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'Day After' gets it wrong, and right

In watching the movie "The Day After Tomorrow," I found it had nothing to teach us about the science of global warming. In fact, the film offers viewers a "kindergarten science" knowledge of the subject. There is no enlightenment on the underlying causes and determinants of global warming and even less on what can and might be done to counteract the threats.

The movie rests on a fictitious theory that melting ice caps in Antarctica or Greenland could disrupt ocean currents, generating a sharp drop in temperatures. The theory behind this Hollywood fantasy actually would benefit us, in light of the temperature change caused by rising concentrations of greenhouse gases and of atmospheric carbon dioxide, leading to the enrichment of global food production.

These Hollywood "experts" seem to suggest that a sudden switch from gradual climate change to instant hemisphere freeze is all but inevitable. The only positive outcome from this mythical film would be the hope for a rise in the economy, as past scares have created: Remember the year-2000-bug threat? It's impressive how Hollywood continually corrupts our intelligence.

MICHAEL E. WOOD

Chicago

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