years) began to crack in 2000. In 2003, it broke in two, draining
a trapped freshwater lake into the Arctic Ocean. Scientists attrib-
uted the disintegration to 100 years of relentless warming, a pat-
tern that had accelerated in recent years. According to Dr.
Warwick F. Vincent of Laval University, “The most recent
changes are substantial and correlate with this recent increase in
warming that we’ve seen from the 1960s to the present. It’s an
example where a critical threshold has been passed.” Average
temperatures in the Canadian Arctic have increased about four-
tenths of one degree Fahrenheit every 10 years since 1967 (New
York Times/Washington Post).In sum, the evidence is clear that global warming is no longer specu-
lative. Whether it is politically convenient or not, it has arrived.
Controlling it is emerging as the major challenge of our time.
Jim Motavalli
Norwalk, Connecticutxii Preface