Computers cannot accurately predict climate
change unless the mathematical equations fed into
them adequately capture the natural meteorological
processes they are intended to simulate. Moreover,
there are processes that influence climate, such as
modifications in land use, that scientists do not know
how to simulate. The failure to incorporate such a
process into a computer climate model can lead the
model astray because a small initial effect can initiate
a feedback cycle: a perturbation in one variable
modifies a second variable, which in turn amplifies
the original disturbance. An increase in temperature,
for example, can boost the moisture content of the
atmosphere, which then causes further warming
because water vapor is a greenhouse gas.In the context in which it appears, “amplifies”
(line 11) most nearly meansexacerbates, explicates, expatiates, adds detail to, makes louder
1 Explanation