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Preface

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 November 2025

Richard C. J. Somerville
Affiliation:
University of California, San Diego
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Summary

Climate change is an important existential issue for our time. This book is an anthology of readings about climate change science. The rationale for writing this book is that some universities are now beginning to require all undergraduate students to take an approved climate change course. The book is for students who may lack strong mathematical backgrounds or may not have taken some science courses. It also for the general reader who wants to understand climate change science. The book has no equations and no technical jargon and no complex charts or graphs. Anyone who can read a newspaper can read this book. The book explains how the climate change issue has developed over many decades, how the science has progressed, how diplomacy has proven unable to find a means of limiting global emissions of heat-trapping substances such as carbon dioxide created by burning fossil fuels (coal, oil, and natural gas), and how the forecast of the resulting climate change has become more worrisome.

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Chapter
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Climate Change Science
An Essential Reader
, pp. ix - xv
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2025

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  • Preface
  • Richard C. J. Somerville, University of California, San Diego
  • Book: Climate Change Science
  • Online publication: 13 November 2025
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009691147.001
Available formats
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Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

  • Preface
  • Richard C. J. Somerville, University of California, San Diego
  • Book: Climate Change Science
  • Online publication: 13 November 2025
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009691147.001
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Preface
  • Richard C. J. Somerville, University of California, San Diego
  • Book: Climate Change Science
  • Online publication: 13 November 2025
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009691147.001
Available formats
×