TheTeacher'sEdition

Quarterly journal of the staff and faculty of Madison Early College

2015-16 fall special issue

all issues online at http://tinyurl.com/mechs-tte

Editor's Note
Hi,readers.Beonthelookoutforournext
complete issue of The Teacher's Edition
arrivingearlynextspring.Thethemethen
will be popular culture in all its glory
and/orignominy:movies,music,tv,anime,
Mr. Yost
video games, and more. I look forward to
seeingwhatourstaffandteacherswriteabout.

I know I've fielded a great many questions sofar from

studentsaskingaboutwhatIdidatExxon,andwhy.And
I'm glad you're asking. Keep it up! When it comes to
atmosphericcarbonpollution,allofusneedtoknowmore.
Therearesolutionsthatwecancontributeto.

The rationale for printing this current, shortened issue

(justonearticlebyyourstruly)isthatI'dliketohavea
placetodiscussmyrecentarrestwithyou.AndI'dliketo
dothatwithoutputtingitintotheupcomingpopculture
issue.

Mr.Yost,theeditorguy.

Ihopewhatfollowswillbehelpful.

Homework
by Greg Yost
Q.Whatisforlunchtoday?
A. Idon'tknow.Ibringmylunch,soIneverpay
attentiontowhatthecafeteriaisserving.
Q.ShouldItakenotesonthis?Isthisgoingtobe
onthetest?
A. Yes, it'salways agoodidea to takenotes. You
coulddefinitelyseethisagainonaquizortest.
Q. Why are we studying this? What good is it?
WhenwillIusethisinreallife?
A.

Behold: the alltime top three questions students ask

highschoolteachers!Observeandyou'llseethatquestions
one and two have short and easy answers. (In fact, I'd
suggestyoumemorizethese.Speakingforteacherstheworld
over,we'dappreciateit.)
Butnoticethethirdquestion.It'sdifferentdeeper,more
thoughtful, and it can't be answered in a few flippant
sentences.Providedthestudentaskingitisn'tbeingmerely
whinyorlazy,it'saquestionthatteachersrespect.IknowI
do.

There'sareason,however,thatwhenyouaskme,When
willIusethisinreallife?, Istarespeechlessatyou.I
honestlyhavenowayofknowingwhen,orevenif,you
willeveruseit.Yourlife,afterall,hasn'tbeenlivedyet.
MaybewhenyouareoldandIamolderstill,youcouldgo
visitme,toothlessinanursinghome,andtellmewhatyou
didwithyoureducation.IknowI'denjoyseeingyouagain.
Untilsuchtimecomes,I'llsharewithyouwhatIdoknow:
Reallifeisthereasonforeducation.Andthepurposeof
educationisliberation.Weeachlivelivescharacterizedby
struggle.Pursuedwithpassionandacertainrecklessness,
education makes of us hammers, we who were once
merelynails.Struggleagainstdehumanizingcircumstance,
for personal integrity and communal wholeness, is both
ourlotinlifeandourgreatprivilegeashumanbeings.
IwanttouseanexampletoillustratewhatImean.On
November10th,aTuesday,Ileftschoolanddidsomething
unusual: IwenttoanExxonstationinAshevilleandsat
downonthegroundinfrontofagaspump.Whencars
cametogetgas,Ididn'tmove.Whenthestationmanager
yelledatmetogetup,Ididn'tmove.Evenwhenthepolice
cameandinformedmeandtwoothersthatwewereabout
tobearrested,Ididn'tmove.Thentheyputhandcuffson
meandtookmetojailok,thenImoved!

Math
Concentrations of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere are
measured in parts per million. This means that if you
randomlygrabonemillionmoleculesfromtheair,mostof
whatyou'llgetwillbenitrogenandoxygen.Onlyatinybit
ofitwillbecarbondioxide.

An Asheville police officer listens politely while Mr.

Yost explains why he won't leave.
Crazy,right?Notifyouunderstandthecontext.Let'sstep
throughanentireschoolday'sworthofclassesandlessons
tolearnmore.Seewhatyouthink.We'llbeginwithsome
ofthescienceofclimatechange.

BeforetheIndustrialRevolutionbegan,CO2concentrations
werejustabitabove250partspermillion(ppm).Virtually
allofthecarbonthatnaturehadstoredawayovermillions
ofyearsintheformofoil,coal,andnaturalgaswasstill
buried underground. However, once humans began
diggingitupandburningit,CO2levelsbegantoclimb.
In 1958 a scientist named Charles David Keeling began
measuring the concentration of carbon dioxide in the
atmosphere. The results of Keeling's work and some
separate ice core reconstructions may seen in the graph
below.

Science
Global warming is all over thenews today, but did you
knowthatakeydiscoveryaboutitwasmademorethan
one hundred years ago? A Swedish scientist, Svante
Arrhenius,demonstratedattheendofthe19thcenturythat
carbondioxidegasintheatmospheretrapsheatfromthe
sun.Andthisisagoodthing,Arrheniusknew,forwithout
CO2 actingasablankettokeepthingswarm,Earthwould
bemuchcolder, justas it had been back duringtheice
ages.
However,Arrheniusalsounderstoodthateventhoughthe
totalamountofcarbondioxideintheairisscant,small
increasesinitsconcentrationcouldwarmtheplanetalot.
Untiltheindustrialrevolution,theonlysignificantsources
ofincreasedcarbondioxideconcentrationwerethingslike
volcanicactivityorothernaturaloccurrencesexertingan
influenceoververylonggeologicperiodsoftime.
Couldhumanactivityburningforests,coal,oil,andgas
evercontributeanoticeablyappreciableamountofcarbon
totheatmosphere?Attheendofthe19 thcentury,itdidn't
appeartobelikely.Afterall,theoceansabsorbedmostof
whatwasemitted.Humansourcedemissionswouldhave
toincreasetounthinkablyhighlevelstohaveanyimpact.
Arrhenius was still curious, though, and did some
calculations which seemed to show that doubling the
atmosphericconcentrationofcarbondioxidewouldleadto
an average temperature increase of about 9 F over the
whole planet. Surprisingly, Arrhenius' estimate closely
matcheswhatmodernscientistsbelieve,too.
Nowletstalkaboutsomenumbers.

Exponential-like growth of atmospheric CO2 levels

in the past 300 years known as the Keeling Curve.
Thedangerousthingaboutexponentialgrowthisthatthe
rateofgrowthconstantlyincreases.Eachpassingdecade
has witnessed the concentration of carbon dioxide
increasing faster than the previous decade. The current
concentrationofCO2is400ppm.Thisnumberisgoingto
climbeverhigheraslongasfossilfuelsareburned.
(It's important to note that CO 2 is only one of many
greenhouse gases that have the potential to warm the
planet. Methane from fracking and animal agriculture is
another. Plain old water vapor is still another. The big
reason that CO2 receives so much attention is that it
persists so long in the atmosphere compared to other
greenhousegases. CO2 whichweemit today willstillbe
warmingtheplanethundredsofyearsfromnow.)
ThelasttimetheEarthhadcarbondioxidelevelsthishigh
(400ppm) was about 3 million years ago. Earth was a
muchwarmerplacethen,upto11Fwarmer,andoceans
wereabout100feethigher.

Homework,continuedfromp.2
Indicationsarethattheplanetisreturningtothatwarm
state (which, by the way, human beings have never
experienced). Climate records show that each passing
decadeiswarmerthanthepreviousone.Averagedoverall
land and sea surfaces, Earth'stemperature nowis about
1.5 Fhotterthanitwas100yearsago.Thisextraheat
already contributes to flooding, droughts, sea level rise,
stressedecosystems,andcropfailures.Andthemorewe
add,theworseitwillget.
YoumaybewonderingandIhopeyouarewhatlevel
ofcarbondioxidecouldbeconsideredsafefortheplanet
andhumancivilization.Thisquestionisdiscussedalotin
scientificcircles.Withoutgoingintotoomuchdetail,Ican
tell you that 350ppm is often mentioned as the highest
concentrationthatmightallowustoavoidthemostsevere
climateimpacts.

350.Rememberthisnumber,guys.It'simportantforalot
ofreasons.Youmightsaythatit'sgoingtobeonourfinal
exam.
NowbacktoExxon.

Did Exxon go public with what it had learned? Did it

informinvestors(asrequiredbylaw)thattheverybasisof
thecompany'senormouswealth,itsuntappedoilreserves,
werepotentiallyvaluelessoverthelongterm?DidExxon
use itspower, influence, andexpertise toleadaneeded
transitionawayfromadirtyfueleconomy?
Unfortunately,no.ExxonMobil,therichestcorporationin
the history of the world, chose instead to follow the
example of tobacco companies which spent decades
covering up what they knew to be true about how they
werekillingtheirowncustomers(smokers).Ratherthan
innovating and finding a safer way to run its business,
Exxon lied repeatedly about what it knew of the
connection between dirty fuel and climate change. Also
like the tobacco companies, it spent millions of dollars
funding front groups who planted disinformation about
climatescienceamongthepublicandthepresstocreatea
perceptionthatthescienceisn'tsettled.3

History (part 2)
Timeforahistorypopquiz.Whichversionofthisfamous
CivilRightsMovementstoryistrue?
1) Rosa Parks, a Montgomery, Alabama seamstress, was
tiredanddidnotwanttogiveupherseatinthecolored
sectionofacitybustoawhitepassenger.Whenthebus
driverorderedhertomove,sherefusedandwasarrested.
ButafterRosaParkssatdown,Dr.Kingstoodup.Therest,
astheysay,ishistory.

Big thanks to MECHS students Patrick Alvey, Anna Hamlinson,

Will Thomas, Jaden Woods, Travis Davis, and Evan Cannon for
devoting a Saturday afternoon to making this awesome banner.

History (part 1)
Checkoutthehashtaginthebannerabove,#ExxonKnew.
The LosAngeles Times 1 and InsideClimateNews 2 both
recently published lengthy investigative pieces
documentingthatExxonscientistsstudiedandunderstood
climatechangeasfarbackasthelate70sandearly80s.
The scientists reported to company executives the clear
implication of their research: Exxon's business model
wouldendangerbothfutureprofitsandfuturegenerations.
Consequently,muchofExxon'soilwouldhavetostayin
theground.
1

http://graphics.latimes.com/exxonarctic
www.insideclimatenews.org/content/ExxonTheRoad
NotTaken
2

2)RosaParks,aMontgomery,Alabamacivilrightsactivist,
strategizedwithinabroadnetworkoflocalandnational
activists about how best to spark resistance to an
oppressivesystemofracialsegregationanddiscrimination.
Parks had trained with other committed resisters, both
black and white, at the Highlander Folk School in
Tennessee.Shehadakeenawarenessofmovementhistory
spanningdecadesincludingthemanypreviousattemptsto
integrate public transit through nonviolent direct action.
Parks also had a sense of her own potential even asan
unknown,unimportantpersontomakehermarkupon
thecurrentmoment.4AfterRosaParkssatdown,hundreds
of thousands of other Americans continued to stand up.
Therest,astheysay,ishistory.
Whichaccountareyoumorefamiliarwith?Probablythe
first one, I'm guessing, which glosses over all the
preparationandhardworkinordertofocusinsteadonan
iconicmomentandtwofamousnames.
3

http://www.theguardian.com/environment/climate
consensus97percent/2015/nov/25/twofacedexxonthe
misinformationcampaignagainstitsownscientists
4
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/paulschmitz/how
changehappensthere_b_6237544.html

It's unfortunate that this history is so little understood.

Segregationenjoyedwidesupportamongbothwhiteelites
andthewhitemajority.King'soratoryandPark'scourage
werenoteworthy,butracismsodeeplyentrenchedsimply
wasn'tevergoingtobedismantledbyanythingshortofa
persistent, broadbased movement willing to make
sacrificesandtodemandchange.

timelessmessageofthetranscendentalistsforusisthatwe
arenottrulyaliveunlesswefiercelyseek,celebrate,and
defend that which is beautiful and good against the
corrupting power of stultifying carelessness. Things, for
example,likelifeonthiswonderfulplanetandthepeople
andplacesherethatmattertousall.
Andinkeepingwiththetranscendentalistemphasisupon
selfreliance, Iwouldadd,too,thatyouareyourown
bestguarantoroftherelevanceofyoureducation.The
classesyoutakearerawmaterialstomakeofwhatyou
will.Bendthem,shapethem,andmakethemserveyou.
Only someone whois already asking questions will ever
findanyanswers.

School: How To Graduate

When it comes toclimate change, what was true in the

time of Rosa Parks is true now. Ordinary people, not
governments or corporations, are ultimately responsible
for the outcome of this story. If we are passive, then
ExxonMobilanditsilkmayinfactbankafewextrabillion
dollarstospendinhell.Butifweassertourrighttoexist
and refuse to cooperate in our own destruction (as has
happened many times before in history), then things
suddenlybecomemuchmoreinteresting.
Whichleadsusto

English
SomeofourupperlevelEnglishclassesatMadisonEarly
Collegerecentlystudiedtranscendentalism,a19 th century
literary and philosophical movement that today is
identified with its most famous figure, Ralph Waldo
Emerson. The transcendentalists argued that men and
women need tolivelife according to the inner spark of
decency and courage at the heart of all of us. They
believedthatitistheresponsibilityofeachpersontoreject
thedictatesofcustomorpopularopinioniftheycontradict
personalconscience.
IhavetoadmitthatIenvyourMECHSEnglishteachers,
Ms.LongandMs.Young.Topicslikethisareinteresting
andworthyofexamination.Theyjustdon'tseemtocome
upveryofteninthemathIteach!
Nevertheless, this is a suitable place to conclude this
modest survey of the applicability of your high school
educationtoreallife.Apartfromitshistoricalinterest,the

Mr. Yost doing some homework.

Despite possessingmultiple diplomas, Ican'tsay Ireally
graduateduntilIwasreadytodothehomework.I'mnot
referring here to practice problems and book reports. I
meanhomework,thethingsthatmustbedonetotakecare
ofthishomeweshareandthepeopleinit.
As I have tried to describe, my engagement with the
climatejusticemovementhasgrownnotonlyoutofmy
understandingofthescienceandmathofclimatechange,
butalsofromhistoryandtheheartofwhatIbelievetobe
trueabouthumanbeings.Wearenotmeanttobedefined
bythedarknesswithinus,butratherbylightweshineout
on our journey together. For me, this specifically means
bringingnonviolentpowertobearontheprincipalitiesand
powersofclimatedisaster.TheepisodeatExxonwasbuta
smallpartofalarger,continuingaction.
Sothat'swhatI'mtryingtodowith my education.That's
howI'mchoosingtouseit.
Andyou?Howareyougoingtouseyours?Besuretopick
somethingbig!It'swhateducationandyouaremeant
for.