What do people around the world think about climate change?

Global warming appears to be front of mind for people worldwide.

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Climate change is reversible – that's the view of 80% of Chinese people, according to a report from the European Investment Bank (EIB).

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How long will a volcanic island live?

Plate tectonics and mantle plumes set the lifespan of volcanic islands like Hawaii and the Galapagos.

Phil Yeo/Getty Images

When a hot plume of rock rises through the Earth's mantle to puncture the overlying crust, it can create not only a volcanic ocean island, but also a swell in the ocean floor hundreds to thousands of kilometers long.

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'Charcoal Australia': This viral image isn't the full story

Viral 'photo' is composite image, but other map shows true and growing size of devastation

Image: anthonyhearsey.com
  • A viral photo shows Australia smoldering like a piece of charcoal about to ignite.
  • The composite image shows all fires over an entire month, which is not the same as all fires raging at the same time.
  • That's not to say the devastation isn't real, and growing–as proven by another map.
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#3: Earth at 2° hotter will be horrific. Now here’s what 4° will look like. | Top 10 2019

Third on the Big Think 2019 countdown reveals this is what the world will be like if we do not act on climate change.

  • The third most popular video of 2019 presents a frightening truth: The best-case scenario of climate change is that world gets just 2°C hotter, which scientists call the "threshold of catastrophe".
  • Why is that the good news? Because if humans don't change course now, the planet is on a trajectory to reach 4°C at the end of this century, which would bring $600 trillion in global climate damages, double the warfare, and a refugee crisis 100x worse than the Syrian exodus.
  • David Wallace-Wells explains what would happen at an 8°C and even 13°C increase. These predictions are horrifying, but should not scare us into complacency. "It should make us focus on them more intently," he says.
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85% of Venice underwater after worst flooding in 50 years

Venice's mayor, Luigi Brugnaro, said the city was "on its knees."

Image source: Barcroft Media / Getty
  • About 85 percent of Venice was underwater on Tuesday, with water levels reaching more than 6 feet deep at some points.
  • Venice's mayor said the unusually strong flooding was caused by climate change, estimating the damage to be in the hundreds of millions of Euros.
  • Venice's MOSE engineering project aims to protect Venice from rising seas, but some say it won't help the city stay above water.
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