Global Warming
Yanneska Quezada
MAT 120-1609
Zahidur Rahman
Objective
The objective of this project is to help students calculate the correlation coefficient, the quality of a curve fit, and regression analysis using polynomials of first through third degree. This project will give the students a chance to explore in detail some issues related to global warming using Google Earth such as CO2 (carbon dioxide) emissions. Using CO2 emissions data obtained from many virtual data bases ( Google Earth) and websites such as the United States Energy Information Administration (EIA), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), etc… (see references and reading materials), students will also learn to construct a linear, and quadratic regression model using SPSS and to use a linear regression equation to predict CO2 and CH4 emissions...

Introduction

The Earth's atmosphere is a complex mixture of gases and energy. The two-way exchange of energy (from the sun to Earth, and from the Earth to space) is responsible for regulation of our climate. For many thousands of years, the levels and composition of gases in Earth's atmosphere have remained fairly constant, but more recently they have begun to change. The sources of these changes are the subject of some scientific debate, as are the potential consequences.

References and Reading Materials:

This material is adapted from the following links:
(i) http://www.theguardian.com/environment/datablog/interactive/2012/jun/21/world-carbon-emissions-map. The world map of CO2 emissions
(ii)For world CO2 emissions data, please click the following link. http://www.eia.gov/cfapps/ipdbproject/iedindex3.cfm?tid=90&pid=44&aid=8&cid=regions&syid=1980&eyid=2010&unit=MTCDPP.This is a link to the web site of the US Energy Information Administration.
(iii) For Carbon visuals, please click on the following link http://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2012/oct/25/carbon-emissions-new-york. New York's carbon emissions visualised - as giant spheres
(iv) http://unfccc.int/2860.php. This is a link to the official web page of the Kyoto Protocol
(v) http://www.state.gov/j/oes/climate/. This is a link to the U.S. Department of State web page regarding the administration's policy regarding climate change and the Kyoto Protocol. vi) http://www.prb.org/pdf10/10wpds_eng.pdf. This is a link for the World Population.

These are only suggested places to search. You may find other sites useful. If you browse, try using the keywords "global warming", "greenhouse gas emissions", or "climate change".

Part I

1. Construct a table (Table 1) using the world CO2 emission link (see reference no. (ii) providing the total CO2 (typically measured in mmt) emissions from the consumptions of energy over time. The independent variable, which is the x-coordinate, can be represented as the year during which the total CO2 emission level is calculated.
1mmt = 1 million metric toms (mmt)
Table 1. Provide data on USA and World CO2 gas emissions based on consumptions of energy ( Source U.S. EIA)

Year
USA CO2 (mmt)
World CO2 (mmt)
1980
4775.82
18, 434
1983
4388.78
18,243
1985
4605.15
19,451
1989
5071.65
21,381
1991
4997.43
21,432
1994
5261.19
21,649
1996
5504.41
22,508
1999
5677.94
23,459
2001
5754.55
24,244
2003
5853.03
25,989
2006
5924.29
29,029
2010
5636.74
31,502

2. Generate two scattered diagrams or graphs of the data in Table 1 using SPSS.
Graph 1: USA CO2 emissions (on the y-axis) against time (on the x-axis)

Graph 2: World CO2 emissions (on the y-axis) against time (on the x-axis)

3. Compute a correlation coefficient (R), coefficient of determination ((R2), and test of the significance of the correlation coefficient between CO2 emissions and time (year) (for both USA and world)
Correlations

year
USACO2
year
Pearson Correlation
1
.914**

Sig. (2-tailed)

.000

N
12
12
USACO2
Pearson