Dance your Ph.D. 2015 - The Greenhouse Gas Remix We live in a world where the climate is influenced by powerful greenhouse gases. But what are they? And where do they come from? Be prepared… The awareness for the problems related to greenhouse gas emissions from anthropogenic sources clearly increased during the last decades. Especially, CO2 emissions from vehicles and industrial processes are well known. However, there are also natural sources which produce and emit greenhouse gases, for example wetland areas. The subsurface of wetlands can be separated into two zones, the aerobic zone above the where oxygen is available and the anaerobic zone below the water table where no oxygen is available anymore. Let’s meet the main actors: Please meet: Carbon Dioxide, the big star in the world of greenhouse gases! In the atmosphere, it has the ability to absorb and emit infrared radiation. It received its fame in relation to vehicle emissions and industrial processes, but CO2 emissions can also originate from soils. It is produced by bacteria in a process called soil respiration. For this process oxygen is needed. Therefore, this process is taking place in the subsurface above the water table. Soil respiration plays an important role in the global carbon cycle. Let’s have a look at the underground world, below the water surface. There are rough environmental conditions, no oxygen is available and only the tough anaerobic bacteria can survive. Please meet the secret underground bosses Methane and Nitrous Oxide. They are the greenhouse gas bad boys with a global warming potential 23 and 310 times higher than CO2. Under natural conditions the ecosystem is in balance, but what happens when the land-use of wetlands change? For example, when natural wetland areas are converted into agricultural fields. When wetlands are drained, the water level and oxygen availability within the subsurface is changing. Then the whole system is in imbalance, which might result either is increased or decreased emissions of the particular greenhouse gases. Especially in Africa wetlands have an important function, because they have a great potential for agricultural use. But there is often a conflict between environmental protection and food production. The research about greenhouse gas emissions can help to reconcile these two interests. The data can be used to estimate the sustainability of different agricultural practices and to find a compromising solution. The music in this video is Creative Commons licensed. You can download the songs under the following links: Titan - Epic Soul Factory (23.10.2015, CC-BY-NC) https://www.jamendo.com/en/track/732501/titan Happy Joyful Whistling - Akashic Records (30.09.2015, CC-BY-NC-ND) https://www.jamendo.com/en/track/913243/happy-joyful-whistling Libertango – Luca Sampieri (30.09.2015, CC-BY-NC-SA) https://www.jamendo.com/en/track/970790/libertango Lean yourself (Major Lazer_ Dj Snake vs. Eminem) – Gustav Krantz (29.07.2015, CC-BY-NC-SA 3.0) https://soundcloud.com/gustavkrantzmashups3/lean-yourself-major-lazer-dj-snake-eminem-mashup Tourbillon Eternel – Dust Trial (30.09.2015, CC-BY-NC-SA) https://www.jamendo.com/de/track/953023/tourbillon-eternel Een Laastse Liedje – Tres Tristes Tangos (30.09.2015, CC-BY-NC 3.0) http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Tres_Tristes_Tangos/~/Een_Laastse_Liedje# Church (Matoma vs. Panic! at the Disco) – PJ Carmack (29.5.2015, CC BY-NC 3.0) https://soundcloud.com/pjcarmack/church-patd-matoma Lighthearted Ukulele Reggae – Akashic Records (30.09.2015, CC-BY-NC-ND) https://www.jamendo.com/de/track/1007256/lighthearted-ukulele-reggae Read more about creative commons licenses under: http://creativecommons.org/

• published: 27 Oct 2015
• views: 4830