea level not only because it causes glaciers and ice sheets to melt, but also simply because when water is heated its volume increases. ███ ████ ████ ██ ██████ ███ █████ ██ ████ ████ ██ █████████ █████ ███ █████ ████ ███ █████ ██████████ ██████████ ████ ████ █████ ███ ██████ ███ █████ ████ ████████████ ███████ █ █████ ████ ██ █████ ████ █████ █████████ █████ ███ ████
Summary
Global warming has caused a rise in global sea level. This rise results from melting glaciers and ice sheets, as well as the fact water volume increases when its temperature increases. This rise in global sea level is lower than it otherwise could have been, because over the years we have built reservoirs around the world that capture water that would otherwise reach the sea.
Strongly Supported Conclusions
It is possible to slow down the rate at which the sea level rises.
We can do things to change the impact of global warming on the sea level.
15.
Which one of the following ███ ████ ██████████ ██ █████████ ██ ███ █████ ██ ███ ███████████ ██████
a
The exact magnitude ██ ███ ████ ██ ██████ ███ █████ ██ ██ ████████
Unsupported. The exact rise in sea level might be universally agreed on. We know nothing about the level of consensus or dispute regarding how much the sea level has risen.
b
Rises in global ███ █████ ████ ████████ ██████ ███ ███████ ██████████ ████ █████ ███ █████████ ██ ████████
Unsupported. Rises in sea level before reservoirs were built could have been due to global warming. The stimulus doesn’t suggest we have a lack of understanding of any rise in sea level before reservoirs were built.
c
Little is known █████ ███ ████████████ ██ ██████ ███████ ██ ███ ████ ██ ██████ ███ ██████
Unsupported. We know that the rise in sea level is not as great as it could have been. And we might know the exact amount of the rise that’s attributable to global warming. The stimulus doesn’t provide any evidence to the contrary.
d
The amount of █████ ██ ███ ███████ ██████████ ██ █████ █████ ██ ███ ██████ ██ █████ ████ ███████ ████ ███ ███████ ██ ████████ ███ ███ ███████
Unsupported. We know reservoirs contain water that would have gone into the sea. We have no evidence concerning how the amount in the reservoirs compares to the amount that melts.
e
The amount of █████ ████ ███████ ████ ███ ███████ ██ ████████ ███ ███ ██████ ██████ ██ ██████████ ██ ███████ ██ ███ ████ ██ ██████ ███ █████ ██████
Supported. The rise in sea level is a product of melting glaciers, expanding water volume, and water being redirected to reservoirs. So, you can’t look at the rise in sea level alone and know how much each factor contributes (or took away, in the case of reservoirs) to the rise.