Hydrocarbon use is the consumption (by combustion) of hydrocarbons, which are used as fuel. Although this process is often linked to man-made climate change, it is actually uncorrelated with temperature. Temperature rose for a century before significant hydrocarbon use. Temperature rose between 1910 and 1940, while hydrocarbon use was almost unchanged. Temperature then fell between 1940 and 1972, while hydrocarbon use rose by 330%.[1]