If you cannot argue against your critic, have him jailed (a chilling story from China)

On this blog, we have seen more than enough evidence of how some proponents of alternative medicine can react when they feel cornered by critics. They often direct vitriol in their direction. Ad hominem attacks are far from being rarities. A more forceful option is to sue them for libel. In my own case, Prince […]

Read the rest here: If you cannot argue against your critic, have him jailed (a chilling story from China)

2018 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming Digest #17

Story of the Week... Toon of the Week... Quote of the Week... Graphic of the Week... SkS in the News... Photo of the Week... Coming Soon on SkS... Poster of the Week... Climate Feedback Reviews... SkS Week in Review... 97 Hours of Consensus...

Story of the Week...

Gulf Stream slowing down is bad news for Ireland

Ireland lies relatively far north in the Atlantic so the Gulf Stream’s gift of more temperate waters matters hugely to our climate.

All Ireland is washed by the Gulf Stream,” said Stephen Dedalus in the opening chapter of Ulysses. He might have added warmed to washed.

Ireland lies relatively far north in the Atlantic so the Gulf Stream’s gift of more temperate waters matters hugely to our climate, as does their interaction with the atmosphere to produce the sea surface temperature. This oceanic movement of waters is known scientifically as the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (Amoc). It brings warm and salty water from the Caribbean region in a northeasterly current towards the Nordic Seas.

As Summer K Praetorius goes on to explain in the April 11th issue of the scientific journal Nature: “In the chill of winter, these waters cool and descend with the heavy load of their salinity. This deep convection is a key part of the Amoc which can be thought of as an ocean conveyor belt that releases heat to the atmosphere above the North Atlantic Ocean before travelling through the abyssal ocean to resurface in other areas of the world.” The process is linked to and replicated throughout the world’s oceans by the deep colder waters that travel past North and South America.

Gulf Stream slowing down is bad news for Ireland by Paul Gillespie, Irish Times, Apr 28, 2018 

Note: Also see Graphic of the Week section of this Digest.

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Toon of the Week...

 

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Quote of the Week...

But the problem with the way geoengineering is discussed today, lamented John Ehrenfeld, former director of the MIT Program on Technology, Business, and Environment, is that it doesn’t address the societal issues that got us in this mess in the first place.

“It’s a failure to accept complexity of the system, and the system includes people,” Ehrenfeld told me recently over coffee. For decades, Ehrenfeld, who is now retired, researched and promoted the concept of sustainability. But to Ehrenfeld, after all the climate conferences, all the stakeholder roundtables, all the debates on market-driven solutions, the questions and answers being debated never questioned capitalism, civilization, and the notion of progress.

Tackling a problem as deeply ingrained as global warming, Ehrenfeld said, will require humanity to face an existential question that geoengineering alone cannot address: Are we willing to sacrifice growth to ensure the survival of our species?

“Absent decoupling growth from progress,” Ehrenfeld said, “we won’t address the core of the problem.”

The Dangerous Belief That Extreme Technology Will Fix Climate Change by Aleszu Bajak, Huff Post, Apr 27, 2018

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Graphic of the Week...

 

Gulf Stream slowing down is bad news for Ireland by Paul Gillespie, Irish Times, Apr 28, 2018 

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SkS in the News...

The SkS Escalator graphic is embedded and extensively referenced in in Matt Rogers' Washington Post article, Global temperatures have dropped since 2016. Here’s why that’s normal. 

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Photo of the Week...

 

Floodwaters on the Hawaiian island of Kauai turned orange, a sign of the high iron content in the volcanic soil. (Brandon Verdura / Associated Press) 

A Hawaiian island got about 50 inches of rain in 24 hours. Scientists warn it's a sign of the future by Heidi Chang, Los Angeles Times, Apr 28, 2018 

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SkS Spotlights...

The Carbon Pricing Leadership Coalition (CPLC) brings together leaders from government, private sector, academia, and civil society to expand the use of carbon pricing policies. 

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Coming Soon on SkS...

• Republicans have so corrupted EPA, Americans can only fix it in the voting booth (Dana)
• TV Meteorologists Warming to Climate Science (greenman)
• Guest Post (John Abraham)
• SkS Analogy 11 - Frame of Reference (Evan Whitby)
• New research this week (Ari)
• 2017 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #18 (John Hartz)
• 2017 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Waming Digest #18 (John Hartz)

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Poster of the Week...

 

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Climate Feedback Reviews...

The Australian’s coverage of Great Barrier Reef study creates perception that scientists are divided

 

Climate Feedback asked its network of scientists to review the article, Not all scientists agree on cause of Great Barrier Reef damage  by Graham Lloyd, Health & Science, The Australian, April 19, 2018

Four scientists analyzed the article and estimate its overall scientific credibility to be 'low'.

A majority of reviewers tagged the article as: Biased Misleading.

Review Summary 

This article in The Australian covers a new study published in Nature that concludes global warming played a key role in the recent large-scale bleaching and mortality of corals in the Great Barrier Reef. Based on the comments of a single oceanographer (Prof. Kaempf), the article was headlined “Not all scientists agree on cause of Great Barrier Reef damage”.

The scientists who reviewed this article found that this source’s comments in the story are unsupported by evidence and prior research, and therefore The Australian article misleads readers by emphasizing a “debate” that does not actually exist among researchers studying the Great Barrier Reef. 

The Australian’s coverage of Great Barrier Reef study creates perception that scientists are divided by Scott Johnson, Climate Feedback, Apr 22, 2018

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SkS Week in Review... 

• 2018 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #17 by John Hartz
• New research, April 16-22, 2018 by Ari Jokimäki
• The missing maths: the human cost of fossil fuels by Ploy Achakulwisut (Cimate Consensus - the 97%, Environment, Guardian)
• America's best scientists stood up to the Trump administration by John Abraham (Cimate Consensus - the 97%, Environment, Guardian)
• Climate Science Denial Explained: The Denial Personality by DPiergrass
• Pruitt promised polluters EPA will value their profits over American lives by Dana Nuccitelli (Cimate Consensus - the 97%, Environment, Guardian)
• 2018 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming Digest #16  by John Hartz

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97 Hours of Consensus...

 

Glen MacDonald's bio page and quote source

High resolution JPEG (1024 pixels wide)

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American Loon #2005: Dave Miller

Dave Miller is the Executive Director of Apologetics Press, a creationist organization locked in ferocious war with the world of science, evidence and facts, and trying to publish various interpretations of the world that could hopefully serve as alternative narratives to those who don’t look too...

Read the full lunacy: #2005: Dave Miller Encyclopedia of American Loons

2018 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #17

A chronological listing of news articles posted on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week.

Editor's Pick

Global temperatures have dropped since 2016. Here’s why that’s normal. 

 

It was only two years ago that a new record-warm global temperature was set, but things have already cooled off significantly. Temperature anomalies hit record peaks in 2016 but have been sliding since then. Global temperatures are still much warmer than normal, but according to NASA, the first quarter of 2018 (January-March) was the fourth warmest, behind 2015, 2016, 2017 and tied with 2010.

This is normal, of course. The world has not seen the last of global warming. The long-term upward trend in temperatures is the result of  man-made fossil fuel emissions, but natural processes that affect global temperature — like El Niño — still play a role. Sometimes they make things warmer and sometimes they make things cooler.

The current cooling episode is mostly the result of a reversal of waters in the Tropical Pacific, which can modulate global temperature. Since the Pacific Ocean is our largest global body of water, what it does makes a big difference on global climate. A similar reversal followed the super El Niño in the late ’90s — 1998 was the hottest year on record at the time in part because of the warm El Niño water pushing global temperatures over the brink. Earth went from having one of the strongest El Niño events on record (very warm waters in the central Tropical Pacific) to a few years of cooler waters, thanks to a La Niña period. 

Global temperatures have dropped since 2016. Here’s why that’s normal. by Matt Rogers, Capital Weather Gang, Washington Post, Apr 26, 2018 

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Links posted on Facebook

Sun Apr 22, 2018

• Nitrogen Cycle In Seawater Is Helping To Regulate Global Warming by Guest Post, ValueWalk, Apr 20, 2018
• Climate change could alter ocean food chains, leading to far fewer fish in the sea by Jefferson Keith Moore, The Conversation US, Apr 19, 2018
• US: SEIA reports 18 companies reducing solar deployment, workforce in 2018 by Christian Roselund, PV Magazine, Apr 17, 2018
• Explainer: How ‘Shared Socioeconomic Pathways’ explore future climate change by Zeke Hausfather, Carbon Brief, Apr 19, 2018
• Will rising carbon dioxide levels really boost plant growth? by Stuart Thompson, The Conversation UK, Apr 19, 2018
• 4 States Get Over 30 Percent of Power from Wind — and All Lean Republican by Nicholas Kusnetz, InsideClimate News, Apr 20, 2018
• Trudeau, Emmanuel Macron Agree To New Approach To Climate Change Amid Trump's Inaction by Lee Berthiaume, Canadian Press, HuffPost CA, Apr 16, 2018
• Oilsands thirst for natural gas hits record, environmentalists decry it as 'waste' by Dan Healing, Canadian Press, News 1130 (Vancouver, BC), Apr 19, 2018

Mon Apr 23, 2018

• Europe's biggest bank retreats from the oilsands by Elizabeth McSheffrey, National Observer, Apr 20, 2018
• Report finds offshore wind turbines not as dangerous for seabirds as thoght by Ilona Amos, The Scotsman, Apr 19, 2018
• Climate Change Is Already Depressing the Price of Flood-Prone Real Estate by David Z Morris, Fortune, Apr 21, 2018
• Do satellites hold the answer to reporting greenhouse gases?, Guest Post by Jane Burston, Carbon Brief, Apr 23, 2018
• California and climate change: Jerry Brown’s would-be successors make plans by Kurtis Alexander, San Fransisco Chronicle, Apr 22, 2018
• Will courts hold oil companies accountable for climate change disasters? by Jason Mark, Los Angeles Times, Apr 22, 2018
• Pruitt promised polluters EPA will value their profits over American lives by Dana Nuccitelli, Climate Consensus - the 97%, Environment, Guardian, Apr 23, 2018
• Republican AGs File Brief Opposing Climate Liability Suits by Jennifer Dorroh, Climate Liability News, Apr 23, 2018

Tue Apr 24, 2018

• Things are changing: "Wet gets wetter, dry gets drier" by Maryam Qarehgozlou, Tehran Times, Apr 23, 2018
• Climate change will make California's drought-flood cycle more volatile, study finds by Bettina Boxall, Los Angeles Times, Apr 23, 2018
• 9 questions about climate change you were too embarrassed to ask by Brad Plumer, Brian Resnick & Umair Irfan, Energy & Environment, Vox, Apr 22, 2018
• Court Strikes Down Trump Delay of Auto Efficiency Standards Penalty by Georgina Gustin, InsideClimate News, Apr 23, 2018
• Clear signs of global warming will hit poorer countries first by Quirin Schiermeie, News, Nature, Apr 20, 2018
• One of the most worrisome predictions about climate change may be coming true by Chris Mooney, Energy & Environment, Washington Post, Apr 23, 2018
• EPA Declares Biomass Plants Carbon Neutral, Amid Scientific Disagreement by Niina Heikkinen, E&E News/Scientific American, Apr 24, 2018
• Latest Climate Threat for Coastal Cities: More Rich People by Christopher Flavelle, Bloomberg News, Apr 23, 2018

Wed Apr 25, 2018

• The trillion-dollar coastal property bubble is ready to burst, per new study by Joe Romm, Think Progress, Apr 23, 2018
• Flooding Hot Spots: Why Seas Are Rising Faster on the U.S. East Coast by Jim Morrison, Yale Environment 360, Apr 24, 2018
• Which U.S. Industries Are Setting the Strongest Climate Goals? by Georgina Gustin, InsideClimate News, Apr 24, 2018
• Bloomberg Philanthropies Commits $4.5 Million To UN Climate Change Secretariat To Ensure US Honors Paris Commitment by Joshua S Hill, Clean Technica, Apr 23, 2018
• America's best scientists stood up to the Trump Administration by John Abraham, Climate Consensus - the 97%, Environment, Guardian, Apr 23, 2018
• Should Scientists Advocate on the Issue of Climate Change? by Ingfei Chen, UnDark, Apr 24, 2018
• Here's How Scientists Can Become More Politically Engaged, Opinion by William T Adler, Observations, Scientific American, Apr 25, 2018
• Seabirds Aren’t Keeping Pace With Climate Change, Scientists Warn by Danielle Beurteaux, Oceans Deeply, Apr 17, 2018
• French President Macron breaks with Trump on climate change: 'There's no Planet B' by Rebecca Shabad, NBC News, Apr 25, 2018

Thu Apr 26, 2018

• Climate Science Denial Explained: The Denial Personality by DPiepgrass, Skeptical Science, Apr 24, 2018
• Europe will see a doubling of drought areas if climate change isn’t addressed by Alexandru Micu, ZME Science, Apr 25, 2018
• Climate Change Will Leave Many Pacific Islands Uninhabitable by Mid-Century, Study Says by Nicholas Kusnetz, InsideClimate News, Apr 25, 2018
• Foreign Office climate staff cut by 25% under Boris Johnson by Damian Carrington, Environment, Guardian, Apr 25, 2018
• 'We're doomed': Mayer Hillman on the climate reality no one else will dare mention, Interview by Patrick Barkham, Environment, Gulardian, Apr 26, 2018
• Deforestation has driven up hottest day temperatures, study says by Daisy Dunne, Carbon Brief, Apr 23, 2018
• Speaking Science to Power, Opinion by Ben Santer, Charles Manski & Ray Weymann, Observations, Scientfic American, April 23, 2018
• E.P.A. Announces a New Rule. One Likely Effect: Less Science in Policymaking. by Lisa Friedman, Climate, New York Times, Apr 24, 2018

Fri Apr 27, 2018

• Change in ocean circulation bumped up CO2 levels in the atmosphere and helped end the last Ice Age by Tibi Pruiu, ZME Science, Apr 24, 2018
• The missing maths: the human cost of fossil fuels by Ploy Achakulwisut, Climate Consensus - the 97%, Environment, Guardian, Apr 23, 2018
• Landmark Air Pollution Studies Could Be Excluded by Proposed EPA Rule by Scott Waldman E&E News/Scientific American, Apr 26, 2018
• Disease threat forces SA (South Australia) Health to prioritise adapting to climate change by Matt Smith, Environment, news.com.au, Apr 26, 2018
• US government considers charging for popular Earth-observing data by Gabriel Popkin, Nature, April 24, 2018
• Melting Arctic sends a message: Climate change is here in a big way by Mark Serreze, The Conversation US, Apr 26, 2018

Sat Apr 28, 2018

• New research, April 16-22, 2018 by Ari Jokimäki, Skeptical Scince, Apr 27, 2018
• Can Dirt Save the Earth? by Moises Velasquez-Manoff, New York Times Magazine, Apr 18, 2018
• Global temperatures have dropped since 2016. Here’s why that’s normal. by Matt Rogers, Capital Weather Gang, Washington Post, Apr 26, 2018
• Hiroshima, Kyoto, and the Bombs of Climate Change by Bill McKibben, The New Yorker, Apr 27, 2018
• Gulf Stream slowing down is bad news for Ireland by Paul Gillespie, Irish Times, Apr 28, 2018
• The Northeast US has a carbon-trading system. It is boosting, not hurting, state economies. by David Roberts, Eneergy & Environment, Vox, Apr 25, 2018
• The Dangerous Belief That Extreme Technology Will Fix Climate Change by Aleszu Bajak, Huff Post, Apr 27, 2018

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Gustav Born (1921-2018)

My friend Gustav Born FRS died on 16 April 2018. Gustav was born into a Jewish family that emigrated from 1930s Goettingen (Germany) to the UK. His father Max, a friend of Einstein, was a physicist who received a Nobel Prize for his work in quantum mechanics. After studying medicine in the UK, Gustav  served […]

Read the rest here: Gustav Born (1921-2018)

American Loon #2004: Brian Miller

Brian Miller is an Instructor for Campus Harvest, “a division of Every Nation Ministries, a member of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability,” and travels around giving lectures on science “from a faith perspective”, such as “Empirical Evidence for the Resurrection of Jesus Christ”...

Read the full lunacy: #2004: Brian Miller Encyclopedia of American Loons

The Royal College of Chiropractors’ focus on key areas of public health – plus my constructive suggestions for them

The RCC is a relatively new organisation. It is a registered charity claiming to promote “professional excellence, quality and safety in chiropractic… The organisation promotes and supports high standards of education, practice and research, enabling chiropractors to provide, and to be recognised for providing, high quality care for patients.” I have to admit that lately I have not followed […]

Read the rest here: The Royal College of Chiropractors’ focus on key areas of public health – plus my constructive suggestions for them

American Loon #2003: Matt Miles & Mark Crawford

Matt Miles and a rock.Matt and Theresa Miles are missionaries affiliated with the Church’s Youth. They are also affiliated with Creation Truth Foundation, an Oklahoma creationist group trying as best they can to prevent kids from being brainwashed with facts, truth, reason and evidence. Matt...

Read the full lunacy: #2003: Matt Miles & Mark Crawford Encyclopedia of American Loons

Reflexology works – but not as reflexologists think

Reflexology is an alternative therapy that is subjectively pleasant and objectively popular; it has been the subject on this blog before (see also here and here). Reflexologists assume that certain zones on the sole of our feet correspond to certain organs, and that their manual treatment can influence the function of these organs. Thus reflexology […]

Read the rest here: Reflexology works – but not as reflexologists think

“Ernst is a serial scientific liar” … To sue or not to sue, that is the question

“In at least one article on chiropractic, Ernst has been shown to be fabricating data. I would not be surprised if he did the same thing with homeopathy. Ernst is a serial scientific liar.” I saw this remarkable and charming Tweet yesterday. Its author is ‘Dr’ Avery Jenkins. Initially I was unaware of having had […]

Read the rest here: “Ernst is a serial scientific liar” … To sue or not to sue, that is the question

American Loon #2002: Austin Miles

Rev. Austin Miles is a paranoid idiot writing for Alan Keyes’s website Renew America. Miles is a 1950s throwback red-scare conspiracy theorist and the kind of person who, in 2014, would assert that Obama were going to cancel the 2016 elections as part of his plot to turn America into...

Read the full lunacy: #2002: Austin Miles Encyclopedia of American Loons

KISS the new Royal Baby … should we worry?

Gosh, we in the UK needed that boost of jingoism (at least, if you are white, non-Jewish and equipped with a British passport)! But it’s all very well to rejoice at the news that we have a new little Windsor. With all the joy and celebration, we must not forget that the blue-blooded infant might […]

Read the rest here: KISS the new Royal Baby … should we worry?

Homeopathy: our (‘just a bit of rubbish’) study that made the UK headlines

Have you ever wondered whether doctors who practice homeopathy are different from those who don’t. Silly question, of course they are! But how do they differ? Having practised homeopathy myself during my very early days as a physician, I have often thought about this issue. My personal (and not very flattering) impressions were noted in […]

Read the rest here: Homeopathy: our (‘just a bit of rubbish’) study that made the UK headlines

Reiki improves pain, nausea, fatigue, anxiety, depression, and well-being … OH NO, IT DOESN’T!!!

Amongst all the implausible treatments to be found under the umbrella of ‘alternative medicine’, Reiki might be one of the worst, i. e. least plausible and outright bizarre (see for instance here, here and here). But this has never stopped enthusiasts from playing scientists and conducting some more pseudo-science. This new study examined the immediate […]

Read the rest here: Reiki improves pain, nausea, fatigue, anxiety, depression, and well-being … OH NO, IT DOESN’T!!!

American Loon #2001: Barbara Mikulski

Barbara Mikulski served as Senator (D-Maryland) for some thirty years between 1987 and 2017 – and was ten years in the House of Representatives before that – and is currently a professor of public policy at John Hopkins University. For our purposes, Mikulski is notable for her support of...

Read the full lunacy: #2001: Barbara Mikulski Encyclopedia of American Loons

2018 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #16

A chronological listing of news articles posted on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week.

Editor's Pick

Earth Day and the Hockey Stick: A Singular Message 

 

When the hockey stick was first attacked in the late 1990s I was initially reluctant to speak out, but I realized I had to defend myself against a cynical assault on my science and on me. I have come to embrace that role. What more noble cause is there than to fight to preserve our planet for our children and grandchildren?

There is great urgency to act now if we are to avert a dangerous 2- degree Celsius (3.6-degree Fahrenheit) planetary warming. My own recent work suggests the challenge is greater than previously thought. Yet I remain cautiously optimistic we will act in time. Along with many other Americans, I have been inspired by the renewed enthusiasm of our youth, who are demanding action now when it comes to the societal and environmental threats they face. Indeed, I have committed myself to helping insure a future in which we avoid catastrophic climate change. So let me conclude with this exhortation from the epilogue of The Hockey Stick and the Climate Wars:

“While slowly slipping away, that future is still within the realm of possibility. It is a matter of what path we choose to follow. I hope that my fellow scientists—and concerned individuals everywhere—will join me in the effort to make sure we follow the right one.” 

Earth Day and the Hockey Stick: A Singular Message, Opinion by Michael Mann, Observations, Scientific American, Apr 20, 2018

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Links posted on Facebook

Sun Apr 15, 2018

• New research, April 2-8, 2018 by Ari Jokimäki, Skeptical Science, Apr 13, 2018
• Polar bears: Pick your facts and ignore the science, Opinion by Kevin Horrigan, St Louis Post-Dispatch, Apr 14, 2018
• World can limit global warming to 1.5C ‘without BECCS’ by Simon Evans, Carbon Brief, Apr 13, 2018
• Climate change task force suggests Alaska ‘be bold’ by Ravenna Koenig, Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, Apr 14, 2018
• Energy Efficiency: A Rare Bipartisan Consensus, Commentary by Taryn Holowka, Real Clear Politics, Apr 10, 2018
• 97% consensus on climate change? More like 99.94%, study finds by Mahai Andrei, ZME Science, Apr 9, 2018
• South Australia's famed wine regions preparing for the squeeze of climate change by Simon Royal, ABC News, Apr 15, 2018
• New storm forecasting methods mark 'huge leap forward' - U.S. official by Isabelle Gerretsen, Thomson Reuters Foundation, Apr 13, 2018

Mon Apr 16, 2018

• Tiny Marshall Islands wields outsized clout for climate action by Laurie Goering. Thomson Reuters Foundation, Apr 13, 2018
• ‘Renewable energy breeding’ can stop Australia blowing the carbon budget – if we’re quick by Mark Diesendorf, The Converation AU, Apr 16, 2018
• Climate change is slowing Atlantic currents that help keep Europe warm by Peter T Spooner, the Conversation UK, Apr 12, 2018
• Coal Lobbyist Becomes No. 2 Official at EPA, Just Behind Pruitt by Marianne Lavelle, InsideClimate News, Apr 12, 2018
• Kids are suing Gov. Rick Scott to force Florida to take action on climate change by Alex Harris, Miami Herald, Apr 16, 2018
• The courts are deciding who's to blame for climate change by Dana Nuccitelli, Climate Consensus - the 97%, Environment, Guardian, Apr 16, 2018
• Boulder County expected to join city in climate change lawsuit against fossil fuel producers by Alex Burness, Times-Call, Apr 16, 2018

Tue Apr 17, 2018

• 'Lightweight PR and greenwash' – BP's low-carbon plan dismissed by Adam Vaughn, Environment, Guardian, Apr 16, 2018
• The impact of climate change on mental health is impossible to ignore, Guest Post by Helen Berry. Carbon Brief, Apr 16, 2018
• How the science of persuasion could change the politics of climate change by James Temple, MIT Technology Review, Apr 16, 2018
• March 2018 was one of six warmest Marches on record, NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies, Apr 16, 2018
• Don't believe the hype on natural gas. It's a fossil fuel just like coal, Opinion by Fiona Stanley, Graeme Pearman & Richard Yin, Guardian, Apr 16, 2018
• Carbon Markets Pay Off for These States as New Businesses, Jobs Spring Up by Dan Gearino, InsideClimate News, Apr 17, 2018
• Cars Threaten Climate Goals in Blue States by Benjamin Storrow, ;E&E News/Scientific American, Apr 17, 2018
• China made solar panels cheap. Now it’s doing the same for electric buses. by David Roberts, Energy & Environment, Vox, Apr 17, 2018

Wed Apr 18, 2018

• Denial by a Different Name by Kate Aronoff, The Intercept, Apr 17, 2018
• Warming climate to nearly double demand for cooling appliances by Adam Vaughn, Environment, Guardian, Apr 17, 2018
• UK calls on advisory body to test net-zero carbon target by Megan Darby, Climate Home News, Apr 17, 2018
• Climate change adversely affecting Virginians’ health, study says by Patricia Sullivan, Local, Washington Post, Apr 17, 2918
• Climate Science Denial Explained: Tactics of Denial by DPiepgrass, Skeptical Science, Apr 17, 2018
• Glacier loss is accelerating because of global warming by John Abraham, Climate Consensus - the 97%, Environment, Guardian, Apr 18, 2018
• Low-Carbon Investment Is Moving Too Slowly to Rein in Warming, U.N. Warns by Benjamin Hulac, E&E News/Scientific American, Apr 18, 2018
• Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Earth’s Past Climates by Rachel E Gross, Smithsonian.com, Apr 16, 2018

Thu Apr 19, 2018

• Video: All you need to know about the shipping sector’s new climate deal by Jocelyn Timperley & Tom Prater, Explainers, Carbon Brief, Apr 17, 2018 
• Bangladesh PM says country 'cannot wait' for help with climate action by Zoe Tabary, Thomson Reuters Foundation, Apr 17, 2018
• Analysis: UK to seek advice on strengthening long-term climate goal by Simon Evans, UK Policy, Carbon Brief, Apr 17, 2018
• Cooked': Study finds Great Barrier Reef transformed by mass bleaching by Peter Hannam, Environment, Sydney Morning Herald, Apr 18, 2018
• As seas rise, SC legislators move to derail tighter limits on coastal development by Sammy Fretwell, The State (Columbia), Apr 18, 2018
• Sea levels could be rising faster than predicted due to new source of Antarctic ice melting by Josh Gabbatis, Environment, Independent (UK), Apr 19, 2018
• Senate Confirms Climate Change Denier To Lead NASA by Chris D'Angelo, HuffPost, Apr 19, 2018
• Climate Change is Causing a Dangerous Uptick in Cases of Lyme Disease by Gabriela Serrato Marks, Pacific Standard, Apr 16, 2018

Fri Apr 20, 2018

• Gardening astronauts and CO2 detectives: Space exploration fights climate change by Katharina Wecker, Deutsche Welle (DW), Apr 19, 2018
• New study shows worrisome signs for Greenland ice by John Abraham, Climate Consensus - the 97%, Environment, Guardian, Apr 18, 2017
• What Is Eating Away at the Greenland Ice Sheet? by Bob Berwyn, InsideClimate News, Apr 19, 2018
• Climate Change Is Making Deadly Air Pollution Worse in Cities Across the U.S. by Justin Worland, Time, Apr 19, 2018
• CO2 emissions from wildfires have fallen over past 80 years, study finds by Daisy Dunne, Carbon Brief, Apr 17, 2018
• What Extremely Warm Winters Mean for the Future of the Arctic by Katharine Bagley, Yale Environment 360, Apr 18, 2018
• Trump just took the first step of an aggressive effort to drill in the Arctic by Darryl Fears, Energy & Environment, Washington Post, Apr 19, 2018
• Skeptical Science at EGU 2018 - a personal diary by BaerbelW, Skeptical Science, Apr 19, 2018

Sat Apr 21, 2018

• New research, April 9-15, 2018 by Ari Jokimäki, Skeptical Science, Apr 20, 2018
• Great Barrier Reef at ‘unprecedented’ risk of collapse after major bleaching event by Daisy Dunne, Carbon Brief, Apr 18, 2018
• Miami Beach's future is 'uncertain,' experts say, but sea rise pumps are a good start by Alex Harris, Miami Herald, Apr 19, 2018
• Earth Day and the Hockey Stick: A Singular Message, Opinion by Michael Mann, Observations, Scientific American, Apr 20, 2018
• What happened to winter? Vanishing ice convulses Alaskans' way of life by Oliver Milman, Guardian, Apr 21, 2018
• The staggering environmental footprint of all the food that we just throw in the trash by Chris Monney, Energy & Environment, Washington Post, Apr 18, 2018
• Belgium to double offshore wind energy capacity as it exits nuclear power by Robert-Jan Bartunek, Reuters, Apr 20, 2018
• Global warming has changed the Great Barrier Reef ‘forever,’ scientists say by Chris Mooney, Energy & Environment, Washington Post, Apr 18, 2018

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Osteopathy in surgical care? Surprise, surprise: no good evidence

Osteopathy is an odd alternative therapy. In many parts of the world it is popular; the profession differs dramatically from country to country; and there is not a single condition for which we could say that osteopathy out-performs other options. No wonder then that osteopaths would be more than happy to find a new area […]

Read the rest here: Osteopathy in surgical care? Surprise, surprise: no good evidence

American Loon #2000: Harry Mihet

Liberty Counsel (LC) is an organization created (ostensibly) to defend religious freedom. In reality, they do no such thing, of course. Instead, LC is an extremist, at least borderline dominionist hate group for whom “religious freedom” means the freedom of fundamentalist, radical...

Read the full lunacy: #2000: Harry Mihet Encyclopedia of American Loons

American Loon #1999: Christina Michas

Christina Michas is the head of the Palm Springs chapter of Phyllis Schlafly’s Eagle Forum. Like so many associated with the organization, Michas is a conspiracy theorist, and has putatively rigorously researched the Satanic connection between Common Core education standards, Agenda...

Read the full lunacy: #1999: Christina Michas Encyclopedia of American Loons

Chiropractic: a truly remarkable and excellent review by chiropractors

I have often criticised papers published by chiropractors. Not today! This article is excellent and I therefore quote extensively from it. The objective of this systematic review was to investigate, if there is any evidence that spinal manipulations/chiropractic care can be used in primary prevention (PP) and/or early secondary prevention in diseases other than musculoskeletal […]

Read the rest here: Chiropractic: a truly remarkable and excellent review by chiropractors

Alternative treatments for diabetes: I strongly advise caution

Most diabetics need life-long medication. Understandably, this makes many fed-up, and some think that perhaps natural remedies might be a less harmful, less intrusive way to control their condition. They don’t have to look far to find an impressively large choice. This article in the Canadian Journal of Diabetes was aimed at reviewing CAM, including natural health […]

Read the rest here: Alternative treatments for diabetes: I strongly advise caution

Science cannot explain it yet, but my therapy does work!!!

I hear this argument so regularly that it might be worth analysing it (yet again) a bit closer. It is used with the deepest of convictions by proponents of all sorts of quackery who point out that science does not know or explain everything – and certainly not their (very special) therapy. Science is just […]

Read the rest here: Science cannot explain it yet, but my therapy does work!!!

American Loon #1998: David Michael

David Michael is an Ohio-based writer for the website The Journal of Natural Food and Health, which is of course not a medical or scientific journal but is likely to confuse precisely their target audience: those who wouldn’t know the difference. Michael is a supporter of all things woo...

Read the full lunacy: #1998: David Michael Encyclopedia of American Loons

A new Cochrane Review of homeopathy: “no evidence to support the efficacy of homeopathic medicinal products”

Generally speaking, Cochrane reviews provide the best (most rigorous, transparent and independent) evidence on the effectiveness of medical or surgical interventions. It is therefore important to ask what they tell us about homeopathy. In 2010, I did exactly that and published it as an overview of the current best evidence. At the time, there were […]

Read the rest here: A new Cochrane Review of homeopathy: “no evidence to support the efficacy of homeopathic medicinal products”

American Loon #1997: Daryl Metcalfe

More lunacy in the state legislatures. Daryl D. Metcalfe has been a member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives (12th district) since 1999 and is currently majority chairman of the House State Government Committee. “I was a Tea Partier before it was cool,” says Metcalfe. He has also...

Read the full lunacy: #1997: Daryl Metcalfe Encyclopedia of American Loons

American Loon #1996: Geoff Metcalf

Geoff Metcalf is an author, writer, columnist, (formerly) radio talk show host, and editor of CalNews.com. He was also heavily involved in the development of the WND – their first columnist apart from Joseph Farah, in fact – and involved in the founding of NewsMax. His CV also includes being a...

Read the full lunacy: #1996: Geoff Metcalf Encyclopedia of American Loons

American Loon #1995: Eric Metaxas

Eric Metaxas is a fundie apologist, pseudo-philosopher, author, radio host (The Eric Metaxas Show) and a regular on various TV shows, such as Glenn Beck’s, Mike Huckabee’s and Laura Ingraham’s shows. He has also received various honorary doctorates from places like Liberty...

Read the full lunacy: #1995: Eric Metaxas Encyclopedia of American Loons

American Loon #1994: Kenny Merriken

A village idiot of Lake City, Florida, Kenny Merriken has become something of a local attraction for protesting outside the county school administration building, every morning, over the fact that the state requires the school to teach evolution in biology classes. According to Merriken, he is...

Read the full lunacy: #1994: Kenny Merriken Encyclopedia of American Loons

BREAKING NEWS: your mouth is an integral part of your body!

The UK ‘COLLEGE OF MEDICINE’ has recently (and very quietly) renamed itself; it now is THE COLLEGE OF MEDICINE AND INTEGRATED HEALTH (COMIH). This takes it closer to its original intentions of being the successor of the PRINCE OF WALES FOUNDATION FOR INTEGRATED MEDICINE (PWFIM), the organisation that had to be shut down amidst charges […]

Read the rest here: BREAKING NEWS: your mouth is an integral part of your body!

2018 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #15

A chronological listing of news articles posted on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week.

Editor's Pick

Avoid Gulf stream disruption at all costs, scientists warn

How close the world is to a catastrophic collapse of giant ocean currents is unknown, making halting global warming more critical than ever, scientists say

 

Other research this week showed that Greenland’s massive ice cap is melting at the fastest rate for at least 450 years. Photograph: Nick Cobbing/Greenpeace 

Serious disruption to the Gulf Stream ocean currents that are crucial in controlling global climate must be avoided “at all costs”, senior scientists have warned. The alert follows the revelation this week that the system is at its weakest ever recorded.

Past collapses of the giant network have seen some of the most extreme impacts in climate history, with western Europe particularly vulnerable to a descent into freezing winters. A significantly weakened system is also likely to cause more severe storms in Europe, faster sea level rise on the east coast of the US and increasing drought in the Sahel in Africa.

The new research worries scientists because of the huge impact global warming has already had on the currents and the unpredictability of a future “tipping point”. 

Avoid Gulf stream disruption at all costs, scientists warn by Damian Carrrington, Environment, Guardian, Apr 13, 2018 

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Links posted on Facebook

Sun Apr 8, 2018

• New research, March 26 - April 1, 2018 by Ari Jokimäki, Skeptical Scince, Apr 6, 2018
• Colombia's top court orders government to protect Amazon forest in landmark case by Anastasia Moloney, Thomson Reuters Foundation, Apr 6, 2018
• Rules to govern sun-dimming technology "urgently" needed - expert by Laurie Goering, Thomson Reuters Foundtion, Apr 7, 2018
• Trump’s Climate Change Denial Is Already Reshaping Public Opinion. Opinion by John Cook, HuffPost, Apr 3, 2018
• In March, Portugal Made More Than Enough Renewable Energy To Power The Whole Country by Camila Domonoske, NPR News, Apr 5, 2018
• Mark Carney warns of climate change threat to financial system by Richard Partington, Business, Guardian, Apr 6, 2018
• Solar geoengineering ‘too uncertain to go ahead yet’ by Alex Kirby, Climate News Network, Apr 6, 2018
• Faced with global warming, aviation industry eyes electric-powered aircraft. AFP/The Straits Times, Apr 8, 2018

Mon Apr 9, 2018

• Abandoned collieries could hold key to heating UK homes by Robin Mckie, Environment, Observer/Guardian, Apr 7, 2018
• Nobody should believe Canadian politicians who promise to fight climate change by Paul Wells, Maclean's, Apr 6, 2018
• Saving the world: the 'new normal' for finance? by Lee Mannion, Thomson Reuters Foundation, Apr 6, 2018
• Why Green Groups Are Split on Subsidizing Carbon Capture Technology by Richard Conniff, Yale Environment 360, Apr 9, 2018
• To See Offshore Wind Energy’s Future, Look on Shore – in Massachusetts by Jan Ellen Spiegel, InsideClimate News, Apr 9, 2018
• Antarctic Glaciers Lost Stunning Amount of Ground in Recent Years by Chelsea Harvey, E&E News/Scientific American, Apr 4, 2018
• In His Haste to Roll Back Rules, Scott Pruitt, E.P.A. Chief, Risks His Agenda by Coral Davenport & Lisa Friedman, Climate, New York Times, Apr 7, 2018
• Four More Oil Giants Acknowledge Climate Consensus to Federal Judge by Amy Westervelt, Climate Liability News, Apr 6, 2018

Tue Apr 10, 2018

• UN, EU climate chiefs call for ambitious shipping strategy from IMO by Megan Darby, Climate Home News, Apr 9, 2018
• UN Shipping Agency Slammed for Stalling Climate Action by J Nastranis, InDepthNews (IDN), Apr 10, 2018
• California’s Snow Drought Is a Recipe for Danger by Jeremy Deaton, Nexus Media News, Apr 6, 2018
• Forests burn across India as temperatures rise by Juhi Chaudhary, india Climate Dialogue, Apr 4, 2018
• EPA’s war with California proves America needs a carbon tax by Dana Nuccitelli, Climate Consensus - the 97%. Environment, Guardian, Apr 10. 2018
• Concerning': Marine heatwaves increasing, especially near Australia by Peter Hannam, Environment, Sydney Morning Herald, Apr 11, 2018
• Analysis: How much ‘carbon budget’ is left to limit global warming to 1.5C? by Zeke Hausfather, Carbon Brief, Apr 9, 2018
• Climate Change Denialists Say Polar Bears Are Fine. Scientists Are Pushing Back. by Erica Goode, Climate, New York Times, Apr 10, 2018

Wed Apr 11, 2018

• 10 teams advance in international carbon dioxide competition by Mead Gruver, Energy & Environment, AP/Washington Post, Apr 9, 2018
• XPRIZE Projects Aim to Convert CO2 Emissions, but Skepticism Remains by Benjamin Storrow, E&E News/Scientific American, Apr 10, 2018
• Undoing American Climate Diplomacy by Emily Atkin, The New Republic, Apr 11, 2018
• UK supermarket Iceland pledges no palm oil in its own-brand products by Serena Chaudhry, Thomson Reuters Foundation, Apr 10, 2018
• World’s Most Powerful Wind Turbine Installed At Vattenfall’s European Offshore Wind Deployment Centre by Joshua S Hill, Clean Technica, Apr 10, 2018
• Climate Change Is Weakening a Crucial Ocean Current by Eric Betz, Discover Magazine, Apr 11, 2018
• Africa’s vegetation has lost 2.6bn tonnes of CO2 in just seven years by Daisy Dunne, Carbon Brief, Apr 9, 2018
• Oil company allies say climate lawsuits were shopped around by Anne C. Mulkern , E&E News, Apr 10, 2018

Thu Apr 12, 2018

• The Most Important Climate Treaty You’ve Never Heard Of by Sabrina Shankman, InsideClimate News, Apr 11, 2018
• Marine heatwaves have become ‘34% more likely’ over past century by Robert McSweeney, Carbon Brief, Apr 10, 2018
• Sea Level Rise Poses Huge Threat to California, Heightening Urgency of Liability Cases by Dana Drugmand, Climate Liability News, Apr 11, 2018
• Investor’s Business Daily editorial misrepresents study to claim plants will prevent dangerous climate change by Scott Johnson, Climate Feedback, Apr 12, 2018
• Climate change litigation rising with the seas as victims revert to 'Plan B' by Malcolm Sutton, ABC Radio Adelaide, Apr 9, 2018
• How a small start-up firm wants to revitalize climate change research by Jason Samenow, Capital Weather Gang, Washington Post, Apr 9, 2018
• 'Day zero' water crises: Spain, Morocco, India and Iraq at risk as reservoirs shrink by Jonathan Watts, Environment, Guardian, Apr 11, 2018
• Global warming is causing an Alaskan glacier to melt at the fastest pace in 400 years by Doyle Rice, USA Today, Apr 11, 2018

Fri Apr 13, 2018

• Antarctic expedition hopes for Ernest Shackleton bonus by Jonathan Amos, Science & Environment, BBC News, Apr 10, 2018
• New Zealand bans all new offshore oil exploration as part of 'carbon-neutral future' by Eleanor Ainge Roy, Guardian, Apr 11, 2018
• Hurricane Winds at Landfall: A Measurement Challenge by Bob Henson, Category 6, Weather Underground, Apr 11, 2018
• Hurricane Winds at Landfall: Why Is It They Seem to Fall Short? by Bob Henson, Category 6, Weather Underground, Apr 12, 2018
• Climate Change Or Global Warming? Three Reasons Not To Be Distracted By The Name Game by Marshall Sheperd, Science, Forbes, Apr 13, 2018
• A North American Climate Boundary Has Shifted 140 Miles East Due to Global Warming, Yale Environment 360, Apr 11, 2018
• Atlantic ‘conveyor belt’ has slowed by 15% since mid-20th century by Robert McSweeney, Carbon Brief, Apr 11, 2018
• Avoid Gulf stream disruption at all costs, scientists warn by Damian Carrrington, Environment, Guardian, Apr 13, 2018

Sat Apr 14, 2018

• The shipping industry is finally going to cut its climate change emissions. That’s a big deal. by Chris Mooney, Energy & Environment, Washington Post, Apr 13, 2018
• New satellite to spot planet-warming industrial methane leaks by Damian Carrrington, Environment, Guardian, Apr 12, 2018
• Industry Group Asks SEC to Investigate Cities With Climate Lawsuits by Ucilia Wang, Climate Liability News, Apr 13, 2018
• Massachusetts Investigation of Exxon for Climate Fraud Can Proceed, Court Rules by Karen Savage, Climate Liability News, Apr 13, 2018
• EXECUTIVE PERSPECTIVE: Moody’s Eyes Rise of Sustainable Investor and Climate Risk by Tim Nixon, Sustainability, Thomson Reuters Foundation, Apr 9, 2018
• Explainer: These six metals are key to a low-carbon future by Jocelyn Timperley, Carbon Brief, Apr 12, 2018

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Daniel P Wirth, his dubious research, and the remarkable apathy of some medical journals

Daniel P Wirth used to be THE star amongst researchers and proponents of paranormal healing. About 15 years ago, there was nobody who had published more studies of it than Wirth. The extraordinary phenomenon was not just the number of studies, but also the fact that these trials all reported positive findings. At the time, […]

Read the rest here: Daniel P Wirth, his dubious research, and the remarkable apathy of some medical journals

Finally! An official statement about homeopathy from a French health minister

I have written about the use of homeopathy in France before (as I now live half of my time in France, this is a subject of considerable interest to me). After decades of deafening silence and uncritical acceptance by the French public, it seems that finally some change to the better might be on its […]

Read the rest here: Finally! An official statement about homeopathy from a French health minister

Homeopathy: from the bizarre to the outright belwildering

It’s still ‘HOMEOPATHIC AWARENESS WEEK’. What better time for introducing you to one of the most bewildering aspect of this bizarre therapy? Homeopathy is not just being promoted as a treatment for humans and animals, it is also advocated for plants. There are plenty of websites about this that give concrete advice such as this […]

Read the rest here: Homeopathy: from the bizarre to the outright belwildering

Chiropractic Awareness Week… or should this be ‘bewareness’?

This week, I find it hard to decide where to focus; with all the fuzz about ‘Homeopathy Awareness Week’ it is easy to forget that our friends, the chiros are celebrating  Chiropractic Awareness Week (9-15 April). On this occasion, the British Chiropractic Association (BCA), for instance, want people to keep moving to make a positive […]

Read the rest here: Chiropractic Awareness Week… or should this be ‘bewareness’?

It’s Hahnemann’s birthday today – so, let’s honour him by quoting his words

Samuel Hahnemann published a lot, but his main ideas about homeopathy are summarised in his ‘Organon‘ which has thus become ‘the bible’ for all homeopaths. They regularly refer to this book, yet I sometimes get the impression that many of them have even read it. I did! Most recently, I re-studied it when writing my […]

Read the rest here: It’s Hahnemann’s birthday today – so, let’s honour him by quoting his words

Sixteen case reports of homeopathic Arnica – never believe what you think!

Today, enthusiasts of homeopathy celebrate the start of the HOMEOPATHY AWARENESS WEEK. Let’s join them by re-addressing one of their favourite themes: their personal experience with homeopathy. Most homeopathy-fans argue that the negative scientific evidence must be wrong because they have had positive experiences. Whenever I give a lecture, for instance, there will be at […]

Read the rest here: Sixteen case reports of homeopathic Arnica – never believe what you think!

2018 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming Digest #14

Opinion of the Week... Opinion of the Week... Toon of the Week... SkS Spotlights... Coming Soon on SkS... Poster of the Week... Climate Feedback Reviews... SkS Week in Review... 97 Hours of Consensus...

Story of the Week...

Solar geoengineering ‘too uncertain to go ahead yet’

The world must urgently agree controls on solar geoengineering to weigh up its possible risks and benefits before deciding to go ahead, one expert says.

Brightening marine clouds is one suggested solar geoengineering approach. Image: By Ron Reeves, US Navy, via Wikimedia Commons

Progress to deploy solar engineering, experimental technology designed to protect the world against the impact of the changing climate, must pause, a former United Nations climate expert says, arguing that governments need to create “effective guardrails” against any unforeseen risks.

Janos Pasztor, who served as a UN assistant secretary-general on climate change, is using a speech to Arizona State University, broadast via Facebook Live by ASU LightWorks, 6:30-8pm Arizona time (9:30pm EDT – US Eastern Daylight Time) today, to warn the world that governments are largely ignoring the fundamental question of who should control geoengineering, and how.

There are widespread misgivings, both among scientists and more widely, about geoengineering, with many regarding it as at best a strategy of last resort to help to avoid calamitous climate change.

Mr Pasztor’s warning comes as researchers prepare for what is thought to be the world’s first outdoor experiment on stratospheric aerosol injection (SAI), one type of solar geoengineering. The test is due to take place later this year over Arizona.

Pasztor heads the Carnegie Climate Geoengineering Governance Initiative(C2G2),  an initiative of the New York-based Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs. The Initiative wants solar geoengineering deployment to be delayed until the risks and potential benefits are better known and governance frameworks are agreed.

Solar geoengineering ‘too uncertain to go ahead yet’ by Alex Kirby, Climate News Network, Apr 6, 2018 

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Opinion of the Week...

A new Gallup survey shows that independent voters are less concerned about climate change than they were a year ago. In the last year, independents have become less likely to accept that global warming is happening and that humans are the cause, and less likely to perceive that there’s a scientific consensus about global warming.

In 2017, 71 percent of independent voters were aware that most scientists believe global warming is occurring; this year it’s 65 percent. There has long been a significant gap between public perception of global warming and the scientific consensus: Between 90 percent and 100 percent of climate scientists agree humans are causing global warming, with studies converging on 97-percent consensus. But surveys since 2010 offered hope that the “consensus gap” had been shrinking over the last eight years. Gallup’s new data indicates this trend has reversed. The consensus gap widened over the last year.

Independents aren’t the only ones on the move. The American public has become more polarized on climate change in the last year: Climate concern and acceptance has dropped among Republicans, and Democrats have become more accepting of climate change.

There are a few ways to account for these shifts in public opinion. One is the cues we’ve heard from our political leaders, which are a leading driver of people’s concerns and perceptions about climate change.

Trump’s Climate Change Denial Is Already Reshaping Public Opinion. Opinion by John Cook, HuffPost, Apr 3, 2018 

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SkS Highlights...

Carnegie Climate Geoengineering Governance Initiative

C2G2 seeks to catalyze the creation of effective governance for climate geoengineering technologies by shifting the conversation from the scientific and research community to the global policy-making arena, and by encouraging a broader, society-wide discussion about the risks, potential benefits, ethical and governance challenges raised by climate geoengineering.

The C2G2 initiative is not for or against the research, testing or potential use of climate geoengineering technologies. That is a choice for society to make.

 C2G2 is an initiative of the Carniege Council for Ethics in International Affairs

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Toon of the Week...

 

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Quote of the Week...

Critics say the National Park Service’s editing of the report reflects unprecedented political interference in government science at the Interior Department, which oversees the park service.

Jonathan Overpeck, a climate scientist and dean of the University of Michigan’s School for Environment and Sustainability, said the deletions are “shocking from a scientific point of view, but also from a policy point of view.”

“To remove a very critical part of the scientific understanding is nothing short of political censorship and has no place in science,” he said. “Censorship of this kind is something you’d see in Russia or some totalitarian regime. It has no place in America.”

Wipeout: Human role in climate change removed from science report by Elizabeth Shogren, Reveal, Apr 2, 2018 

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SkS Spotlights...

The Climate Atlas of Canada is an interactive tool for citizens, researchers, businesses, and community and political leaders to learn about climate change in Canada. It combines climate science, mapping and storytelling to bring the global issue of climate change closer to home, and is designed to inspire local, regional, and national action and solutions.

The Atlas explains what climate change is, how it affects Canada and what these changes mean in our communities.  Various aspects of climate change can be explored using maps, graphs and climate data for provinces, local regions and cities across the country. Plain-language description and analysis make climate science understandable and meaningful.  

Documentary videos, collaboratively developed with local and Indigenous knowledge holders as well as other experts, help make local sense of the global issue of climate change. These voices of lived experience provide personal perspectives that complement the climate data and help explain the reality and the meaning of climate change in Canada.

The Atlas is one of the only tools in the world that integrates interactive web design with climatology, cinema, and cartography to connect scientific data with personal experience in compelling and easy-to-use ways.

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Coming Soon on SkS...

• New resource: The Fact-Myth-Fallacy slide-deck (Baerbel, JG)
• EPA’s war with California over fuel efficiency proves America needs a carbon tax (Dana)
• Climate denial explained Part 1 (qwertle)
• Scientists are marching Saturday to make politicians listen to evidence (Dana)
• New research this week (Ari)
• 2017 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #15 (John Hartz)
• 2017 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Waming Digest #15 (John Hartz)

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Poster of the Week...

 

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Climate Feedback Reviews...

Rush Limbaugh falsely claims there is no evidence of human-caused global warming

Claim

"There isn’t yet any empirical evidence for their claim that greenhouse gases even cause temperatures to increase."

Verdict

Source

Rush Limbaugh, The Rush Limbaugh Show, April 2, 2018

Details 

Factually Inaccurate: It is an unequivocal fact that Earth’s climate has warmed over the past century. Also, the conclusion that the human-caused increase of greenhouse gases is causing warming is supported by a wide range of empirical data.

Key Take Away 

Human-caused global warming is not a theoretical, future prediction—it has already occurred. Warming of the atmosphere and oceans is extensively documented, and the role of increased greenhouse gases in this warming has been determined from multiple lines of evidence.

Rush Limbaugh falsely claims there is no evidence of human-caused global warming by Scott Johnson, Climate Feedback, Apr 4, 2018

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SkS Week in Review... 

• 2018 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #14 by John Hartz
• New research, March 26 - April 1, 2018 by Ari Jokimäki
• American conservatives are still clueless about the 97% expert climate consensus by Dana Nuccitelli (Climate Consensus - the 97%, Guardian)
• Skeptical Science at EGU 2018 by BaerbelW
• Scientists examine threats to food security if we meet the Paris climate targets by John Abraham (Climate Consensus - the 97%, Guardian)
• On climate change, zero-sum thinking doesn't work by Joseph Robertson (Climate Consensus - the 97%, Guardian) 
• 2018 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming Digest #13 by John Hartz

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97 Hours of Consensus...

 

 

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