Lighthouse Unlimited

 

Throughout Earth’s history, changes in climate have occurred as a natural process. However, since the Industrial Revolution took place in the 19^th century, climate is no longer affected only by natural forces, but also by human activities. Increased amounts of greenhouse gases have been emitted since that time, leading to an altered composition of these gases in the atmosphere. The consequences have been a continuous warming trend over the last 150 years, which is projected to continue in the future, as well as several other worldwide effects. Thus, measures are necessary to counteract the warming trend.

The objective of this thesis is to provide translators and interpreters but also students with background knowledge and the terminology related to climate change. Therefore, the thesis comprises two main parts: The first part provides information about climate change, covering the scientific basis of climate change, discussing measures to mitigate and adapt to climate change, and addressing the politics involved. Current political developments are included. The second part offers a bilingual English-German database, including a variety of technical terms encountered in the thesis, complete with definitions, context examples, and the usage of term entries.

276 pp., 36 fig.

0 INTRODUCTION 5

1 PRINCIPLES OF TRANSLATION-ORIENTED TERMINOLOGY WORK 8

1.1 Specific Language and Terminology 8

1.2 The Importance of Translation-Oriented Terminology Work 8

1.3 Electronic Tools of Modern Translators 9

1.3.1 Internet 10

1.3.2 Electronic Mail, Mailing Lists and Newsgroups 10

1.3.3 Electronic and Online Dictionaries and Encyclopedias 11

1.3.4 Web Research 11

1.3.5 Simple Concordance Program 12

2 TRANSLATION-ORIENTED TERMINOLOGY RESEARCH IN THE FIELD OF

CLIMATE CHANGE 14

3 NATURAL AND ANTHROPOGENIC CLIMATE CHANGE 16

3.1 Climate and the Atmosphere 16

3.2 Causes of Natural and Anthropogenic Climate Change 17

3.2.1 Greenhouse Effect 17

3.2.2 Greenhouse Gases 19

3.2.3 Volcanic Activity 22

3.2.4 Solar Variation 24

3.2.5 Tectonic Activity 24

3.3 Natural Climate Change in the Past  25

3.3.1 Early History of Climate  25

3.3.2 The Milankovitch Cycles 28

3.3.3 The Last Interval of Glaciation 29

3.3.4 The Climate During the Last 1,000 Years  31

3.4 Evidence of Climate Change – Measurement and Proxy Data  33

3.4.1 Tree Rings 34

3.4.2 Plant Pollen 35

3.4.3 Ocean Sediments 35

3.4.4 Ice Cores 35

3.5 Effects and Impacts of Climate Change 37

3.5.1 Glacial Retreat 37

3.5.2 Thawing Permafrost 42

3.5.3 The Arctic  43

3.5.4 Greenland and the Antarctic 44

3.5.5 Sea-Level Rise 46

3.5.6 Change in Ocean Circulation 48

3.5.7 Floods and Droughts  49

3.5.8 Hurricanes and Other Storms 51

3.5.9 Impacts on Ecosystems 53

3.5.10 Impacts on Agriculture  54

3.5.11 Effects on Human Health 55

4 MITIGATION AND ADAPTATION 58

4.1 Carbon-Free and Renewable Energy Technologies  58

4.1.1 Solar Energy  59

4.1.2 Wind Power 61

4.1.3 Geothermal Energy 62

4.1.4 Hydroelectric Power 63

4.1.5 Energy from Biomass  64

4.1.6 Nuclear Power  66

4.2 Conserving Energy and Improving Energy Efficiency 67

4.2.1 Transportation  67

4.2.2 Buildings 68

4.3 Geoengineering 69

4.3.1 Geoengineering Proposals to Reduce Carbon Dioxide in the Atmosphere 70

4.3.2 Geoengineering Proposals to Reduce Sunlight Reaching Earth 71

5 POLITICS 73

5.1 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) 73

5.1.1 Organization of the IPCC  73

5.1.2 IPCC Reports 75

5.1.3 Criticism of the IPCC  75

5.2 Kyoto Protocol 77

5.2.1 Targets of the Kyoto Protocol  77

5.2.2 Post-Kyoto Developments 78

5.3 Emissions Trading 79

5.4 Al Gore 80

5.4.1 Biography of Al Gore 80

5.4.2 An Inconvenient Truth 83

6 CONCLUSION 84

7 THE BILINGUAL DATABASE 86

7.1 Evaluation of the Relevant Text Corpus 86

7.2 Evaluation of the Relevant Reference Work  87

7.3 The Structure of Database Entries as Designed by N. Keller  88

7.4 Two-Way Terminology List 93

7.5 The Database English – German 96

8 BIBLIOGRAPHY 251

9 INDEX OF FIGURES 273