"Jeff Hecht - The Greenhouse Papers" - читать интересную книгу автора (Hecht Jeff)

statement by saying that paper producers would be required to abide by existing laws.

I broke for a light dinner at the university cafeteria, and returned with the best idea of the day. In the
section on тАЬLong-term impactтАЭ I explained how paper reserves could provide a feedback mechanism to
prevent a return of the ice ages. тАЬIce core measurements show that past declines in atmospheric carbon
dioxide were associated with cooler temperatures and glacial episodes.тАЭ I wrote. тАЬIn the event that too
much carbon is removed from the atmosphere, the paper reserves could be burned, depositing extra
carbon dioxide in the atmosphere to restore the proper greenhouse balance, and providing short-term
heat to people in the bargain.тАЭ

By midnight, the whole crazy thing was finished. I printed it out, bundled it with the request for proposals,
and left it sitting on Alice's desk for her perusal in the morning.
What I had not counted on was Alice coming down with the flu. She didn't show up Friday, and it was
my turn the following Monday. Tuesday and Wednesday she was out of town at a seminar, and by
Thursday I had gotten involved with another postdoc's simulations of atmospheric methane flux. It was
not until the following week that I asked Alice what she had thought of my mock proposal.

тАЬWhat?тАЭ She had never seen it, and a careful exploration of the desktop debris revealed no sign of it.

тАЬI'm sure I put it right here,тАЭ I said, pointing at a basket on her desk.

тАЬAre you sure it was that basket?тАЭ A troubled expression came over Alice's face.

I nodded. тАЬIt was the only one I could see.тАЭ

тАЬThat's the OUT basket. I think it lost its label. IN is over here,тАЭ she pointed to a second basket hidden
by a foot of papers. тАЬThings left in the OUT basket are mailed.тАЭ

As my stomach sank, I asked what might happen.

тАЬKnowing how the wheels of bureaucracy grind, with any luck we'll never hear of it again.тАЭ

Somehow I was not reassured.

****

It was several weeks before Andrew Harrison Harding again settled his pin-striped bulk at our table with
a tray over-flowing with lunch. He was all smiles.

тАЬMy dear Petra.тАЭ he began. тАЬI was so pleased to see your proposal. The reviewers gave it the highest
rating of any that we saw.тАЭ

I stuttered an expression of gratitude as Alice's jaw dropped in astonishment. I kept cool. Crazy idea or
not, this could be my ticket to a permanent job.

тАЬWe're going to give you the full half million. of course,тАЭ he continued. тАЬBut we did have one long-term
suggestion. It's our deep belief that the best solutions to any problem-indeed the only possible
solutions-come from the private sector. That's why we have no faith in planting trees or trying to be more
energy efficient. There's no profit in it. But your proposal nicely complements one of my own ideas,
which is to draw on the expertise of the magazine and advertising industries. We can minimize