How does rising atmospheric CO2 affect marine organisms?

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Volume 6 Number 6:  5 February 2003

Temperature Record of the Week
This issue's Temperature Record of the week is from Fullerton, North Dakota. Visit our U.S. Climate Data section to plot and view these data for yourself.

Current Editorial
Atmospheric CO2 Enrichment and Human Health: Reasons for seriously investigating the hypothesis that elevated levels of atmospheric CO2 positively impact human health continue to mount.  Will we thoroughly investigate them before ignorantly accepting the alternative hypothesis that more CO2 is bad for the biosphere?

Subject Index Summaries
Citrus Trees: Elevated CO2 typically increases photosynthetic rates and biomass production in earth's herbaceous plants.  Does it do the same for woody species?  In this review we investigate this question with respect to citrus trees, seeking also to learn if atmospheric CO2 enrichment impacts the vitamin C concentration of orange juice.

ENSO (Relationship to Global Warming): Will global warming increase the frequency and intensity of ENSO events?  Climate alarmists say yes.  Real-world data say no.

Carbon Sequestration Commentary
Lowly Lichens and Algae Help Arid Lands Sequester More Carbon as the Air's CO2 Content Rises: The earth possesses a vast array of mechanisms for tempering tendencies for climate changes that could be detrimental to the biosphere.  We here explore another one that could so easily be overlooked.

Current Journal Reviews
Sediment Record of the Bransfield Basin, Antarctic Peninsula: Does it depict the Little Ice Age?  The Medieval Warm Period??  Even earlier cold and warm periods of like intensity and duration???

The Permafrost Temperature Record of Barrow, Alaska: Recent unprecedented warming in Alaska is about to do unprecedented damage to the state's permafrost.  Right?  Wrong!

A Brief Synopsis of Ice Sheet Dynamics: Great is the concern expressed by climate alarmists whenever a chunk of polar ice breaks loose and sets to sea or streams of water emanating from the planet's ice caps discharge into the ocean.  But is the situation really as bleak as they claim?  Indeed, is it even bleak at all?

Effects of Elevated CO2 on Pine Forest Litter Decomposition: It is sometimes argued that elevated CO2 will alter leaf litter chemistry (reduce leaf litter nitrogen concentrations) and thus decrease rates of leaf litter decomposition.  What is happening in this regard in the Duke University long-term FACE-in-the-Forest experiment?

Effects of Elevated CO2 on Litter Quality and Decomposition of Dutch Grassland and Peatland Plants: Elevated CO2 often reduces foliar nitrogen concentrations in live green leaves.  Is this also the case in brown senesced leaves?