Weather

Weather is the state of the atmosphere , to the degree that it is hot or cold , wet or dry , calm or stormy , clear or cloudy . Most weather phenomena occur in the lowest level of the atmosphere , the troposphere , just below the stratosphere . Weather refers to day-to-day temperature and precipitation activity , whereas climate is the term for the averaging of atmospheric conditions over longer periods of time . When used without qualification , `` weather '' is generally understood to mean the weather of Earth .   Weather is driven by air pressure , temperature and moisture differences between one place and another . These differences can occur due to the sun 's angle at any particular spot , which varies with latitude . The strong temperature contrast between polar and tropical air gives rise to the largest scale atmospheric circulations : the Hadley Cell , the Ferrel Cell , the Polar Cell , and the jet stream . Weather systems in the mid-latitudes , such as extratropical cyclones , are caused by instabilities of the jet stream flow . Because the Earth 's axis is tilted relative to its orbital plane , sunlight is incident at different angles at different times of the year . On Earth 's surface , temperatures usually range ± 40 ° C ( − 40 ° F to 100 ° F ) annually . Over thousands of years , changes in Earth 's orbit can affect the amount and distribution of solar energy received by the Earth , thus influencing long-term climate and global climate change .   Surface temperature differences in turn cause pressure differences . Higher altitudes are cooler than lower altitudes as most atmospheric heating is due to contact with the Earth 's surface while radiative losses to space are mostly constant . Weather forecasting is the application of science and technology to predict the state of the atmosphere for a future time and a given location . The Earth 's weather system is a chaotic system ; as a result , small changes to one part of the system can grow to have large effects on the system as a whole . Human attempts to control the weather have occurred throughout history , and there is evidence that human activities such as agriculture and industry have modified weather patterns .   Studying how the weather works on other planets has been helpful in understanding how weather works on Earth . A famous landmark in the Solar System , Jupiter 's Great Red Spot , is an anticyclonic storm known to have existed for at least 300 years . However , weather is not limited to planetary bodies . A star 's corona is constantly being lost to space , creating what is essentially a very thin atmosphere throughout the Solar System . The movement of mass ejected from the Sun is known as the solar wind .


Weather buoy

Weather buoys are instruments which collect weather and ocean data within the world 's oceans , as well as aid during emergency response to chemical spills , legal proceedings , and engineering design . Moored buoys have been in use since 1951 , while drifting buoys have been used since 1979 . Moored buoys are connected with the ocean bottom using either chains , nylon , or buoyant polypropylene . With the decline of the weather ship , they have taken a more primary role in measuring conditions over the open seas since the 1970s . During the 1980s and 1990s , a network of buoys in the central and eastern tropical Pacific Ocean helped study the El Niño-Southern Oscillation . Moored weather buoys range from 1.5 m to 12 m in diameter , while drifting buoys are smaller , with diameters of 30 cm to 40 cm . Drifting buoys are the dominant form of weather buoy in sheer number , with 1250 located worldwide . Wind data from buoys has smaller error than that from ships . There are differences in the values of sea surface temperature measurements between the two platforms as well , relating to the depth of the measurement and whether or not the water is heated by the ship which measures the quantity .


Weather forecasting

Weather forecasting is the application of science and technology to predict the state of the atmosphere for a given location . Human beings have attempted to predict the weather informally for millennia , and formally since the nineteenth century . Weather forecasts are made by collecting quantitative data about the current state of the atmosphere at a given place and using scientific understanding of atmospheric processes to project how the atmosphere will change .   Once an all-human endeavor based mainly upon changes in barometric pressure , current weather conditions , and sky condition , weather forecasting now relies on computer-based models that take many atmospheric factors into account . Human input is still required to pick the best possible forecast model to base the forecast upon , which involves pattern recognition skills , teleconnections , knowledge of model performance , and knowledge of model biases . The inaccuracy of forecasting is due to the chaotic nature of the atmosphere , the massive computational power required to solve the equations that describe the atmosphere , the error involved in measuring the initial conditions , and an incomplete understanding of atmospheric processes . Hence , forecasts become less accurate as the difference between current time and the time for which the forecast is being made ( the range of the forecast ) increases . The use of ensembles and model consensus help narrow the error and pick the most likely outcome .   There are a variety of end uses to weather forecasts . Weather warnings are important forecasts because they are used to protect life and property . Forecasts based on temperature and precipitation are important to agriculture , and therefore to traders within commodity markets . Temperature forecasts are used by utility companies to estimate demand over coming days . On an everyday basis , people use weather forecasts to determine what to wear on a given day . Since outdoor activities are severely curtailed by heavy rain , snow and wind chill , forecasts can be used to plan activities around these events , and to plan ahead and survive them . In 2014 , the US spent $ 5.1 billion on weather forecasting .


Weather station

A weather station is a facility , either on land or sea , with instruments and equipment for measuring atmospheric conditions to provide information for weather forecasts and to study the weather and climate . The measurements taken include temperature , atmospheric pressure , humidity , wind speed , wind direction , and precipitation amounts . Wind measurements are taken with as few other obstructions as possible , while temperature and humidity measurements are kept free from direct solar radiation , or insolation . Manual observations are taken at least once daily , while automated measurements are taken at least once an hour . Weather conditions out at sea are taken by ships and buoys , which measure slightly different meteorological quantities such as sea surface temperature ( SST ) , wave height , and wave period . Drifting weather buoys outnumber their moored versions by a significant amount .


Web of Science

Web of Science ( previously known as Web of Knowledge ) is an online subscription-based scientific citation indexing service originally produced by the Institute for Scientific Information ( ISI ) , now maintained by Clarivate Analytics ( previously the Intellectual Property and Science business of Thomson Reuters ) , that provides a comprehensive citation search . It gives access to multiple databases that reference cross-disciplinary research , which allows for in-depth exploration of specialized sub-fields within an academic or scientific discipline .


Weichselian glaciation

The last glacial period and its associated glaciation is known in Northern Europe as the Weichselian glaciation , Weichselian ice age ( Weichsel-Eiszeit ) , Vistulian glaciation , Weichsel or , less commonly , the Weichsel glaciation , Weichselian cold period ( Weichsel-Kaltzeit ) , Weichselian glacial ( Weichsel-Glazial ) , Weichselian Stage or , rarely , the Weichselian complex ( Weichsel-Komplex ) . In the Alpine region it corresponds to the Würm glaciation . It was characterized by a large ice sheet that spread out from the Scandinavian Mountains and extended as far as the east coast of Schleswig-Holstein , the March of Brandenburg and Northwest Russia .   In Northern Europe it was the youngest of the glacials of the Pleistocene ice age . The preceding warm period in this region was the Eemian interglacial . The last cold period began about 115,000 years ago and ended 11,700 years ago . Its end corresponds with the end of the Pleistocene epoch and start of the Holocene .


West Antarctic Ice Sheet

The Western Antarctic Ice Sheet ( WAIS ) is the segment of the continental ice sheet that covers West ( or Lesser ) Antarctica , the portion of Antarctica on the side of the Transantarctic Mountains which lies in the Western Hemisphere . The WAIS is classified as a marine-based ice sheet , meaning that its bed lies well below sea level and its edges flow into floating ice shelves . The WAIS is bounded by the Ross Ice Shelf , the Ronne Ice Shelf , and outlet glaciers that drain into the Amundsen Sea .   It is estimated that the volume of the Antarctic ice sheet is about 25.4 million km3 ( 6.1 million cu mi ) , and the WAIS contains just under 10 % of this , or 2.2 million km3 ( 530,000 cu mi ) . The weight of the ice has caused the underlying rock to sink by between 0.5 and 1 kilometres ( 0.31 -- 0.62 mi ) in a process known as isostatic depression .   Under the force of its own weight , the ice sheet deforms and flows . The interior ice flows slowly over rough bedrock . In some circumstances , ice can flow faster in ice streams , separated by slow-flowing ice ridges . The inter-stream ridges are frozen to the bed while the bed beneath the ice streams consists of water-saturated sediments . Many of these sediments were deposited before the ice sheet occupied the region , when much of West Antarctica was covered by the ocean . The rapid ice-stream flow is a non-linear process still not fully understood ; streams can start and stop for unclear reasons .   When ice reaches the coast , it either calves or continues to flow outward onto the water . The result is a large , floating ice shelf affixed to the continent .


West Antarctica

West Antarctica , or Lesser Antarctica , one of the two major regions of Antarctica , is the part of that continent that lies within the Western Hemisphere , and includes the Antarctic Peninsula . It is separated from East Antarctica by the Transantarctic Mountains and is covered by the West Antarctic Ice Sheet . It lies between the Ross Sea ( partly covered by the Ross Ice Shelf ) , and the Weddell Sea ( largely covered by the Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf ) . It may be considered a giant peninsula stretching from the South Pole towards the tip of South America .   West Antarctica is largely covered by the Antarctic ice sheet , but there have been signs that climate change is having some effect and that this ice sheet may have started to shrink slightly . The coasts of the Antarctic Peninsula are the only parts of West Antarctica that become ( in summer ) ice-free . These constitute the Marielandia Antarctic tundra and have the warmest climate in Antarctica . The rocks are clad in mosses and lichens that can cope with the intense cold of winter and the short growing-season .


West Coast of the United States

The West Coast or Pacific Coast is the coastline along which the contiguous Western United States meets the North Pacific Ocean . As a region , this term most often refers to the coastal states of California , Oregon and Washington . More specifically , it refers to an area defined on the east by the Cascade Range , Sierra Nevada and Mojave Desert , and on the west by the Pacific Ocean . The U.S. Census groups the five states of California , Oregon , Washington , Alaska , and Hawaii together as the Pacific States division .


West Side Highway

The West Side Highway ( officially the Joe DiMaggio Highway ) is a mostly surface section of New York State Route 9A ( NY 9A ) that runs from West 72nd Street along the Hudson River to the southern tip of Manhattan in New York City . It replaced the West Side Elevated Highway , built between 1929 and 1951 , which was shut down in 1973 due to neglect and lack of maintenance , and was dismantled by 1989 . The term `` West Side Highway '' is often mistakenly used , particularly by the news media traffic reporters , to include the roadway north of 72nd Street which is properly known as the Henry Hudson Parkway .   The current highway was complete by 2001 , but required some reconstruction due to damage sustained in the 9/11 attacks . It uses the surface streets that existed before the elevated highway was built : West Street , Eleventh Avenue and Twelfth Avenue . A short section of 12th Avenue still runs between 125th and 138th Streets , under the Riverside Drive Viaduct . Eleventh Avenue is a separate street north of 22nd Street . The portion between West 42nd Street and Canal Street is part of the Lincoln Highway .


West Virginia

West Virginia -LSB- wɛst_vərˈdʒɪnjə -RSB- is a state located in the Appalachian region of the Southern United States . It is bordered by Virginia to the southeast , Kentucky to the southwest , Ohio to the northwest , Pennsylvania to the north ( and , slightly , east ) , and Maryland to the northeast . West Virginia is the 9th smallest by area , is ranked 38th in population , and has the second lowest household income of the 50 United States . The capital and largest city is Charleston .   West Virginia became a state following the Wheeling Conventions of 1861 , in which delegates from some Unionist counties of northwestern Virginia decided to break away from Virginia during the American Civil War , although they included many secessionist counties in the new state . West Virginia was admitted to the Union on June 20 , 1863 , and was a key Civil War border state . West Virginia was the only state to form by separating from a Confederate state , the first to separate from any state since Maine separated from Massachusetts , and was one of two states formed during the American Civil War ( the other being Nevada ) .   The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States . The northern panhandle extends adjacent to Pennsylvania and Ohio , with the West Virginia cities of Wheeling and Weirton just across the border from the Pittsburgh metropolitan area , while Bluefield is less than 70 mi from North Carolina . Huntington in the southwest is close to the states of Ohio and Kentucky , while Martinsburg and Harpers Ferry in the Eastern Panhandle region are considered part of the Washington metropolitan area , in between the states of Maryland and Virginia . The unique position of West Virginia means that it is often included in several geographical regions , including the Mid-Atlantic , the Upland South , and the Southeastern United States . It is the only state that is entirely within the area served by the Appalachian Regional Commission ; the area is commonly defined as `` Appalachia '' .   The state is noted for its mountains and rolling hills , its historically significant logging and coal mining industries , and its political and labor history . It is one of the most densely karstic areas in the world , making it a choice area for recreational caving and scientific research . The karst lands contribute to much of the state 's cool trout waters . It is also known for a wide range of outdoor recreational opportunities , including skiing , whitewater rafting , fishing , hiking , backpacking , mountain biking , rock climbing , and hunting .


Western United States

The Western United States , commonly referred to as the American West , the Far West , or simply the West , traditionally refers to the region comprising the westernmost states of the United States . Because European settlement in the U.S. expanded westward after its founding , the meaning of the West has evolved over time . Prior to about 1800 , the crest of the Appalachian Mountains was seen as the western frontier .   Since then , the frontier generally moved westward and eventually lands west of the Mississippi River came to be referred to as the West . Though no consensus exists , even among experts , for the definition of the West as a region , the U.S. Census Bureau 's definition of the 13 westernmost states includes the Rocky Mountains and the Great Basin to the West Coast , and the outlying states of Hawaii and Alaska .   The West contains several major biomes . It is known for arid to semi-arid plateaus and plains , particularly in the American Southwest -- forested mountains , including the major ranges of the American Sierra Nevada and Rocky Mountains -- the massive coastal shoreline of the American Pacific Coast -- and the rainforests of the Pacific Northwest .


Wetland

A wetland is a land area that is saturated with water , either permanently or seasonally , such that it takes on the characteristics of a distinct ecosystem . The primary factor that distinguishes wetlands from other land forms or water bodies is the characteristic vegetation of aquatic plants , adapted to the unique hydric soil . Wetlands play a number of roles in the environment , principally water purification , flood control , carbon sink and shoreline stability . Wetlands are also considered the most biologically diverse of all ecosystems , serving as home to a wide range of plant and animal life .   Wetlands occur naturally on every continent except Antarctica , the largest including the Amazon River basin , the West Siberian Plain , and the Pantanal in South America . The water found in wetlands can be freshwater , brackish , or saltwater . The main wetland types include swamps , marshes , bogs , and fens ; and sub-types include mangrove , carr , pocosin , and varzea .   The UN Millennium Ecosystem Assessment determined that environmental degradation is more prominent within wetland systems than any other ecosystem on Earth . International conservation efforts are being used in conjunction with the development of rapid assessment tools to inform people about wetland issues .   Constructed wetlands can be used to treat municipal and industrial wastewater as well as stormwater runoff . They may also play a role in water-sensitive urban design .


White-tailed deer

The white-tailed deer ( Odocoileus virginianus ) , also known as the whitetail , is a medium-sized deer native to the United States , Canada , Mexico , Central America , and South America as far south as Peru and Bolivia . It has also been introduced to New Zealand , Cuba , Jamaica , Hispaniola , Puerto Rico , Bahamas , Lesser Antilles , and some countries in Europe , such as Finland , the Czech Republic , and Serbia . In the Americas , it is the most widely distributed wild ungulate .   In North America , the species is widely distributed east of the Rocky Mountains , but elsewhere , it is mostly replaced by the black-tailed or mule deer ( Odocoileus hemionus ) . In western North America , it is found in aspen parklands and deciduous river bottomlands within the central and northern Great Plains , and in mixed deciduous riparian corridors , river valley bottomlands , and lower foothills of the northern Rocky Mountain regions from South Dakota and Wyoming to northeastern British Columbia , including the Montana Valley and Foothill grasslands .   The conversion of land adjacent to the northern Rockies into agriculture use and partial clear-cutting of coniferous trees ( resulting in widespread deciduous vegetation ) has been favorable to the white-tailed deer and has pushed its distribution to as far north as Fort St. John , British Columbia . Populations of deer around the Great Lakes have also expanded their range northwards , due to conversion of land to agricultural uses favoring more deciduous vegetation , and local caribou and moose populations . The westernmost population of the species , known as the Columbian white-tailed deer , once was widespread in the mixed forests along the Willamette and Cowlitz River valleys of western Oregon and southwestern Washington , but today its numbers have been considerably reduced , and it is classified as near-threatened .


Why We Love Dogs, Eat Pigs, and Wear Cows

Why We Love Dogs , Eat Pigs , and Wear Cows : An Introduction to Carnism ( 2009 ) is a book by American social psychologist Melanie Joy about the belief system and psychology of meat eating , or `` carnism '' . Joy coined the term carnism in 2001 and developed it in her doctoral dissertation in 2003 . Carnism is a subset of speciesism , and contrasts with ethical veganism , the moral commitment to abstain from consuming or using meat and other animal products .


Wide-body aircraft

A wide-body aircraft is a jet airliner having a fuselage wide enough to accommodate two passenger aisles , also known as twin-aisle aircraft , with seven or more seats abreast . The typical fuselage diameter is 5 to . In the typical wide-body economy cabin , passengers are seated seven to ten abreast , allowing a total capacity of 200 to 850 passengers . The largest wide-body aircraft are over 6 m wide , and can accommodate up to eleven passengers abreast in high-density configurations .   By comparison , a typical narrow-body airliner has a diameter of 3 to , with a single aisle , and seats between two and six people abreast .   Wide-body aircraft were originally designed for a combination of efficiency and passenger comfort and to increase the amount of cargo space . However , airlines quickly gave in to economic factors , and reduced the extra passenger space in order to maximize revenue and profits .   Wide-body aircraft are also used for the transport of commercial freight and cargo and other special uses , described further below .   The biggest wide-body aircraft are known as jumbo jets due to their very large size ; examples include the Boeing 747 ( `` jumbo jet '' ) , Airbus A380 ( `` superjumbo jet '' ) , and upcoming Boeing 777X ( `` mini jumbo jet '' ) . The phrase , `` jumbo jet '' , derives from Jumbo , a famous circus elephant in the 19th century .   7-abreast aircraft seats typically 160 to 260 passengers , 8-abreast 250 to 380 , 9 and 10-abreast 350 to 480 .


Wikipedia

Wikipedia ( -LSB- wɪkiˈpiːdiə -RSB- ) is a free online encyclopedia with the aim to allow anyone to edit articles . Wikipedia is the largest and most popular general reference work on the Internet and is ranked among the ten most popular websites . Wikipedia is owned by the nonprofit Wikimedia Foundation .   Wikipedia was launched on January 15 , 2001 , by Jimmy Wales and Larry Sanger . Sanger coined Wikipedia , a portmanteau of wiki and encyclopedia . There was only the English language version initially , but it quickly developed similar versions in other languages , which differ in content and in editing practices . With articles , the English Wikipedia is the largest of the more than 290 Wikipedia encyclopedias . Overall , Wikipedia consists of more than 40 million articles in more than 250 different languages and , , it had 18 billion page views and nearly 500 million unique visitors each month .   As of March 2017 , Wikipedia has about forty thousand high-quality articles known as Featured Articles and Good Articles that cover vital topics . In 2005 , Nature published a peer review comparing 42 science articles from Encyclopædia Britannica and Wikipedia , and found that Wikipedia 's level of accuracy approached Encyclopædia Britannicas . Criticism of Wikipedia includes claims that it exhibits systemic bias , presents a mixture of `` truths , half truths , and some falsehoods '' , and that , in controversial topics , it is subject to manipulation and spin .


Wild fisheries

A fishery is an area with an associated fish or aquatic population which is harvested for its commercial value . Fisheries can be marine ( saltwater ) or freshwater . They can also be wild or farmed .   Wild fisheries are sometimes called capture fisheries . The aquatic life they support is not controlled in any meaningful way and needs to be `` captured '' or fished . Wild fisheries exist primarily in the oceans , and particularly around coasts and continental shelves . They also exist in lakes and rivers . Issues with wild fisheries are overfishing and pollution . Significant wild fisheries have collapsed or are in danger of collapsing , due to overfishing and pollution . Overall , production from the world 's wild fisheries has levelled out , and may be starting to decline .   As a contrast to wild fisheries , farmed fisheries can operate in sheltered coastal waters , in rivers , lakes and ponds , or in enclosed bodies of water such as tanks . Farmed fisheries are technological in nature , and revolve around developments in aquaculture . Farmed fisheries are expanding , and Chinese aquaculture in particular is making many advances . Nevertheless , the majority of fish consumed by humans continues to be sourced from wild fisheries . As of the early 21st century , fish is humanity 's only significant wild food source .


Wildfire

A wildfire or wildland fire is a fire in an area of combustible vegetation that occurs in the countryside or rural area . Depending on the type of vegetation where it occurs , a wildfire can also be classified more specifically as a brush fire , bush fire , desert fire , forest fire , grass fire , hill fire , peat fire , vegetation fire , or veld fire . Fossil charcoal indicates that wildfires began soon after the appearance of terrestrial plants 420 million years ago . Wildfire 's occurrence throughout the history of terrestrial life invites conjecture that fire must have had pronounced evolutionary effects on most ecosystems ' flora and fauna . Earth is an intrinsically flammable planet owing to its cover of carbon-rich vegetation , seasonally dry climates , atmospheric oxygen , and widespread lightning and volcano ignitions .   Wildfires can be characterized in terms of the cause of ignition , their physical properties , the combustible material present , and the effect of weather on the fire . Wildfires can cause damage to property and human life , but they have many beneficial effects on native vegetation , animals , and ecosystems that have evolved with fire . Many plant species depend on the effects of fire for growth and reproduction . However , wildfire in ecosystems where wildfire is uncommon or where non-native vegetation has encroached may have negative ecological effects . Wildfire behaviour and severity result from the combination of factors such as available fuels , physical setting , and weather . Analyses of historical meteorological data and national fire records in western North America show the primacy of climate in driving large regional fires via wet periods that create substantial fuels or drought and warming that extend conducive fire weather .   Strategies of wildfire prevention , detection , and suppression have varied over the years . One common and inexpensive technique is controlled burning : permitting or even igniting smaller fires to minimize the amount of flammable material available for a potential wildfire . Vegetation may be burned periodically to maintain high species diversity and frequent burning of surface fuels limits fuel accumulation . Wildland fire use is the cheapest and most ecologically appropriate policy for many forests . Fuels may also be removed by logging , but fuels treatments and thinning have no effect on severe fire behavior . Wildfire itself is reportedly `` the most effective treatment for reducing a fire 's rate of spread , fireline intensity , flame length , and heat per unit of area '' according to Jan Van Wagtendonk , a biologist at the Yellowstone Field Station . Building codes in fire-prone areas typically require that structures be built of flame-resistant materials and a defensible space be maintained by clearing flammable materials within a prescribed distance from the structure .


Wildlife

Wildlife traditionally refers to undomesticated animal species , but has come to include all plants , fungi , and other organisms that grow or live wild in an area without being introduced by humans .   Wildlife can be found in all ecosystems . Deserts , forests , rain forests , plains , grasslands and other areas including the most developed urban areas , all have distinct forms of wildlife . While the term in popular culture usually refers to animals that are untouched by human factors , most scientists agree that much wildlife is affected by human activities .   Humans have historically tended to separate civilization from wildlife in a number of ways including the legal , social , and moral sense . Some animals , however , have adapted to suburban environments . This includes such animals as domesticated cats , dogs , mice , and gerbils . Some religions declare certain animals to be sacred , and in modern times concern for the natural environment has provoked activists to protest against the exploitation of wildlife for human benefit or entertainment .   The global wildlife population has decreased by 52 percent between 1970 and 2014 , according to a report by the World Wildlife Fund .


Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe

The Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe ( WMAP ) , originally known as the Microwave Anisotropy Probe ( MAP ) , was a spacecraft operating from 2001 to 2010 which measured temperature differences across the sky in the cosmic microwave background ( CMB ) -- the radiant heat remaining from the Big Bang . Headed by Professor Charles L. Bennett of Johns Hopkins University , the mission was developed in a joint partnership between the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center and Princeton University . The WMAP spacecraft was launched on June 30 , 2001 from Florida . The WMAP mission succeeded the COBE space mission and was the second medium-class ( MIDEX ) spacecraft in the NASA Explorers program . In 2003 , MAP was renamed WMAP in honor of cosmologist David Todd Wilkinson ( 1935 -- 2002 ) , who had been a member of the mission 's science team . After 9 years of operations , WMAP was switched off in 2010 , following the launch of the more advanced Planck spacecraft by ESA in 2009 .   WMAP 's measurements played a key role in establishing the current Standard Model of Cosmology : the Lambda-CDM model . The WMAP data are very well fit by a universe that is dominated by dark energy in the form of a cosmological constant . Other cosmological data are also consistent , and together tightly constrain the Model . In the Lambda-CDM model of the universe , the age of the universe is billion years . The WMAP mission 's determination of the age of the universe to better than 1 % precision . The current expansion rate of the universe is ( see Hubble constant ) of . The content of the universe presently consists of ordinary baryonic matter ; cold dark matter ( CDM ) that neither emits nor absorbs light ; and of dark energy in the form of a cosmological constant that accelerates the expansion of the universe . Less than 1 % of the current contents of the universe is in neutrinos , but WMAP 's measurements have found , for the first time in 2008 , that the data prefers the existence of a cosmic neutrino background with an effective number of neutrino species of . The contents point to a Euclidean flat geometry , with curvature of . The WMAP measurements also support the cosmic inflation paradigm in several ways , including the flatness measurement .   The mission has won various awards : according to Science magazine , the WMAP was the Breakthrough of the Year for 2003 . This mission 's results papers were first and second in the `` Super Hot Papers in Science Since 2003 '' list . Of the all-time most referenced papers in physics and astronomy in the INSPIRE-HEP database , only three have been published since 2000 , and all three are WMAP publications . Bennett , Lyman A. Page , Jr. , and David N. Spergel , the latter both of Princeton University , shared the 2010 Shaw Prize in astronomy for their work on WMAP . Bennett and the WMAP science team were awarded the 2012 Gruber Prize in cosmology .   As of October 2010 , the WMAP spacecraft is derelict in a heliocentric graveyard orbit after 9 years of operations . All WMAP data are released to the public and have been subject to careful scrutiny . The final official data release was the nine-year release in 2012 .   Some aspects of the data are statistically unusual for the Standard Model of Cosmology . For example , the largest angular-scale measurement , the quadrupole moment , is somewhat smaller than the Model would predict , but this discrepancy is not highly significant . A large cold spot and other features of the data are more statistically significant , and research continues into these .


William Nordhaus

William Dawbney `` Bill '' Nordhaus ( born May 31 , 1941 ) is an economist and Sterling Professor of Economics at Yale University , best known for his work in economic modeling and climate change .


Wind

Wind is the flow of gases on a large scale . On the surface of the Earth , wind consists of the bulk movement of air . In outer space , solar wind is the movement of gases or charged particles from the Sun through space , while planetary wind is the outgassing of light chemical elements from a planet 's atmosphere into space . Winds are commonly classified by their spatial scale , their speed , the types of forces that cause them , the regions in which they occur , and their effect . The strongest observed winds on a planet in the Solar System occur on Neptune and Saturn . Winds have various aspects , an important one being its velocity ( wind speed ) ; another the density of the gas involved ; another its energy content or wind energy .   In meteorology , winds are often referred to according to their strength , and the direction from which the wind is blowing . Short bursts of high speed wind are termed gusts . Strong winds of intermediate duration ( around one minute ) are termed squalls . Long-duration winds have various names associated with their average strength , such as breeze , gale , storm , and hurricane . Wind occurs on a range of scales , from thunderstorm flows lasting tens of minutes , to local breezes generated by heating of land surfaces and lasting a few hours , to global winds resulting from the difference in absorption of solar energy between the climate zones on Earth . The two main causes of large-scale atmospheric circulation are the differential heating between the equator and the poles , and the rotation of the planet ( Coriolis effect ) . Within the tropics , thermal low circulations over terrain and high plateaus can drive monsoon circulations . In coastal areas the sea breeze/land breeze cycle can define local winds ; in areas that have variable terrain , mountain and valley breezes can dominate local winds .   In human civilization , wind has inspired mythology , influenced the events of history , expanded the range of transport and warfare , and provided a power source for mechanical work , electricity and recreation . Wind powers the voyages of sailing ships across Earth 's oceans . Hot air balloons use the wind to take short trips , and powered flight uses it to increase lift and reduce fuel consumption . Areas of wind shear caused by various weather phenomena can lead to dangerous situations for aircraft . When winds become strong , trees and man-made structures are damaged or destroyed .   Winds can shape landforms , via a variety of aeolian processes such as the formation of fertile soils , such as loess , and by erosion . Dust from large deserts can be moved great distances from its source region by the prevailing winds ; winds that are accelerated by rough topography and associated with dust outbreaks have been assigned regional names in various parts of the world because of their significant effects on those regions . Wind also affects the spread of wildfires . Winds can disperse seeds from various plants , enabling the survival and dispersal of those plant species , as well as flying insect populations . When combined with cold temperatures , wind has a negative impact on livestock . Wind affects animals ' food stores , as well as their hunting and defensive strategies .


Wind farm

A wind farm is a group of wind turbines in the same location used to produce electricity . A large wind farm may consist of several hundred individual wind turbines and cover an extended area of hundreds of square miles , but the land between the turbines may be used for agricultural or other purposes . A wind farm can also be located offshore .   Many of the largest operational onshore wind farms are located in China , the United States and Germany . For example , the largest wind farm in the world , Gansu Wind Farm in China has a capacity of over 6,000 MW as of 2012 , with a goal of 20,000 MW by 2020 . As of April 2013 , the 630 MW London Array in the UK is the largest offshore wind farm in the world .   There are many large wind farms under construction , including Fosen Vind ( 1000 MW ) , Sinus Holding Wind Farm ( 700 MW ) , Lincs Wind Farm ( 270 MW ) , Lower Snake River Wind Project ( 343 MW ) , Macarthur Wind Farm ( 420 MW ) .


Wind power

Wind power is the use of air flow through wind turbines to mechanically power generators for electric power . Wind power , as an alternative to burning fossil fuels , is plentiful , renewable , widely distributed , clean , produces no greenhouse gas emissions during operation , consumes no water , and uses little land . The net effects on the environment are far less problematic than those of nonrenewable power sources .   Wind farms consist of many individual wind turbines which are connected to the electric power transmission network . Onshore wind is an inexpensive source of electric power , competitive with or in many places cheaper than coal or gas plants . Offshore wind is steadier and stronger than on land , and offshore farms have less visual impact , but construction and maintenance costs are considerably higher . Small onshore wind farms can feed some energy into the grid or provide electric power to isolated off-grid locations .   Wind power gives variable power which is very consistent from year to year but which has significant variation over shorter time scales . It is therefore used in conjunction with other electric power sources to give a reliable supply . As the proportion of wind power in a region increases , a need to upgrade the grid , and a lowered ability to supplant conventional production can occur . Power management techniques such as having excess capacity , geographically distributed turbines , dispatchable backing sources , sufficient hydroelectric power , exporting and importing power to neighboring areas , using vehicle-to-grid strategies or reducing demand when wind production is low , can in many cases overcome these problems . In addition , weather forecasting permits the electric power network to be readied for the predictable variations in production that occur .   As of 2015 , Denmark generates 40 % of its electric power from wind , and at least 83 other countries around the world are using wind power to supply their electric power grids . In 2014 global wind power capacity expanded 16 % to 369,553 MW . Yearly wind energy production is also growing rapidly and has reached around 4 % of worldwide electric power usage , 11.4 % in the EU .


Wind power in the United States

Wind power in the United States is a branch of the energy industry that has expanded quickly over the latest several years . For calendar year 2016 , wind power in the United States amounted to 226.5 terawatt-hours , or 5.55 % of all generated electrical energy .   As of January 2017 , the U.S. nameplate generating capacity for wind power was 82,183 megawatts ( MW ) . This capacity is exceeded only by China and the European Union . Thus far , wind power 's largest growth in capacity was in 2012 , when 11,895 MW of wind power was installed , representing 26.5 % of new power capacity .   In 2016 , Nebraska became the eighteenth state to have installed over 1,000 MW of wind power capacity .  Texas , with over 20,000 MW of capacity , had the most installed wind power capacity of any U.S. state at the end of 2016 . Texas also had more under construction than any other state currently has installed . The state generating the highest percentage of energy from wind power is Iowa . North Dakota has the most per capita wind generation . The Alta Wind Energy Center in California is the largest wind farm in the United States with a capacity of 1548 MW . GE Energy is the largest domestic wind turbine manufacturer .


Wind turbine

A wind turbine is a device that converts the wind 's kinetic energy into electrical power .   Wind turbines are manufactured in a wide range of vertical and horizontal axis types . The smallest turbines are used for applications such as battery charging for auxiliary power for boats or caravans or to power traffic warning signs . Slightly larger turbines can be used for making contributions to a domestic power supply while selling unused power back to the utility supplier via the electrical grid . Arrays of large turbines , known as wind farms , are becoming an increasingly important source of intermittent renewable energy and are used by many countries as part of a strategy to reduce their reliance on fossil fuels .


Windmill

A windmill is a mill that converts the energy of wind into rotational energy by means of vanes called sails or blades . Centuries ago , windmills usually were used to mill grain ( gristmills ) , pump water ( windpumps ) , or both . The majority of modern windmills take the form of wind turbines used to generate electricity , or windpumps used to pump water , either for land drainage or to extract groundwater .


Winter

Winter is the coldest season of the year in polar and temperate climates , between autumn and spring . Winter is caused by the axis of the Earth in that hemisphere being oriented away from the Sun . Different cultures define different dates as the start of winter , and some use a definition based on weather . When it is winter in the Northern Hemisphere , it is summer in the Southern Hemisphere , and vice versa . In many regions , winter is associated with snow and freezing temperatures . The moment of winter solstice is when the sun 's elevation with respect to the North or South Pole is at its most negative value ( that is , the sun is at its farthest below the horizon as measured from the pole ) , meaning this day will have the shortest day and the longest night . The earliest sunset and latest sunrise dates outside the polar regions differ from the date of the winter solstice , however , and these depend on latitude , due to the variation in the solar day throughout the year caused by the Earth 's elliptical orbit ( see earliest and latest sunrise and sunset ) .


Winter 1985 cold wave

The Winter 1985 cold wave was a meteorological event , the result of the shifting of the polar vortex further south than is normally seen . Blocked from its normal movement , polar air from the north pushed into nearly every section of the eastern half of the United States and Canada , shattering record lows in a number of areas . The event was preceded by unusually warm weather in the eastern U.S. in December 1984 , suggesting that there was a build-up of cold air that was suddenly released from the Arctic , a meteorological event known as a Mobile Polar High , a weather process identified by Professor Marcel Leroux .


Winter storm

A winter storm is an event in which varieties of precipitation are formed that only occur at low temperatures , such as snow or sleet , or a rainstorm where ground temperatures are low enough to allow ice to form ( i.e. freezing rain ) . In temperate continental climates , these storms are not necessarily restricted to the winter season , but may occur in the late autumn and early spring as well . Very rarely , they may form in summer , though it would have to be an abnormally cold summer , such as the summer of 1816 in the Northeast United States of America .


Winter storm naming in the United States has been used since the mid 1700s in various ways to describe historical winter storms . These names have been coined from days of the year that the storm impacted , to noteworthy structures such as a theatre the storm had destroyed . In recent years winter storm naming has become controversial with the Weather Channel , and various media coming up with their own names for winter storms . It has been argued by meteorologists that winter storms can reform more than once , making the process of naming them both difficult and redundant . On the other side of the argument those in favor of naming storms argue that the names help people with preparation . Entities from the United States government which includes the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration ( NOAA ) , and the National Weather Service ( NWS ) have also weighed in stating that they would not be naming winter storms , and have asked others to refrain from doing so . Despite the request though , the issue with naming winter storms continues to come up yearly with various names dubbed by the media .


Wisconsin

Wisconsin ( -LSB- wᵻˈskɒnsᵻn -RSB- ) is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States , in the Midwest and Great Lakes regions . It is bordered by Minnesota to the west , Iowa to the southwest , Illinois to the south , Lake Michigan to the east , Michigan to the northeast , and Lake Superior to the north . Wisconsin is the 23rd largest state by total area and the 20th most populous . The state capital is Madison , and its largest city is Milwaukee , which is located on the western shore of Lake Michigan . The state is divided into 72 counties .   Wisconsin 's geography is diverse , with the Northern Highland and Western Upland along with a part of the Central Plain occupying the western part of the state and lowlands stretching to the shore of Lake Michigan . Wisconsin is second to Michigan in the length of its Great Lakes coastline .   Wisconsin is known as `` America 's Dairyland '' because it is one of the nation 's leading dairy producers , particularly famous for its cheese . Manufacturing , especially paper products , information technology ( IT ) , and tourism are also major contributors to the state 's economy .


Woodbridge Township, New Jersey

Woodbridge Township is a township in Middlesex County , New Jersey , United States . As of the 2010 United States Census , the township had a total population of 99,585 , reflecting an increase of 2,382 ( +2.5 % ) from the 97,203 counted in the 2000 Census , which had in turn increased by 4,117 ( +4.4 % ) from the 93,086 counted in the 1990 Census . Woodbridge was the sixth-most-populous municipality in New Jersey in 2010 , the same ranking it held a decade earlier .   According to Joshua Coffin , the early settlers included `` Captain John Pike , the ancestor of General Zebulon Montgomery Pike , who was killed at the battle of Queenstown in 1813 ; Thomas Bloomfield , the ancestor of Joseph Bloomfield , some years governor of New Jersey , for whom the township of Bloomfield , New Jersey is named ; John Bishop , senior and junior ; Jonathan Haynes ; Henry Jaques ; George March ; Stephen Kent ; Abraham Toppan , junior ; Elisha Ilsley ; Hugh March ; John Bloomfield ; Samuel Moore ; Nathaniel Webster ; John Ilsley ; and others . '' Woodbridge was the site of the first gristmill in New Jersey . The mill was built by Jonathan Singletary Dunham ( married to Mary Bloomfield , relative of Joseph Bloomfield ) .


World Bank

The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to countries of the world for capital programs . It comprises two institutions : the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development ( IBRD ) , and the International Development Association ( IDA ) . The World Bank is a component of the World Bank Group , which is part of the United Nations system .   The World Bank 's stated official goal is the reduction of poverty . However , according to its Articles of Agreement , all its decisions must be guided by a commitment to the promotion of foreign investment and international trade and to the facilitation of capital investment .


World War I

World War I ( WWI or WW1 ) , also known as the First World War , the Great War , or the War to End All Wars , was a global war originating in Europe that lasted from 28 July 1914 to 11 November 1918 . More than 70 million military personnel , including 60 million Europeans , were mobilised in one of the largest wars in history . Over nine million combatants and seven million civilians died as a result of the war ( including the victims of a number of genocides ) , a casualty rate exacerbated by the belligerents ' technological and industrial sophistication , and the tactical stalemate caused by gruelling trench warfare . It was one of the deadliest conflicts in history , and paved the way for major political changes , including revolutions in many of the nations involved and to WWII twenty-one years later .   The war drew in all the world 's economic great powers , assembled in two opposing alliances : the Allies ( based on the Triple Entente of the Russian Empire , the French Third Republic , and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland ) versus the Central Powers of Germany and Austria-Hungary . Although Italy was a member of the Triple Alliance alongside Germany and Austria-Hungary , it did not join the Central Powers , as Austria-Hungary had taken the offensive against the terms of the alliance . These alliances were reorganised and expanded as more nations entered the war : Italy , Japan and the United States joined the Allies , while the Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria joined the Central Powers .   The trigger for the war was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria , heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary , by Yugoslav nationalist Gavrilo Princip in Sarajevo on 28 June 1914 . This set off a diplomatic crisis when Austria-Hungary delivered an ultimatum to the Kingdom of Serbia , and entangled international alliances formed over the previous decades were invoked . Within weeks , the major powers were at war and the conflict soon spread around the world .   On 25 July Russia began mobilisation and on 28 July , the Austro-Hungarians declared war on Serbia . Germany presented an ultimatum to Russia to demobilise , and when this was refused , declared war on Russia on 1 August . Being outnumbered on the eastern front , Russia urged its Triple Entente ally France to open up a second front in the west . Back in 1870 , the Franco-Prussian war had ended the Second French Empire and ceded the provinces of Alsace-Lorraine to a unified Germany . Bitterness over their defeat and the determinance to retake Alsace-Lorraine made the acceptance of Russia 's plea for help an easy choice so France began full mobilisation on 1 August and on 3 August , Germany declared war on France . The border between France and Germany was heavily fortified on both sides so according to the Schlieffen Plan , Germany then invaded neutral Belgium and Luxembourg before moving towards France from the north , leading the United Kingdom to declare war on Germany on 4 August due to their violation of Belgian neutrality . After the German march on Paris was halted in the Battle of the Marne , what became known as the Western Front settled into a battle of attrition , with a trench line that changed little until 1917 . On the Eastern Front , the Russian army led a successful campaign against the Austro-Hungarians , but the Germans stopped its invasion of East Prussia in the battles of Tannenberg and the Masurian Lakes . In November 1914 , the Ottoman Empire joined the Central Powers , opening fronts in the Caucasus , Mesopotamia and the Sinai . In 1915 , Italy joined the Allies and Bulgaria joined the Central Powers ; Romania joined the Allies in 1916 , as did the United States in 1917 .   The Russian government collapsed in March 1917 , and a revolution in November followed by a further military defeat brought the Russians to terms with the Central Powers via the Treaty of Brest Litovsk , which granted the Germans a significant victory . After a stunning German offensive along the Western Front in the spring of 1918 , the Allies rallied and drove back the Germans in a series of successful offensives . On 4 November 1918 , the Austro-Hungarian empire agreed to an armistice , and Germany , which had its own trouble with revolutionaries , agreed to an armistice on 11 November 1918 , ending the war in victory for the Allies .   By the end of the war or soon after , the German Empire , Russian Empire , Austro-Hungarian Empire and the Ottoman Empire ceased to exist . National borders were redrawn , with several independent nations restored or created , and Germany 's colonies were parceled out among the victors . During the Paris Peace Conference of 1919 , the Big Four ( Britain , France , the United States and Italy ) imposed their terms in a series of treaties . The League of Nations was formed with the aim of preventing any repetition of such a conflict . This effort failed , and economic depression , renewed nationalism , weakened successor states , and feelings of humiliation ( particularly in Germany ) eventually contributed to the start of World War II .


World energy consumption

World energy consumption is the total energy used by the entire human civilization . Typically measured per year , it involves all energy harnessed from every energy source applied towards humanity 's endeavours across every single industrial and technological sector , across every country . It does not include energy from food , and the extent to which direct biomass burning has been accounted for is poorly documented . Being the power source metric of civilization , World Energy Consumption has deep implications for humanity 's socio-economic-political sphere .   Institutions such as the International Energy Agency ( IEA ) , the U.S. Energy Information Administration ( EIA ) , and the European Environment Agency record and publish energy data periodically . Improved data and understanding of World Energy Consumption may reveal systemic trends and patterns , which could help frame current energy issues and encourage movement towards collectively useful solutions .   Closely related to energy consumption is the concept of total primary energy supply ( TPES ) , which - on a global level - is the sum of energy production minus storage changes . Since changes of energy storage over the year are minor , TPES values can be used as an estimator for energy consumption . However , TPES ignores conversion efficiency , overstating forms of energy with poor conversion efficiency ( e.g. coal , gas and nuclear ) and understating forms already accounted for in converted forms ( e.g. photovoltaic or hydroelectricity ) . The IEA estimates that , in 2013 , total primary energy supply ( TPES ) was 1.575 × 1017 Wh ( = 157.5 PWh , 5.67 × 1020 joules , or 13,541 Mtoe ) . From 2000 -- 2012 coal was the source of energy with the largest growth . The use of oil and natural gas also had considerable growth , followed by hydropower and renewable energy . Renewable energy grew at a rate faster than any other time in history during this period . The demand for nuclear energy decreased , in part due to nuclear disasters ( e.g. Three Mile Island 1979 , Chernobyl 1986 , and Fukushima 2011 ) .   In 2011 , expenditures on energy totalled over 6 trillion USD , or about 10 % of the world gross domestic product ( GDP ) . Europe spends close to one-quarter of the world 's energy expenditures , North America close to 20 % , and Japan 6 % .


Year

A year is the orbital period of the Earth moving in its orbit around the Sun . Due to the Earth 's axial tilt , the course of a year sees the passing of the seasons , marked by changes in weather , the hours of daylight , and , consequently , vegetation and soil fertility . In temperate and subpolar regions around the globe , four seasons are generally recognized : spring , summer , autumn and winter . In tropical and subtropical regions several geographical sectors do not present defined seasons ; but in the seasonal tropics , the annual wet and dry seasons are recognized and tracked .   A calendar year is an approximation of the number of days of the Earth 's orbital period as counted in a given calendar . The Gregorian , or modern , calendar , presents its calendar year to be either a common year of 365 days or a leap year of 366 days , as do the Julian calendars ; see below . For the Gregorian calendar the average length of the calendar year ( the mean year ) across the complete leap cycle of 400 years is 365.2425 days . The ISO standard ISO 80000-3 , Annex C , supports the symbol `` a '' ( for Latin annus ) to represent a year of either 365 or 366 days . In English , the abbreviations `` y '' and `` yr '' are commonly used .   In astronomy , the Julian year is a unit of time ; it is defined as 365.25 days of exactly seconds ( SI base unit ) , totalling exactly seconds in the Julian astronomical year .   The word `` year '' is also used for periods loosely associated with , but not identical to , the calendar or astronomical year , such as the seasonal year , the fiscal year , the academic year , etc. . Similarly , `` year '' can mean the orbital period of any planet : for example , a Martian year or a Venusian year are examples of the time a planet takes to transit one complete orbit . The term can also be used in reference to any long period or cycle , such as the Great Year .


Year Without a Summer

The year 1816 is known as the Year Without a Summer ( also the Poverty Year , the Summer that Never Was , Year There Was No Summer , and Eighteen Hundred and Froze to Death ) because of severe climate abnormalities that caused average global temperatures to decrease by 0.4 -- 0.7 ° C ( 0.7 -- 1.3 ° F ) . This resulted in major food shortages across the Northern Hemisphere .   Evidence suggests that the anomaly was predominantly a volcanic winter event caused by the massive 1815 eruption of Mount Tambora in the Dutch East Indies ( the largest eruption in at least 1,300 years after the extreme weather events of 535 -- 536 ) , perhaps plus the 1814 eruption of Mayon in the Philippines . The Earth had already been in a centuries-long period of global cooling that started in the 14th century . Known today as the Little Ice Age , it had already caused considerable agricultural distress in Europe . The Little Ice Age 's existing cooling was aggravated by the eruption of Tambora , which occurred during its concluding decades .


Years of Living Dangerously

Years of Living Dangerously is an American documentary television series focusing on global warming . The first season , of nine weekly episodes , premiered in the US on April 13 , 2014 , on Showtime . It won an Emmy Award as Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series . The second season , consisting of eight episodes , aired on the National Geographic Channel , beginning on October 30 , 2016 , with broader international distribution than the first season . Executive producers included James Cameron , Arnold Schwarzenegger , Robert Palumbo , and series creators Joel Bach and David Gelber ( formerly of 60 Minutes ) . Joseph Romm and Heidi Cullen were the chief science advisors .   The weekly episodes featured celebrity hosts with a history of environmental activism and well-known journalists with a background in environmental reportage . These `` correspondents '' traveled the world and throughout the U.S. to interview experts and ordinary people affected by , and seeking solutions to , the effects of global warming . They acted as reporters and proxies for the audience , asking questions to find out people 's opinions and to discover the scientific evidence . The final episode of season one featured an interview of President Barack Obama . Executive producers for season one were Cameron , Schwarzenegger , clean energy investor and environmental activist Daniel Abbasi , Jerry Weintraub , Bach and Gelber .   Episodes explored the effects of rising sea levels , historic droughts and flooding , water scarcity , ocean acidification , deforestation and the rapidly increasing extinction rate of species , but also focused on `` solutions that individuals , communities , companies and even governments can use to address worldwide climate change '' , including cheaper solar and wind energy , advancing battery technology and electric cars . Hosts included Cameron , Schwarzenegger , Harrison Ford , Ian Somerhalder , America Ferrera , David Letterman , Gisele Bündchen , Jack Black , Matt Damon , Jessica Alba , Sigourney Weaver , and various other actors and journalists .   Schwarzenegger reflected on how the series tries to make the issue of climate change resonate with the public : `` I think the environmental movement only can be successful if we are simple and clear and make it a human story . We will tell human stories in this project . The scientists would never get the kind of attention that someone in show business gets . '' Cameron elaborated : `` We did n't use our celebrities as talking head experts , because they 're not climate experts . They were concerned , intelligent , curious citizens who were out to find answers . They were functioning as journalists . '' Newsweek said that the celebrity hosts `` lend sparks to an issue that sends most viewers for the exits '' .


Younger Dryas

The Younger Dryas is a geological period from c. 12,900 to c. 11,700 calendar years ago ( BP ) . It is named after an indicator genus , the alpine-tundra wildflower Dryas octopetala . Leaves of Dryas octopetala are occasionally abundant in the Late Glacial , often minerogenic-rich , like the lake sediments of Scandinavian lakes . The Younger Dryas saw a sharp decline in temperature over most of the northern hemisphere , at the end of the Pleistocene epoch , immediately before the current warmer Holocene . It was the most recent and longest of several interruptions to the gradual warming of the Earth 's climate since the severe Last Glacial Maximum , c. 27,000 to 24,000 calendar years BP . The change was relatively sudden , taking place in decades , and resulted in a decline of 2 to 6 degrees Celsius , advances of glaciers and drier conditions , over much of the temperate northern hemisphere . It is thought to have been caused by a decline in the strength of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation , which transports warm water from the equator towards the North Pole , and which in turn is thought to have been caused by an influx of fresh cold water from North America into the Atlantic . The Younger Dryas was a period of climatic change , but the effects were complex and variable . In the southern hemisphere , and some areas of the north such as southeastern North America , there was a slight warming .   The presence of a distinct cold period at the end of the Late Glacial interval has been known for a long time . Paleobotanical and lithostratigraphic studies of Swedish and Danish bog and lake sites , e.g. the Allerød clay pit in Denmark , first recognized and described the Younger Dryas .   The Younger Dryas is the youngest and longest of three stadials that resulted from typically abrupt climatic changes that took place over the last 16,000 calendar years . Within the Blytt-Sernander classification of north European climatic phases , the prefix ` Younger ' refers to the recognition that this original ` Dryas ' period was preceded by a warmer stage , the Allerød oscillation , which in turn was preceded by the Older Dryas around 14,000 calendar years BP . This is not securely dated , and estimates vary by 400 years , but it is generally accepted that it lasted around 200 years . In northern Scotland the glaciers were thicker and more extensive than during the Younger Dryas . The Older Dryas , in turn , is preceded by another warmer stage , the Bølling oscillation that separates it from a third and even older stadial . This stadial is often , but not always , known as the Oldest Dryas . The Oldest Dryas occurred approximately 1,770 calendar years before the Younger Dryas and lasted about 400 calendar years . According to the GISP2 ice core from Greenland , the Oldest Dryas occurred between about 15,070 and 14,670 calendar years BP .   In Ireland , the Younger Dryas has also been known as the Nahanagan Stadial , while in Great Britain it has been called the Loch Lomond Stadial . In the Greenland Summit ice core chronology , the Younger Dryas corresponds to Greenland Stadial 1 ( GS-1 ) . The preceding Allerød warm period ( interstadial ) is subdivided into three events : Greenland Interstadial-1c to 1a ( GI-1c to GI-1a ) .


ZFS

ZFS is a combined file system and logical volume manager designed by Sun Microsystems . The features of ZFS include protection against data corruption , support for high storage capacities , efficient data compression , integration of the concepts of filesystem and volume management , snapshots and copy-on-write clones , continuous integrity checking and automatic repair , RAID-Z and native NFSv4 ACLs .   The ZFS name is registered as a trademark of Oracle Corporation ; although it was briefly given the retrofitted expanded name `` Zettabyte File System '' , it is no longer considered an initialism .  Originally , ZFS was proprietary , closed-source software developed internally by Sun as part of Solaris , with a team led by the CTO of Sun 's storage business unit and Sun Fellow , Jeff Bonwick .  In 2005 , the bulk of Solaris , including ZFS , was licensed as open-source software under the Common Development and Distribution License ( CDDL ) , as the OpenSolaris project . ZFS became a standard feature of Solaris 10 in June 2006 .   In 2010 , Oracle stopped the releasing of source code for new OpenSolaris and ZFS development , effectively forking their closed-source development from the open-source branch . In response , OpenZFS was created as a new open-source development umbrella project , aiming at bringing together individuals and companies that use the ZFS filesystem in an open-source manner .


Zero-energy building

A zero-energy building , also known as a zero net energy ( ZNE ) building , net-zero energy building ( NZEB ) , or net zero building , is a building with zero net energy consumption , meaning the total amount of energy used by the building on an annual basis is roughly equal to the amount of renewable energy created on the site , or in other definitions by renewable energy sources elsewhere . These buildings consequently contribute less overall greenhouse gas to the atmosphere than similar non-ZNE buildings . They do at times consume non-renewable energy and produce greenhouse gases , but at other times reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas production elsewhere by the same amount . A similar concept approved and implemented by the European Union and other agreeing countries is nearly Zero Energy Building ( nZEB ) , with the goal of having all buildings in the region under nZEB standards by 2020 .   Most zero net energy buildings get half or more of their energy from the grid , and return the same amount at other times . Buildings that produce a surplus of energy over the year may be called `` energy-plus buildings '' and buildings that consume slightly more energy than they produce are called `` near-zero energy buildings '' or `` ultra-low energy houses '' .   Traditional buildings consume 40 % of the total fossil fuel energy in the US and European Union and are significant contributors of greenhouse gases . The zero net energy consumption principle is viewed as a means to reduce carbon emissions and reduce dependence on fossil fuels and although zero-energy buildings remain uncommon even in developed countries , they are gaining importance and popularity .   Most zero-energy buildings use the electrical grid for energy storage but some are independent of the grid . Energy is usually harvested on-site through energy producing technologies like solar and wind , while reducing the overall use of energy with highly efficient HVAC and lighting technologies . The zero-energy goal is becoming more practical as the costs of alternative energy technologies decrease and the costs of traditional fossil fuels increase .   The development of modern zero-energy buildings became possible not only through the progress made in new energy and construction technologies and techniques , but it has also been significantly improved by academic research , which collects precise energy performance data on traditional and experimental buildings and provides performance parameters for advanced computer models to predict the efficacy of engineering designs . Zero-energy buildings can be part of a smart grid . Some advantages of these buildings are as follows :  Integration of renewable energy resources  Integration of plug-in electric vehicles  Implementation of zero-energy concepts   The net zero concept is applicable to a wide range of resources due to the many options for producing and conserving resources in buildings ( e.g. energy , water , waste ) . Energy is the first resource to be targeted because it is highly managed , expected to continually become more efficient , and the ability to distribute and allocate it will improve disaster resiliency .


Zika fever

Zika fever , also known as Zika virus disease or simply Zika , is an infectious disease caused by the Zika virus . Most cases have no symptoms , but when present they are usually mild and can resemble dengue fever . Symptoms may include fever , red eyes , joint pain , headache , and a maculopapular rash . Symptoms generally last less than seven days . It has not caused any reported deaths during the initial infection . Mother-to-child transmission during pregnancy can cause microcephaly and other brain malformations in some babies . Infections in adults have been linked to Guillain -- Barré syndrome ( GBS ) .   Zika fever is mainly spread via the bite of mosquitoes of the Aedes type . It can also be sexually transmitted and potentially spread by blood transfusions . Infections in pregnant women can spread to the baby . Diagnosis is by testing the blood , urine , or saliva for the presence of the virus 's RNA when the person is sick , or the blood for antibodies after symptoms are present more than a week .   Prevention involves decreasing mosquito bites in areas where the disease occurs and proper use of condoms . Efforts to prevent bites include the use of insect repellent , covering much of the body with clothing , mosquito nets , and getting rid of standing water where mosquitoes reproduce . There is no effective vaccine . Health officials recommended that women in areas affected by the 2015 -- 16 Zika outbreak consider putting off pregnancy and that pregnant women not travel to these areas . While there is no specific treatment , paracetamol ( acetaminophen ) may help with the symptoms . Admission to hospital is rarely necessary .   The virus that causes the disease was first isolated in Africa in 1947 . The first documented outbreak among people occurred in 2007 in the Federated States of Micronesia . An outbreak started in Brazil in 2015 , and spread to the Americas , Pacific , Asia , and Africa . This led to the World Health Organization declared it a Public Health Emergency of International Concern in February 2016 . The emergency was lifted in November 2016 , but 84 countries still reported cases as of March 2017 .


Zika virus

Zika virus ( ZIKV ) is a member of the virus family Flaviviridae . It is spread by daytime-active Aedes mosquitoes , such as A. aegypti and A. albopictus . Its name comes from the Zika Forest of Uganda , where the virus was first isolated in 1947 . Zika virus is related to the dengue , yellow fever , Japanese encephalitis , and West Nile viruses . Since the 1950s , it has been known to occur within a narrow equatorial belt from Africa to Asia . From 2007 to , the virus spread eastward , across the Pacific Ocean to the Americas , leading to the 2015 -- 16 Zika virus epidemic .   The infection , known as Zika fever or Zika virus disease , often causes no or only mild symptoms , similar to a very mild form of dengue fever . While there is no specific treatment , paracetamol ( acetaminophen ) and rest may help with the symptoms . , the illness can not be prevented by medications or vaccines . Zika can spread from a pregnant woman to her baby . This can result in microcephaly , severe brain malformations , and other birth defects . Zika infections in adults may result rarely in Guillain -- Barré syndrome .   In January 2016 , the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ( CDC ) issued travel guidance on affected countries , including the use of enhanced precautions , and guidelines for pregnant women including considering postponing travel . Other governments or health agencies also issued similar travel warnings , while Colombia , the Dominican Republic , Puerto Rico , Ecuador , El Salvador , and Jamaica advised women to postpone getting pregnant until more is known about the risks . Zika is pronounced -LSB- ˈziːkə -RSB- or -LSB- ˈzɪkə -RSB- .