Professor Pan Zhenqiang*
THE UNITED STATES HAS A VITAL ROLE TO PLAY IN THE MIDDLE EAST BUT THE PROBLEM IS HOW?
The Middle East is now engulfed in the war flames again. As if Iraq has not been devastating enough to the people of the region, this time the fighting between Israel and the Hezbollah guerillas in Lebanon threatens to be even worse in its dark consequence: the increasing Lebanese and Israeli civilian casualties and sufferings, the continuing destruction of civil infrastructures and the looming prospect of the spill-over to the whole region.
Dr. Essam El-Henawi*
CLIMATE CHANGE: SCIENCE AND POLITICS**
Sun rays falling on the atmosphere do not entirely reach the earth's surface, 25% of the sun rays are reflected into the space, and about 23% are absorbed into the atmosphere itself. This means that only 52% of the sun rays penetrate the atmosphere to reach the earth; 6% of this percentage is reflected back into the space, and the other 46% are absorbed into the earth and the waters of seas and oceans to provide warmth. These warm surfaces, in their turn, emit heat and energy that are absorbed as long-wave infrared rays. As the air contains some gases in scarce concentrations; such as carbon dioxide (CO2), Methane, and water vapor which are characterized by the penetration of infrared rays which eventually leads to blocking such rays into the atmosphere.