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Senior Seminar Fall 2008ISP 4860
Section 003 (Bowen)
Class 13, December 3Course web site: www.is.wayne.edu/drbowen/SenSemF08
12/3/08 Senior Seminar F08, Class 13 2
Textbooks
• I will be teaching this course again Winter 2009
• Using same textbooks
• Campus bookstore should be interested in buying them back as used
12/3/08 Senior Seminar F08, Class 13 3
Agenda
• Late / returned / future assignments• Content:
The credit crunch Course Summary
• Oral Presentations – schedule• SET and Research Portfolio examination
(self assessment also)
12/3/08 Senior Seminar F08, Class 13 4
New Course resources• www.is.wayne.edu/drbowen/SenSemF08
Human Footprint• Worldwide Problems (NYT Blog 8/2/20)
Economy• Change in Federal Bailout Makes Credit Crunch Worse (NYT,
11/20/08) • Obama Stimulus Plan (NYT, 11/22/08) • We Don't Know How Large a Stimulus "Has To Be" (NYT Op-Ed,
8/11/24) • Economic Crisis Pulling Down Chinese Economy (NYT, 11/25/08) • Economic Crisis in Rich Countries (NYT, 11/25/08) • Causes of the Great Depression (Wall Street Journal, 11/29/08) • What Is A Credit Default Swap (Wall Street Journal, 11/29/08) • Basic Questions From Monitor for Treasury Bailout (NYT, 12/1/08) • It's Official! Recession! (NYT, 12/1/08) • China Tries to Get Its Consumers To Spend (NYT, 12/2/08)
12/3/08 Senior Seminar F08, Class 13 5
New Course resources
• Autos GMAC Becomes a Bank to Qualify for Bailout Funds
(NYT, 11/20/08) Waxman In, Dingell Out (NYT, 11/21/08) Auto Sales Down, and Not Just for The Big Three
(NYT, 8/11/24) Ford Welcomes Obama Plans for Green Vehicles
(NYT, 8/11/24) Bankruptcy Would Mean the End for The Big Three,
Not a Viable Option (NYT, 11/24/08) All Car Sales Are Slumping, Not Just Big Three's
(NYT, 8/12/02)
12/3/08 Senior Seminar F08, Class 13 6
New Course resources
• Ecosystem Obama Signaling Commitment on Global Warming
(NYT, 8/11/27) Brazil to Destroy Less Rainforest (NYT, 12/2/08) UN Climate Change Meeting In Poland (CNN,
12/2/08) Bush Administration Approves Rule Allowing More
Coal Debris In Rivers (NYT, 12/2/08) • Energy
Oil Price Drops and the General Economy (NYT, 12/1/08)
Hawaii Approves Electric Car Initiative (NYT, 12/3/08)
12/3/08 Senior Seminar F08, Class 13 7
New Course resources
• Food No Agreement to Save Bluefin Tuna from
Overfishing (11/26/08) Bluefin Tuna Endangered (Time, 11/28/08)
• Health River Blindness Increasing (NYT, 8/11/24) AIDS Could Be Managed Now (NYT, 12/1/08)
12/3/08 Senior Seminar F08, Class 13 8
Past Assignments• Due 10/15: draft of Chapter 1 (overview) • Due 10/22: drafts of
Chapter 2 – status in focus area Chapter 3 – trends in focus area
• Due 10/29: revised Chapter 1• Due 11/5:
Chapters 2 & 3 revised If no Chapter 1, Section Planner for Chapter 1 If you are behind, schedule for catching up
12/3/08 Senior Seminar F08, Class 13 9
Past Assignments• Due 11/11: drafts of:
Chapter 4: Sustainability in your focus area (sustainability – can we make it to 2050?)
Chapter 5: Review of your focus area and the human footprint
12/3/08 Senior Seminar F08, Class 13 10
Due Tonight
• Full 25-page paper plus cover page and Works Cited that do not count in the total. Turn in via Moodle.
12/3/08 Senior Seminar F08, Class 13 11
Assignments Coming Up
• December 10: 5-minute oral presentations
12/3/08 Senior Seminar F08, Class 13 12
Assignment Status
• There is a pile-up at the end I will not be able to review drafts that come
piling in at the end – proceed to the revised versions on your own
People who are very late will not have time to do a good job
Grades for these people may be delayed Reminder – a component of the course grade
comes for getting assignments in on time
12/3/08 Senior Seminar F08, Class 13 14
Credit Crunch
• Sales for all auto manufacturers are slumping (Prius did the worst!)
12/3/08 Senior Seminar F08, Class 13 15
Credit Crunch
• China’s economycompared to US
• US: import economy• China: export
economy• With worldwide
slump, Chinawants its consumers to buy more
• But without a safety net (medical care, college, retirement), they want to save for these things
US China
Business Spending
29% 65%
Consumer Spending
71% 35%
12/3/08 Senior Seminar F08, Class 13 16
Credit Crunch
• With US safety net disappearing, US consumers also want to conserve cash US consumers using credit cards less – too
hard to control spending During “Black Friday” shopping weekend,
expensive items had large sales decreases• Dividing line about $1,000
Luxury goods also in decline (unusual)
12/3/08 Senior Seminar F08, Class 13 17
Credit Crunch• Economy: a complicated system that we do
not understand• Without knowing what is wrong, we
don’t know how to fix it. Stock market tanked when Paulson said TARP
program would switch to consumer credit Banks behaving same way as consumers
• We didn’t spend stimulus checks• Banks don’t want to spend loaning to people whose
credit is getting worse
• We are also ignorant about ecosystem!
12/3/08 Senior Seminar F08, Class 13 19
The Human Footprint
• Total impact of humans Population Urbanization Ecosystem services Food / fish Water Energy / Global Warming Tragedy of Commons Consumption & waste Development / disease Land: dwelling & food Sustainability
12/3/08 Senior Seminar F08, Class 13 20
The Human Footprint
• Present problems in many (all?) of these areas
• Problems will get worse Population increase of about 50%
• But the poor consume less in some areas
Bigger problem:• Poor countries becoming affluent• Therefore, they will consume nearer to our level• In some cases (Global Warming), more
12/3/08 Senior Seminar F08, Class 13 21
The Human Footprint
• Problems are interlocking One example: more irrigation can produce
more food, but decrease access to water
• Are we doomed? It could happen But we have faced this type of thing before
• Hunter-gatherers to Agricultural society• Agricultural to Industrial society
Maybe we can pull it off again (I think we will)
12/3/08 Senior Seminar F08, Class 13 22
The Human Footprint
• How can we get through this large crisis?
• Absolute Necessities: Water
• Improve efficiency of use (use less)• Suit quality to use• More and more thorough treatment• Regional cooperation for allocation
12/3/08 Senior Seminar F08, Class 13 23
The Human Footprint
• Absolute Necessities: Food
• Produce more – more land, GMOs, education for farmers, better conditions for rural life
o Is mechanized agriculture sustainable, with its intensive use of water, petroleum, fertilizer and pesticides?
• Waste less – losses to rodents, rotting, maldistribution (some too much, others too little)
• Eat lower on the food chain• I feel we may need all of these, too early to choose
12/3/08 Senior Seminar F08, Class 13 24
The Human Footprint
• Ecosystem Accept responsibility Quickly learn and get better at being
responsible Be cautious in the meantime
• Development and economies Ditto for ecosystem
12/3/08 Senior Seminar F08, Class 13 25
The Human Footprint
• Energy and Global Warming Accept responsibility Increase efficiency (use less) (higher taxes)
• Globalization and suburbanization are high-energy systems
More use of electricity Develop alternative sources Learn more Try geoengineering
12/3/08 Senior Seminar F08, Class 13 26
The Human Footprint
• Disease (interacts with development) More worldwide use of vaccines and simple
preventive measures Healthier habits and better systems in rich
countries Continue research but make new medicines
accessible
12/3/08 Senior Seminar F08, Class 13 27
The Human Footprint
• Land and urbanization Improve quality of rural life Development improves quality of urban life Property rights for urban squatters Stronger warning systems for disasters
(mudslides, tsunamis, storms, etc.)
12/3/08 Senior Seminar F08, Class 13 28
The Human Footprint
• Improvements to and greater use of online and virtual methods (life)
• Future cannot be “freezing in the dark”
• We will survive if we can make a future that meets the needs above, and that enough of us think is better
• A mix of solutions – government, NGOs, entrepreneurs, established businesses
12/3/08 Senior Seminar F08, Class 13 29
The Human Footprint
• The biggest uncertainty for me: Can we do all of this without a governing
body? Role of regional and international cooperation
will increase
• Weak and failed governments are a problem (e.g. Somalia and Pakistan) Should I add this to the list for next semester?
12/3/08 Senior Seminar F08, Class 13 31
Oral Reports on Papers
• December 10 – last regular class, Oral Reports on Papers
• Handout Oral Report Handout (bring 21 copies)
• Twenty people × Ten minutes each =200 minutes = 3 hours 20 minutes
12/3/08 Senior Seminar F08, Class 13 32
Oral Reports
• Order so far:1. Patricia Sharon
2. Yvonne Wesley
3. Meredith Angell
4. Michael ThompsonEL
5. Gina Zeoli
6. Rochelle Vergari
7. Willie Fair