I last wrote about a class in Climate change I’m attending. Two new tidbits caught my attention at the most recent meeting.

First, new data shows that two Antarctic glaciers, Pine Island and Thwaites, that make up a relatively small bit of the continent are melting faster than previously thought. And due to complicated forces including ice streams they are already the fastest melting glaciers in the world. If they were to melt altogether and rapidly, they could all by themselves raise sea level ten feet.

Second, a British study forecasts that by 2050, a mere 34 years, climate change effects could make an accelerating number of species extinct. How many? They predict 18% of all plant species and 35% of all animal species. This is no longer in the realm of, “Who cares about polar bears or snail darters.”

What if the species that vanish are bees that pollinate our food crops, earthworms that aerate the soil, microbes that do good things rather than bad? How would we get on without yeasts, mushrooms, rice, wheat, fish, chickens, cattle, fruit trees, edible grasses or tubers?

On the upside, no need to save for a long retirement or be able to leave money to the kids. And no need to covet beach property any longer. Head for the hills.