The Week That Was: 2014-04-19 (April 19, 2014) Brought to You by SEPP (www.SEPP.org) The Science and Environmental Policy Project
Quote of the Week: Pray don’t talk to me about the weather, Mr. Worthing. Whenever people talk to me about the weather, I always feel quite certain that they mean something else. And that makes me quite nervous. Oscar Wilde. “The Importance of Being Earnest “[H/t Paul Kenyon] Number of the Week: Down 32%; Down 40%
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SEPP’S APRIL FOOLS AWARD – THE JACKSON
SEPP is conducting its annual vote for the recipient of the coveted trophy, a piece of coal, The Jackson. Readers are asked to nominate and vote for who they thinks is most deserving following these criteria:
· The nominee has advanced, or proposes to advance, significant expansion of governmental power, regulation, or control over the public or significant sections of the general economy.
· The nominee does so by declaring such measures are necessary to protect public health, welfare, or the environment.
· The nominee declares that physical science supports such measures.
· The physical science supporting the measures is flimsy at best, and possibly non-existent.
The first two recipients, Lisa Jackson and Barrack Obama, are not candidates. Due to the late announcement, the voting will close on May 16. Please send your nominee and a brief reason why the person is qualified for the honor to Ken@Haapala.com. Thank you.
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THIS WEEK:
By Ken Haapala, Executive Vice President, Science and Environmental Policy Project (SEPP)
NIPCC: The latest report of the Nongovernmental Panel International Panel on Climate Change (NIPCC), Climate Change Reconsidered II: Biological Impacts, continues to receive some press coverage. Although the coverage is not extensive compared with the press coverage of the latest report of the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), it is becoming evident to some commentators that there is an alternative to the one-sided view that human emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG), particularly carbon dioxide (CO2), are causing unprecedented and dangerous global warming. The warming has stopped and it was not global. Late 20th century warming largely occurred in the northern part of the Northern Hemisphere, which cannot be explained by the false assertion that carbon dioxide is the controlling influence on climate.
Some global warming skeptics may be disappointed by the weak press coverage of the NIPCC report. However, it takes time to overcome the decades of false assertions by the UN, governments, politicians, and some scientists who claim to know far more than what they can scientifically establish. Assertions of knowledge of the physical world are meaningless without physical evidence. Climate models, which have not be verified and validated, are little more than misleading assertions, no matter how sophisticated.
NIPCC co-lead author Craig Idso has an excellent op-ed in Breitbart, which is one of the few news organizations that dares question the authority of the UN and governments. Please see links under Challenging the Orthodoxy – NIPCC.
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IPCC: On April 13, the UN IPCC published its third part of the Fifth Assessment Report (AR5), Climate Change 2014: Mitigation of Climate Change. This is the product of UN Working Group III led by three Co-Chairs: Ottmar Edenhofer from Germany, Ramón Pichs-Madruga from Cuba, and Youba Sokona from Mali. The citizens and businesses of Germany are suffering from rapidly increasing electricity costs due to ill-advised green energy policies. Once an economic bright spot of Latin America, Cuba has undergone about 50 years of economic stagnation from an authoritarian government. Mali is hardly a shining example of economic development in Africa. The report seems to reflect the background of its three Co-Chairs.
According to the IPCC: The Working Group III contribution assesses the options for mitigating climate change and their underlying technological, economic and institutional requirements. It transparently lays out risks, uncertainty and ethical foundations of climate change mitigation policies on the global, national and sub-national level, investigates mitigation measures for all major sectors and assesses investment and finance issues.
Working Group III fails in its mission. The report is alarmist, claiming that the world must act now to control CO2 emissions to prevent warming, even though surface warming stopped 15 years ago. It claims that renewable energy is deployable on a large scale, which would be a surprise to those in Germany who are suffering from increasing electricity costs and the industries that are demanding subsidies and exceptions from the costs of renewable wind and solar.
The report asserts that a price on carbon dioxide is fundamental to the mission, the dream of bureaucrats, some politicians and the green industry for another form of taxation to fight a non-existent problem. The report claims that a warming of 2ºC could produce drastic effects, such as the collapse of ice sheets, a rapid rise in sea levels, difficulty growing enough food, huge die-offs of forests, and mass extinctions of plant and animal species. These claims are contradicted in the NIPCC reports. The false goal of climate stabilization is absurd, the climate has never been stable.
According to the IPCC report, global warming can be stopped with negligible costs. Bjørn Lomborg largely accepts the global warming narrative. But, he directly challenges the claim that global warming can be addressed at low costs. He details how much the bureaucrats and politicians have overstated the costs of global warming and understated of the costs of reducing global warming. He concludes: The solution is to stop applauding politicians who warn of catastrophe and promote poor policies. Instead of subsidizing inefficient solar and wind power with little benefit, we need to invest in long-term green innovation. And we need to give more attention to all of the other problems. This is perhaps less entertaining, but it will do much more good.
See Article # 2 and links under Defending the Orthodoxy and Seeking a Common Ground.
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The Mandate: An article in the Wall Street Journal on the March 31 IPCC report, Impacts Adaptation and Vulnerability produced a letter from Jonathan Lynn, who is identified on IPCC web site as Head, Communications and Media Relations. Lynn writes: The IPCC has a mandate, not an agenda, and that is to tell policy makers what is known and not known about the science related to climate change, its impacts and future risks, and options for adaptation and mitigation. The IPCC assesses relevant scientific, technical and socio-economic literature to produce information that is policy-relevant, but not policy-prescriptive.
The IPCC fails to meet its mandate. The NIPCC reports cite a massive body of scientific work that the IPCC ignores. Further, IPCC’s the assertion of 95% confidence in its work is opinion, not derived from scientific knowledge. And, as discussed below, in its summaries, the IPCC fails to adequately disclose what is not known about the causes of climate change. See Article # 1 and
http://www.ipcc.ch/organization/organization_secretariat.shtml
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Climate Change: what we don’t know: Ironically, on the same day the letter by Jonathan Lynn appeared, on Climate Etc. Judith Curry had a post titled “Climate change: what we don’t know.” It includes links to several articles discussing the lack of kn
owledge about climate and climate science. The post also includes a link to a 30 minute debate among three scientists on the issue of lack of knowledge. The debate was hosted by The Institute of Art and Ideas (IAI) in Australia.
One of the three scientists is Bob Carter, who is a co-editor and lead author of the NIPCC reports (not mentioned). The other two are Richard Cornfield and Michael McIntyre. Among the many important points made, Carter emphasized that during the last ice age the earth was facing planetary starvation of CO2. If that had occurred, it is questionable to what extent life would have survived.
Such discussions are critical if we are to advance scientific knowledge about the impact of increasing CO2 and to establish proper government policies. As Curry notes from the debate: “The whole language of climate change is designed to confuse the public and policy makers.” The NIPCC reports endeavor to clarify the issues regarding climate change. See link under Seeking a Common Ground.
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Time Lag: One of the major issues in climate science is the role of feedbacks to a warming caused by increased atmospheric CO2. If the earth’s feedback is negative, the net effect is a dampening of warming, low sensitivity to CO2. If the feedback is positive, the net effect is an amplifying of warming, high sensitivity to CO2. On his web site, Roy Spencer expresses his frustration with the climate establishment, which seems to believe that any feedback would be instantaneous.
Spencer writes: As long-time loyal readers of my blog are aware, the regression relationships at zero time lag are what are traditionally used to estimate feedbacks in the climate system, a methodology which I (and Lindzen) believe is seriously in error. Since feedbacks determine climate sensitivity, and sensitivity determines how much anthropogenic global warming there will be, this is a critical issue. The climate system is constantly out of balance, and without knowing how much internal radiative forcing is occurring, you can’t know the size of the net feedback. Radiative forcing always opposes net radiative feedback, and if forcing is occurring, any estimate of feedback is biased in the direction of positive feedback (high climate sensitivity).
See link under Challenging the Orthodoxy.
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AAAS: On her web site, Judith Curry has a further discussion on the misleading report by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) entitled “What We Know.” As Curry points out, there is a great deal in that document on what we assume, rather than know. In particular, Curry objects to the undue focus on unverified worst case scenarios as a strategy for building political will for a particular policy option constitutes undesirable alarmism.
The climate establishment asserts 95% certainty, but uses uncertainty as the basis for claiming a need for drastic action. See link under Questioning the Orthodoxy.
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Secret Science: After two years of delay and requiring a subpoena, in a letter to House Science, Space and Technology Committee chairman Lamar Smith EPA, Administrator Gina McCarthy admitted that the EPA cannot produce all of the original data from the 1993 Harvard Six Cities Study and the American Cancer Society’s 1995 Cancer Prevention Study II. For years, EPA has refused to make these studies public, yet has used this secret science to justify ever tightening regulations on particulate emissions from power plants, factories, and cars. Subsequent studies have questioned the announced findings in the secret science. How this admission will affect the continued regulation of the industries remains to be seen. However, this sad episode demonstrates that the Federal appeal courts do not serve the public when they prevent challenges to EPA science by independent-parties. See links under EPA and other Regulators on the March
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Keystone Pipeline: The Administration announced further delay in the decision whether or not to approve the northern portion of Keystone Pipeline, designed to carry crude from Canada and the Bakken formation in North Dakota and Montana to refineries along the Gulf Coast. The southern leg from Cushing, Oklahoma, to the Gulf Coast is already operating.
Tom Steyer is an ardent foe of the pipeline and promised the Democratic Party $100 million in campaign contributions for the 2014 elections. For this, he received a 14 hour talk-a-thon in the Senate. Some commentators speculate that the Administration will not make a decision as long as the threat of a decision can be used to solicit campaign contributions. See links Washington’s Control of Energy.
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Hydraulic Fracturing. The Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources released a 265-page report on the impacts of shale-gas development in state forests. The four findings are: 1) water quality is not affected, 2) about 1486 acres of forest was disturbed; 3) invasive species are a concern in the disturbed areas; and 4) mixed response from the public on recreation use. These are not exactly the findings that the anti-development organizations desired. See links under Oil and Natural Gas – the Future or the Past?
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Post-Hoc Probabilities The eminent physicist and lecturer, Richard Feynman, criticized post hoc probabilities – probability analysis after the fact. For example, what is the probability of a meteor hitting person X after it has hit person X. An example of why Feynman criticized this form of analysis appeared this week. The headlines read: “Odds that global warming is due to natural factors: Slim to none.” The paper by S. Lovejoy is in Climate Dynamics. The analysis starts in the year 1500 – thus, conveniently ignoring all past warm periods during this current interglacial. Were those warm periods due to human influence? Are the editors and reviewers of Climate Dynamics unaware of past climate change? The analysis has other major problems as well. See links under Communicating Better to the Public – Make things up.
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Number of the Week: Down 32%; Down 40%. The Congressional Research Service reported that the percentage of US oil production from Federal Areas (both land and offshore) dropped from 34% in Fiscal Year 2009 to 23% in FY 2013, a decline of 32%. The percentage of US natural gas production from Federal Areas dropped from 25% in FY 2009 to 15% in FY 2013, a decline 40%. The Administration taking credit for the oil and gas boom is not substantiated by this report. See links under Washington’s Control of Energy.
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ARTICLES:
For the numbered articles below, please see this week’s TWTW at: www.sepp.org. The articles are at the end of the pdf.
1. Second Climate Thoughts
The latest U.N. report tones down the alarmism but ramps up the bad economics.
Editorial, WSJ, Apr 7, 2014
http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303532704579477222157281450
Response by IPCC: We Are Accurate at the IPCC but Not Artificially Sexy
By Jonathan Lynn, IPCC, WSJ, Apr 17, 2014
http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304311204579508110383627336?mg=reno64-wsj
2. U.N. Climate Change Report Says Worst Scenarios Can Still Be Avoided
Emissions Rose Quicker Between 2000 and 2010 Than Previous Three Decades, Says Report
By Gautam Naik, WSJ, Apr 13, 2014
http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303663604579498721229249160?mod=trending_now_4
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NEWS YOU CAN USE:
Suppressing Scientific Inquiry
In defense of free speech
By Judith Curry, Climate Etc. Apr 19, 2014
http://judithcurry.com/2014/04/19/in-defense-of-free-speech/#more-15302
Joel Kotkin: The spread of ‘debate is over’ syndrome
On climate and other issues, many in academia, media, government insist their viewpoint is unassailable and won’t tolerate dissent.
By Joel Kotkin, Orange County Register, Apr 4, 2014
http://www.ocregister.com/articles/media-608400-many-one.html
Challenging the Orthodoxy — NIPCC
Climate Change Reconsidered II: Biological Impacts
Summary for Policy Makers, Nongovernment International Panel on Climate Change, April 2014
http://heartland.org/media-library/pdfs/CCR-IIb/Summary-for-Policymakers.pdf
Full Report: http://heartland.org/media-library/pdfs/CCR-IIb/Full-Report.pdf
ICSC Press Release: http://www.newswire.ca/en/story/1226523/new-science-report-debunks-climate-scare
Dueling Climate Reports
By Craig Idso, Breitbart, Apr 14, 2014 [H/t Timothy Wise]
http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Government/2014/04/14/Dueling-Climate-Reports
The Other Climate Report
By Doug Hoffman, The Resilient Earth, Apr 14, 2014 [H/t GWPF]
http://theresilientearth.com/?q=content/other-climate-report
FINALLY! Climate Alarmists on Defensive; Fox News States ‘Skeptics’ Have Science on Their Side
By Jim Lakely, Richochet, Apr 11, 2014 [H/t Timothy Wise]
Challenging the Orthodoxy
ENSO, SST, CERES, forcing, and feedback: The travesty continues
By Roy Spencer, His Blog, Apr 16, 2014
http://www.drroyspencer.com/2014/04/enso-sst-ceres-forcing-and-feedback-the-travesty-continues/
Life on Earth: Principal control knob governing Earth’s temperature
By Roy Spencer, His Blog, Apr 17, 2014
Link to prior paper: Atmospheric CO2: Principal Control Knob Governing Earth’s Temperature
By: Andrew A. Lacis, Gavin A. Schmidt, David Rind, & Reto A. Ruedy, Science, Oct 15, 2011
http://www.sciencemag.org/content/330/6002/356
[SEPP Comment: Every bit as solid as the paper with lead authors from NASA-GISS that Spencer mocks.]
A Clear Example of IPCC Ideology Trumping Fact
By Paul C. Knappenberger and Patrick J. Michaels, CATO, Apr 16, 2014
http://wattsupwiththat.com/2014/04/16/a-clear-example-of-ipcc-ideology-trumping-fact/
Reduce Emissions by Reducing Baked Bean Intake but methane is irrelevant as a greenhouse gas
By Geoff Brown, NCTCSP, Apr 12, 2014
Scientific Comments by Tom Sheahen, Director, SEPP
http://theclimatescepticsparty.blogspot.com.au/2014/04/reduce-emissions-by-reducing-baked-bean.html
Do aliens cause global warming? The data say ‘yes!’
By Roy Spencer, His Blog, Apr 15, 2014 [H/t Tom Sheahen]
http://www.drroyspencer.com/2014/04/do-aliens-cause-global-warming-the-data-say-yes/
[SEPP Comment: Amusingly, Spencer shows how data can be manipulated “to prove” the absurd.]
Wall Street Journal opinion video: “The Arrogance of the Sciences”
David Berlinski calls most climate researchers “intellectual mediocrities and pious charlatans.”
By Steven T. Corneliussen, Physics Today, April 2014 [H/t Wally Manheimer]
http://scitation.aip.org/content/aip/magazine/physicstoday/news/10.1063/PT.5.8041?dm_t=0,0,0,0,0
UN IPCC AR5 report infected with fatal technical and procedural flaws
By Larry Hamlin, WUWT, Apr 16, 2014
Defending the Orthodoxy
Climate Efforts Falling Short, U.N. Panel Says
By Justin Gillis, NYT, Apr 13, 2014 [H/t Timothy Wise]
We cannot afford to lose another decade. If we lose another decade, it becomes extremely costly to achieve climate stabilization. German economist Ottmar Edenhofer, co-chairman of Working Group III
Climate Change 2014: Mitigation of Climate Change
http://www.mitigation2014.org/
Summary: http://report.mitigation2014.org/spm/ipcc_wg3_ar5_summary-for-policymakers_approved.pdf
IPCC: Greenhouse gas emissions accelerate despite reduction efforts
Press Release By Staff Writers, IPCC, Apr 13, 2014
http://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/ar5/pr_wg3/20140413_pr_pc_wg3_en.pdf
Tackling global warming could slow global growth – by 0.06 per cent, IPCC predicts
By Mat Hope, Carbon Brief, Apr 16, 2014
[SEPP Comment: Nonsense!]
Climate risks real, U.S. energy secretary says
By Daniel J. Graeber, Washington (UPI), Apr 14, 2013
http://www.energy-daily.com/reports/Climate_risks_real_US_energy_secretary_says_999.html
Coal: The Fuel Of The Future?
A cheap,
ubiquitous and flexible fuel, with just one problem
Editorial, The Economist, Via GWPF, Apr 17, 2014
http://www.thegwpf.org/coal-the-fuel-of-the-future/
Editorial: Urgent need to address climate change
Editorial, Tampa Bay Times, Apr 16, 2014
http://www.tampabay.com/opinion/editorials/editorial-urgent-need-to-address-climate-change/2175053
[SEPP Comment: The risk is that the movement may fail.]
How to Reset the Climate Change Debate
Editorial, Bloomberg, Apr 14, 2014
http://www.bloombergview.com/articles/2014-04-14/how-to-reset-the-climate-change-debate?alcmpid=view
[SEPP Comment: If the insurance costs many times more than the risk, then it is a wasteful expenditure. Further, risk is based on calculated probabilities of known events occurring, not imaginary one.]
Kerry: Climate report a wake-up call
By Kyle Balluck, The Hill, Apr 13, 2014
[SEPP Comment: The Secretary of State calls the destruction of a successful, reliable industry that needs no subsidies in favor of one that is unreliable and requires government subsidies an investment opportunity.]
On Climate, Business as Usual
By Eugene Robinson, Washington Post, Apr 17, 2014 [H/t Dennis Manuta]
Slogging forward on climate change
By Scot Lehigh, Opinion, Boston Globe, Apr 10, 2014 [H/t Timothy Wise}
Questioning the Orthodoxy
Lennart Bengtsson: The Science And Politics Of Climate Change
By Lennart Bengtsson, Neue Zürcher Zeitung, Translated by Philipp Mueller, Apr 14, 2014
http://www.thegwpf.org/lennart-bengtsson-the-science-and-politics-of-climate-change/
Worst case scenario versus fat tail
By Judith Curry, Climate Etc. Apr 18, 2014
http://judithcurry.com/2014/04/18/worst-case-scenario-versus-fat-tail/
[SEPP Comment: Curry exposing the fallacy that the more uncertain about the future of global warming, the more ready we must be to punish ourselves by ceasing to use fossil fuels. Who is considered anti-science here?]
Earth Daze
By John Stossel, Real Clear Politics, Apr 16, 2014
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2014/04/16/earth_daze_122297.html
3 reasons not to trust the new climate report
The latest report on climate change needs to be taken with a pinch of salt.
By Donna Laframboise, Mercatornet, Apr 15, 2014
http://www.mercatornet.com/articles/view/3_reasons_not_to_trust_the_new_ipcc_report
Ditto, Tom – ‘here are some things I believe’
By Anthony Watts & Tom Nelson, WUWT, Apr 15, 2014
http://wattsupwiththat.com/2014/04/15/ditto-tom-here-are-some-things-i-believe/
[SEPP Comment: Skeptics summarizing their beliefs about global warming.]
Global warming now literally part of religion
By Michael Bastasch, Daily Caller, Apr 10, 2014 [H/t Timothy Wise]
UN Green Police Say Ditch Oil And Change Your Diet
By Robert Mendick, Sunday Telegraph, Via GWPF, Apr 14, 2014
http://www.thegwpf.org/un-green-police-say-ditch-oil-and-change-your-diet/
Polar bears move around as sea ice habitat changes – this is what resilience looks like
By Susan Crockford, Polar Bear Science, Apr 14, 2014
Last Dance for IPCC Group II Report? (NYT’s Gillis, alarmism go wobbly)
By James Rust, Master Resource, Apr 9, 2014
http://www.masterresource.org/2014/04/last-dance-ipcc-group-ii/
Another IPCC warning: More sci-fi
Editorial, The Tribune-Review, Pittsburg, Apr 14, 2014 [H/t Timothy Wise]
http://triblive.com/opinion/editorials/5944867-74/global-ipcc-warming#axzz2yxRh7XVA
Chicken Little “Science”
By Cal Thomas, Real Clear Politics, Apr 18, 2014
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2014/04/18/chicken_little_science_122322.html
Climate change believers are using ‘medieval’ tactics to silence debate says George Brandis
By Jo Nova, Her Blog, Apr 19, 2014
Climate change cult has to shout louder to be heard amid public skepticism
By Cal Thomas, Washington Examiner, Apr 16, 2014
Common Sense and Climate Change
By Marc Hopin, American Thinker, Apr 18, 2014
http://americanthinker.com/2014/04/common_sense_and_climate_change.html
Social Benefits of Carbon
Nutrient-rich forests absorb more carbon
By Staff Writers, Laxenburg, Austria (SPX), Apr 17, 2014
http://www.terradaily.com/reports/Nutrient_rich_forests_absorb_more_carbon_999.html
Link to paper: Nutrient availability as the key regulator of global forest carbon balance
By M. Fernández-Martínez, et al. Apr 6, 2014
http://www.nature.com/nclimate/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/nclimate2177.html
Problems in the Orthodoxy
IPCC report summary censored by governments around the world
By Nick Miller, Sydney Morning Herald, Apr 14, 2014 [H/t GWPF]
“EU’s climate policy has lost its scientific basis”
Interview with Oliver Geden, Senior Research Fellow, German Institute for International and
Security Affairs
By Jakob Schlandt, Europolitics, Apr 16, 2014
http://www.swp-berlin.org/fileadmin/contents/products/medienbeitraege/IPCC_and_EU.pdf
Indian climate experts slam latest IPCC report
By T.V. Padma, SciDevNet, Apr 17, 2014 [H/t GWPF]
http://www.scidev.net/global/climate-change/news/indian-climate-experts-slam-latest-ipcc-report.html
[SEPP Comment: We need more money from developed countries. Look at what they have given us. A world in which crops grow better. They must pay for this!]
Seeking a Common Ground
Climate change: what we don’t know
By Judith Curry, Climate Etc. Apr 17, 2014
http://judithcurry.com/2014/04/17/climate-change-what-we-dont-know/
It’s arrogant to assume that climate will remain static.
Global Warming’s Upside-Down Narrative
By Bjørn Lomborg, Project Syndicate, Apr 17, 2014
More from Markram
By Andrew Montford, Bishop Hill, Apr 15, 2014
http://bishophill.squarespace.com/blog/2014/4/15/more-from-markram.html
Link to editorial: Rights of Human Subjects in Scientific Papers
By Henry Markram, Editor-in-Chief, Frontiers, Apr 11, 2014
http://www.frontiersin.org/blog/Rights_of_Human_Subjects_in_Scientific_Papers/830
Montford’s Comment: There is at least some common ground.
Review of Recent Scientific Articles by NIPCC
For a full list of articles see www.NIPCCreport.org
Autumn Precipitation Trends in Southern Hemisphere Midlatitudes (
Reference: Purich, A., Cowan, T., Min, S.-K. and Cai, W. 2013. Autumn precipitation trends over Southern Hemisphere midlatitudes as simulated by CMIP5 models. Journal of Climate 26: 8341-8356.
http://www.nipccreport.org/articles/2014/apr/8apr2014a2.html
The Power of Marine Life to Cope with Environmental Change
Reference: Godbold, J.A. and Calosi, P. 2014. Ocean acidification and climate change: advances in ecology and evolution. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B 368: 10.1098/rstb.2012.0448.
http://www.nipccreport.org/articles/2014/apr/8apr2014a3.html
A New-and-Improved 1200-Year Temperature History of the Gulf of Alaska
Reference: Wiles, G.C., D’Arrigo, R.D., Barclay, D., Wilson, R.S., Jarvis, S.K., Vargo, L. and Frank, D. 2014. Surface air temperature variability reconstructed with tree rings for the Gulf of Alaska over the past 1200 years. The Holocene 24: 198-208.
http://www.nipccreport.org/articles/2014/apr/8apr2014a4.html
Recent Antarctic Warming: Unusual or Run-of-the-Millennial-Mill?
Reference: van Ommen, T. 2013. Antarctic response. Nature Geoscience 6: 334-335.
http://www.nipccreport.org/articles/2014/apr/15apr2014a3.html
Models Issues
Forest climate and condensation
By Douglas Sheil, Climate Etc. Apr 15, 2014
http://judithcurry.com/2014/04/15/forest-climate-and-condensation/
Major Errors Apparent in Climate Model Evaporation Estimates
By Richard J. Petschauer, WUWT, Apr 15, 2014
http://wattsupwiththat.com/2014/04/15/major-errors-apparent-in-climate-model-evaporation-estimates/
Measurement Issues
SSM/I Global Ocean Product Update: Increasing clouds with a chance of cooling
By Roy Spencer, His Blog, Apr 14, 2014
Better climate predictions within grasp
By Staff Writers, London, UK (SPX), Apr 15, 2014
http://www.terradaily.com/reports/Better_climate_predictions_within_grasp_999.html
Greater accuracy is necessary for climate model forecasts to be trusted.
[SEPP More accurate measurements will not solve theoretical and methodological errors.]
Changing Weather
El Nino watch
By Judith Curry, Climate Etc. Apr 14, 2014
http://judithcurry.com/2014/04/14/el-nino-watch/
Holdren Is Wrong – Cold Winters Are Not Getting More Common
By Paul Homewood, WUWT, Apr 18, 2014
http://wattsupwiththat.com/2014/04/18/holdren-is-wrong-cold-winters-are-not-getting-more-common/
JPL Claim: Asian Pollution makes US Storms Worse
By Eric Worrall, WUWT, Apr 14, 2014
http://wattsupwiththat.com/2014/04/14/jpl-claim-asian-pollution-makes-us-storms-worse/
The Obama Administration Lies About Hurricanes
By John Hinderaker, Power Line, Apr 9, 2014 [H/t Timothy Wise]
http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2014/04/the-obama-administration-lies-about-hurricanes.php
Changing Climate
Warm US West, cold East: A 4,000-year pattern
By Staff Writer, Science Codex, Apr 16, 2014 [H/t WUWT]
http://www.sciencecodex.com/warm_us_west_cold_east_a_4000year_pattern-131863
Link to paper: Paired oxygen isotope records reveal modern North American atmospheric dynamics during the Holocene
By Zhongfang Liu, et al., Nature Communications, Apr 16, 2014
http://www.nature.com/ncomms/2014/140416/ncomms4701/full/ncomms4701.html
Changing Seas
Long Term Tide Gauge Data Show 21st Century Sea Level Rise Will Be Approximately As Much As The 20th Century: 330 Years of Sea Level
By Ed Caryl, No Tricks Zone, Apr 18, 2014
Long-term predictions for Miami sea level rise could be available relatively soon
City could know as early as 2020 how high sea level will go in the next century
By Staff Writer, NSF, Apr 14, 2014 [H/t Donald Stedman]
http://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=130896&WT.mc_id=USNSF_51&WT.mc_ev=click
As Professor Stedman comments: I cannot think of the right word to express what this press release says. Perhaps hubris? NSF funded scientists predict that sometime in the future we will be able to better predict the future???
University of Colorado Sea Level Rise Adjustment Appears To Be Unreasonable, Not Justifiable
By Ed Caryl, No Tricks Zone, Apr 15, 2014
Changing Cryosphere – Land / Sea Ice
Frozen in time: Three-million-year-old landscape still exists beneath the Greenland Ice Sheet
NSF-funded researchers say the massive ice sheet has fixed the landscape in place, rather than scouring it away
Press Release, NSF, Apr 17, 2014
http://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=131109&WT.mc_id=USNSF_51&WT.mc_ev=click
Link to paper: Preservation of a Preglacial Landscape Under the Center of the Greenland Ice Sheet
By Paul Bierman, et al. Science, Apr 17, 2014
http://www.sciencemag.org/content/early/2014/04/16/science.1249047
[SEPP Comment: Center of Greenland non-changing? Unfortunately, in other reports the lead scientist made unsubstantiated predictions about future warming, taking away from the significance of the current research.]
New paper finds worldwide glacier retreat has decelerated since 1950
By Staff Writer, Hockey Schtick, Apr 16, 2014
http://hockeyschtick.blogspot.co.uk/2014/04/new-paper-finds-worldwide-glacier.html
Link to paper: A data set of worldwide glacier length fluctuations
By P.W. Lelercq, et al. Cryosphere, No Date
http://www.the-cryosphere.net/8/659/2014/tc-8-659-2014.html
New paper finds solar activity may influence Arctic sea ice, less ice during Medieval & Roman Warm Periods
By Staff Writer, The Hockey Schtick, Apr 15, 2014 [H/t GWPF]
http://hockeyschtick.blogspot.co.uk/2014/04/new-paper-finds-solar-activity-may.html
Link to paper: A diatom-based sea-ice reconstruction for the Vaigat Strait (Disko Bugt, West Greenland) over the last 5000 yr
By Logbin Sha, Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, Jun 1, 2014
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0031018214001540
Changing Earth
Satellite captures five volcanoes erupting at once on the Russian Kamchatka Peninsula
By Anthony Watts, WUWT, Apr 16, 2014
Agriculture Issues & Fear of Famine
Can Plants Evolve Fast Enough to Cope with Increased Drought?
By Staff, CO2 Science & SPPI, Apr 2, 2014
Food Free Fridays Coming?
By Viv Forbes, Carbon Sense, Apr 15, 2014
http://theclimatescepticsparty.blogspot.com.au/2014/04/food-free-fridays-coming.html
Un-Science or Non-Science?
A Few Winners, But Many More Losers In Climate Change
By Staff Writers, Reston VA (SPX), Apr 09, 2014
http://www.terradaily.com/reports/A_Few_Winners_But_Many_More_Losers_In_Climate_Change_999.html
Link to paper: Projecting Climate Effects on Birds and Reptiles of the Southwestern United States
By Charles van Riper, et al, USGS, Apr 7, 2014
http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2014/1050/
[SEPP Comment: Not only is questionable modeling being used, the headline is misleading. According to the paper the authors modeled 7 bird and 5 reptile species – insufficient for any generalizations.]
Lowering Standards
Why is the American Geophysical Union Prioritizing Climate Alarmism Over Scientific Inquiry?
By Amy Ridenour, Her Blog, Apr 12, 2014 [H/t Bishop Hill]
Communicating Better to the Public – Exaggerate, or be Vague?
Constraining generators
By Andrew Montford, Bishop Hill, Apr 14, 2014
http://bishophill.squarespace.com/blog/2014/4/14/constraining-generators.html
[SEPP Comment: Tiny words are often important. There is a major difference between switch-on and switch-off.]
A Risk Analyst Explains Why Climate Change Risk Misperception Doesn’t Necessarily Matter
By Andrew Revkin, NYT, Apr 16, 2014 [H/t Clyde Spencer]
[SEPP Comment: Apparently, the risk communication consultant does not know how to analyze risk.]
A quorum of drama queens at Polar Bears International?
By Anthony Watts, WUWT, Apr 15, 2014
http://wattsupwiththat.com/2014/04/15/a-quorum-of-drama-queens-at-polar-bears-inter
national/
Global warming forcing Mongolian nomads to change lifestyles
By Daisuke Sudo, The Asahi Shimbun, Apr 2, 2014 [H/t Timothy Wise]
http://ajw.asahi.com/article/sci_tech/environment/AJ201404020002
[SEPP Comment: Global warming is killing livestock during harsh winters?]
Manipulating Information To Overstate Global Warming
Editorial, IBD, Apr 16, 2014
Sunk: Climate change threatens to flood world’s largest Navy base, warns Gov. Terry McAuliffe
By Paul Bedard, Washington Examiner, Apr 11, 2014 [H/t Timothy Wise]
Communicating Better to the Public – Make things up.
Call climate change what it is: violence
Social unrest and famine, superstorms and droughts. Places, species and human beings – none will be spared. Welcome to Occupy Earth
By Rebecca Solnit, Guardian, UK, Apr 7, 2014 [H/t Timothy Wise]
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/apr/07/climate-change-violence-occupy-earth
Telling ‘Noble Lies’ About Climate Change Will Backfire
Doing the right things for the wrong reasons is a serious mistake
By Tom Harris, PJ Media, Apr 18, 2014
http://pjmedia.com/blog/telling-noble-lies-about-climate-change-will-backfire/?singlepage=true
Exploiting Human Misery and Distorting the Science: An environmentalist’s critique of “Years of Living Dangerously”
By Jim Steele, WUWT, Apr 14, 2014
Years of Living Dangerously
By Luboš Motl, The Reference Frame, Apr 16, 2014
http://motls.blogspot.com/2014/04/years-of-living-dangerously.html
When I say that the “climate as another religion” Hayhoe as a star is no coincidence, he’s my additional evidence.
Odds that global warming is due to natural factors: Slim to none
By Staff Writers, Montreal, Canada (SPX), Apr 15, 2014
Link to paper: Scaling fluctuation analysis and statistical hypothesis testing of anthropogenic warming
By S. Lovejoy, Climate Dynamics, Apr 6, 2014
http://link.springer.com/search?query=10.1007%2Fs00382-014-2128-2
Lovejoy Global Warming Paper 100% Wrong to Omit Previous Natural Warm Periods Say Friends of Science, Proving Natural Factors Affect Climate More than Humans
By Staff Writer, Friends of Science, Apr 17, 2014
http://www.prweb.com/releases/2014/04/prweb11767118.htm
Abusing statistics in the name of global warming
By Jo Nova, Her Blog, Apr 16, 2014
http://joannenova.com.au/2014/04/abusing-statistics-in-the-name-of-global-warming/#more-34904
No Love Of Joy: Yet Another Author Claims Statistically Significant Temperature Change
By Matt Briggs, His blog, Apr 12, 2014
http://wmbriggs.com/blog/?p=8061
Communicating Better to the Public – Go Personal.
Prof Fiona Stanley jumps on climate-pulpit, says skepticism “is like child abuse”
By Jo Nova, Her Blog, Apr 17, 2014
George Brandis: sidelining climate change deniers is ‘deplorable’ [AU]
Attorney general accuses ‘true believers in climate change’ of being ‘ignorant’, ‘medieval’ and trying to shut down debate
By Bridie Jabour, Guardian, UK, Apr 17, 2014 [H/t Jim Lakely]
Communicating Better to the Public – Use Propaganda on Children
No A-level for ‘climate change denier’
Brainwashing about global warming percolates throughout the education system
By Christopher Booker, Telegraph, UK, Apr 12, 2014 [H/t GWPF]
Scaring Kids For Gaia
By Richard Gray, Quadrant, Apr 17, 2014
http://quadrant.org.au/opinion/qed/2014/04/scaring-kids-gaia/
Sinnickal critique
By Andrew Montford, Bishop Hill, Apr 18, 2014
http://bishophill.squarespace.com/blog/2014/4/18/sinnickal-critique.html
[SEPP Comment: Montford was one of the authors of the controversial report on the use of propaganda in UK schools.]
Expanding the Orthodoxy
Renewables, Nuclear Must Triple to Save Climate, UN Says
By Alex Morales and Stefan Nicola, Bloomberg, Apr 13, 2014
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-04-13/renewables-nuclear-must-triple-to-save-climate-un-says.html
In defense of free speech
By Judith Curry, Climate Etc. Apr 19, 2014
http://judithcurry.com/2014/04/19/in-defense-of-free-speech/#more-15302
Questioning European Green
Bureaucrats To Force Europeans To Drink Cold Coffee To Save The Climate…EU Directive Aims To Limit Coffee Machines!
By P. Gosselin, No Tricks Zone, Apr 17, 2014
Non-Green Jobs
A Tale of Two Cities
Texas oil town
has lowest unemployment rate in the nation; site of world’s largest solar plant has highest
By Lachlan Markay, Washington Free Beacon, Mar 21, 2014 [H/t Bud Bromley]
http://freebeacon.com/issues/a-tale-of-two-cities/
Link to report: Metropolitan Area Employment and Unemployment – February 2014
By Staff Writers, BLS, Apr 9, 2014
http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/metro.pdf
[SEPP Comment: According to the above report, a slightly lower unemployment rate than Midland, TX, was in Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux, LA., 2.8%, another oil and gas region.
Litigation Issues
Will Cherry Blossoms Get Sucked into the Polar Vortex?
By Sam Kazman, Global Warming.org, Apr 14, 2014 [H/t WUWT]
http://www.globalwarming.org/2014/04/14/will-cherry-blossoms-get-sucked-into-the-polar-vortex/
‘Litigious Weapon’ Unchecked: GAO Finds No One’s Keeping Tabs on Environmental Reviews
No consistent data kept to piece together the “paralysis by analysis.”
By Bridget Johnson, PJ Media, Apr 15, 2014 [H/t Timothy Wise]
Subsidies and Mandates Forever
Future Uncertain for Wind Industry Tax Credits
Report: ‘declining political appetite for wind PTC’
By CJ Ciaramella, Washington Free Beacon, Apr 16, 2014 [H/t Timothy Wise]
http://freebeacon.com/issues/future-uncertain-for-wind-industry-tax-credits/
[SEPP Comment: If the wind industry produced reliable electrical power, it would not need subsidies.]
IG: DOE Ignored Internal Expert’s Advice in Subsidizing Bankrupt Solar Company
Report may increase scrutiny of DOE decision to restart loan program
By Lachian Markay, Washington Free Beacon, Apr 17, 2014 [H/t Timothy Wise]
EPA and other Regulators on the March
EPA Concedes: We Can’t Produce All the Data Justifying Clean Air Rules
By Barbara Hollingsworth, CNS News, Apr 11, 2014
The EPA’s Science Problem
By Arnold Ahlert, Frontpage, Apr 15, 2014 [
http://www.frontpagemag.com/2014/arnold-ahlert/the-epas-science-problem/
Tower of Pisa Policies
By Paul Driessen, Townhall, Apr 19, 2014 [H/t Timothy Wise]
http://townhall.com/columnists/pauldriessen/2014/04/19/tower-of-pisa-policies-n1826267
EPA says CO2, cow-pig manure and urine rank 1-2-3 as global warming threat
By Paul Bedard, Washington Examiner, Apr 15, 2014 [H/t Timothy Wise]
Link to report: Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: 1990-2012
By Staff Writers, EPA, Apr 15, 2014
http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/ghgemissions/usinventoryreport.html
EPA didn’t track own air pollution program — report
By Phillip Swarts, Washington Times, Apr 16, 2014
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/apr/16/epa-didnt-track-own-air-pollution-program-report/
GAO: Delays in issuing annual RFS hurt refiners
By Laura Barron-Lopez, The Hill, Apr 14, 2014
http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/203527-gao-says-yearly-biofuel-mandate-delays-cost-refiners
[SEPP Comment: EPA does not care if its failure to issue renewable fuel standards hurts refiners, or the public.]
Energy Issues – Non-US
Is Europe Stuck in a Vicious Energy Cycle?
By Karel Cool, Insead Knowledge, Apr 17, 2014 [H/t GWPF]
http://knowledge.insead.edu/blog/insead-blog/is-europe-stuck-in-a-vicious-energy-cycle-3300
UK to lead EU frack fight?
By Sun Wei, Global Times, Apr 17, 2014 [H/t GWPF]
http://www.globaltimes.cn/content/855082.shtml#.U0_M9vldV-4
Why Russia Has Its Eyes On Ukraine’s Coal Basin
By Joe Parson, The Moscow Times, Via GWPF, Apr 18, 2014
http://www.thegwpf.org/why-russia-has-its-eyes-on-ukraines-coal-basin/
Britain must increase spending on green energy by ten times in next 15 years to help reduce global warming, says UN
By Ben Spencer, Mail, UK, Apr 11, 2014 [H/t GWPF]
[SEPP Comment: UN dictating UK’s spending on energy.]
Europe may replace Russian gas with US coal
By Michael Bastasch, Daily Caller, Apr 17, 2014
http://dailycaller.com/2014/04/17/europe-may-replace-russian-gas-with-us-coal/
Quarterly Coal Report: October – December 2013
By Staff Writers, EIA, Mar 2014
http://www.eia.gov/coal/production/quarterly/pdf/qcr.pdf
Energy Issues — US
Ripoff Tech
By Norman Rogers, American Thinker, Apr 18, 2014
http://www.americanthinker.com/2014/04/ripoff_tech.html
Link to Sierra Club’s Revised Fracking Policy
By Board of Directors, Sierra Club, Feb 22, 2013
http://www.sierraclub.org/policy/conservation/NaturalGasFracking.pdf
U.S. Energy Wealth Could Be Best Weapon Against Putin’s Bullying
By Kathleen Harnett White, IBD, Apr 15, 2014
EPA: Greenhouse gas emissio
ns fell in 2012
By Timothy Cama, The Hill, Apr 15, 2014
http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/203600-epa-greenhouse-gas-emissions-fell-in-2012
Link to the report: National Greenhouse Gas Emissions Data
By Staff Writers, EPA, Apr 2014
http://epa.gov/climatechange/ghgemissions/usinventoryreport.html
Examiner Editorial: American energy independence in sight despite Obama
Editorial, Washington Examiner, Apr 16, 2014
Washington’s Control of Energy
Oil, gas production drops on federal property
By Timothy Cama, The Hill, Apr 16, 2014
http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/203696-oil-gas-production-drops-on-federal-land
Link to Report: U.S. Crude Oil and Natural Gas Production in Federal and Non-Federal Areas
By Marc Humphries, CRS, Apr 10, 2014
Don’t let politics ruin Alaska’s energy future
By Anthony Sadar, Washington Examiner, Apr 14, 2014
http://washingtonexaminer.com/dont-let-politics-ruin-alaskas-energy-future/article/2547198
Obama administration delays Keystone XL decision, potentially until after Nov. elections
By Zack Colman, Washington Examiner, Apr 18, 2014
The Power of Steyer
U.S. extends Keystone XL comment period, delaying final decision
By Jonathan Leff, Reuters, April 18, 2014
http://freebeacon.com/issues/the-power-of-steyer/
Keystone report can’t have it both ways
By Sheldon Whitehouse and Henry A. Waxman, CNN, Apr 16, 2014 [H/t Timothy Wise]
http://www.cnn.com/2014/04/15/opinion/white-house-waxman-keystone-pipeline/index.html
[SEPP Comment: More reasons why Washington should not control energy transportation.]
Oil and Natural Gas – the Future or the Past?
Fracking study in Pennsylvania finds few water concerns
By Daniel J. Graeber, UPI, Apr 17, 2014
Link to press release and report: DCNR Releases First Report on Monitoring the Impacts of Shale Gas Development on State Forest
By Staff Writers, Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Apr 16, 2014
http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/cs/groups/public/documents/news/DCNR_20029167.pdf
3 myths on our natural gas boom:
The reality is that the new energy explosion helps us al
By Mark Mills, USA Today, Apr 3, 2014
EIA: Railroads expected to take on more LNG
By Daniel J. Graeber, Washington (UPI), Apr 14, 2013
http://www.energy-daily.com/reports/EIA_Railroads_expected_to_take_on_more_LNG_999.html
[SEPP Comment: Liquified natural gas to partially replace diesel fuel for locomotives.]
Methane hydrate: Dirty fuel or energy saviour?
By Richard Anderson, BBC, Apr 16, 2014 [H/t GWPF]
http://www.bbc.com/news/business-27021610
Return of King Coal?
China is beating us in the burning-coal race
By Timothy Carney, Washington Examiner, Apr 7, 2014
http://washingtonexaminer.com/china-is-beating-us-in-the-burning-coal-race/article/2546893
Sensible Coal Revival
By Donn Dears, Power For USA, Apr 17, 2014
http://dddusmma.wordpress.com/2014/04/17/sensible-coal-revival/
Coal gasification: The clean energy of the future?
By Richard Anderson, BBC, Apr 13, 2014 [H/t GWPF]
http://www.bbc.com/news/business-26921145
Coal Returns to German Utilities Replacing Lost Nuclear: Energy
By Tino Andresen, Bloomberg, Apr 15, 2014 [H/t GWPF]
Japan backs coal after Fukushima disaster
By Timothy Cama, The Hill, Apr 14, 2014
http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/203465-japan-backs-coal-after-fukushima-disaster
Water shortages Threaten Global Coal Power
By Thomas Overton, Power News, Apr 17, 2014
Nuclear Energy and Fears
Japan to keep using nuclear in new energy plan
By Staff Writers, Tokyo (AFP), April 11, 2014
http://www.nuclearpowerdaily.com/reports/Japan_to_keep_using_nuclear_in_new_energy_plan_999.html
U.S. Nuclear Demise Amid Increases Elsewhere
By Donn Dears, Power For USA, Apr 15, 2014
http://dddusmma.wordpress.com/2014/04/15/u-s-nuclear-demise-amid-increases-elsewhere/
Asgard’s fire
Thorium, an element named after the Norse god of thunder, may soon contribute to the world’s electricity supply
By Staff Writers, The Economist, Apr 12, 2014
http://www.economist.com/news/science-and-tech
nology/21600656-thorium-element-named-after-norse-god-thunder-may-soon-contribute?fsrc=nlw|hig|4-10-2014|8283453|152586780|NA
Alternative, Green (“Clean”) Solar and Wind
AWEA spins price distortions to save PTC
By Lisa Linowes, Wind Action, Apr 15, 2014
http://www.windaction.org/posts/40279-awea-spins-price-distortions-to-save-ptc#.U08EIPldV-4
Report: That new $1.6 billion loan-guaranteed solar farm is basically a “mega-trap” for flying wildlife
By Erika Johnsen, Hot Air, Apr 9, 2014 [H/t Timothy Wise]
Deal for 2,300 turbines to supply UK energy by 2020 called off
Ireland walking away from renewable energy, says Green Party leader
By Peter Smyth, Irish Times, Apr 13, 2014
Death by solar farms: 71 species of birds killed, ‘entire food chains’ disrupted
By Douglas Ernst Washington Times, Apr 11, 2014 [H/t Timothy Wise]
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/apr/11/death-calif-solar-farms-71-species-bird-found-enti/
Alternative, Green (“Clean”) Energy — Other
U.S. Navy to turn seawater into jet fuel
By Douglas Ernst, Washington Times, Apr 10, 2014
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/apr/10/game-changer-us-navy-can-now-turn-seawater-jet-fue/
Bulletin: U.S. Navy Invents Perpetual Motion Machine
By William Tucker, American Spectator, Apr 15, 2014
http://spectator.org/articles/58747/bulletin-us-navy-invents-perpetual-motion-machine
Health, Energy, and Climate
Health Promoting Effects of Elevated C02 on Common Food Plants
By Staff, CO2 Science & SPPI, Mar 26, 2014
http://scienceandpublicpolicy.org/images/stories/papers/originals/health_promoting_c02.pdf
Oh Mann!
Decision in the Mann/UVa case, a blow to open science
Posted by Anthony Watts, WUWT, Apr 17, 2014
http://wattsupwiththat.com/2014/04/17/decision-in-the-mannuva-case-a-blow-to-open-science/
Environmental Industry
Are global warming alarmists just a conglomerate of eco radicals and third world grifters?
By Bruce McQuain, Hot Air, Apr 7, 2014
The IPCC: Bar the Media, Welcome the Activists
By Donna Laframboise, NFC, Apr 12, 2014
http://nofrakkingconsensus.com/2014/04/12/the-ipcc-bar-the-media-welcome-the-activists/
If you think the sky is falling, check out the prophecies of the 1970s
By Michael Barone, Washington Examiner, Apr 9, 2014
Environmental groups LCV and NRDC Action Fund team up to steer more money into politics
By Juliet Eilperin, Washington Post, Apr 14, 2014 [H/t Timothy Wise]
Triumph of the Drill
By Andy Kroll, Mother Jones, Apr 2014 [H/t Timothy Wise]
http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2014/04/oil-subsidies-renewable-energy-tax-breaks
[SEPP Comment: This is big news? According to the report, over 90 years Oil and Gas received $479 billion, while over 30 years renewables received only $68 billion. The oil industry was big before there were any tax breaks. Also, remember the “Trust Busting” Standard Oil decision of 1911. The wind industry failed decades ago because it is unreliable, a problem it has not resolved. The argument is meaningless, in the US, less than one percent of electricity is produced from oil. The oil depletion allowance is gone for the major companies.]
Other News that May Be of Interest
Obamacare For Lunch?
By Patrick J. Michaels, CATO, Apr 11, 2014
http://www.cato.org/publications/commentary/obamacare-lunch
The slow death of free speech
How the Left, here and abroad, is trying to shut down debate — from Islam and Israel to global warming and gay marriage
By Mark Steyn Spectator, Apr 19, 2014 [H/t Climate Etc.]
http://www.spectator.co.uk/australia/australia-features/9187741/the-slow-death-of-free-speech-2/
Climate change a likely culprit in coqui frog’s altered calls
By Staff Writers, Los Angeles CA, (SPX) Apr 17, 2014
[SEPP Comment: If so, it adapted to temperature change, which may be natural.]
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BELOW THE BOTTOM LINE:
Opening Night on the Taxpayer’s Dime
Review: The Traveling Government Global Warming Play
By Elizabeth Harrington, Washington Free Beacon, Apr 15, 2014 [H/t Timothy Wise]
http://freebeacon.com/issues/opening-night-on-the-taxpayers-dime/
Climate Craziness of the Week: Oh noes! Moths affected by ‘hidden’ factors of climate change
By Anthony Watts, WUWT, Apr 15, 2014
[SEPP Comment: The expansion of the tree line could also be due to carbon dioxide fertilization.]
Friday Funny – climate ‘cliff notes’
Posted by Anthony Watts, WUWT, Apr 18, 2014
http://wattsupwiththat.com/2014/04/18/friday-funny-climate-cliff-notes/
Increased CO2 levels make fish unafraid of predators
By Pauline Askin, Reuters, Apr 15, 2014 [H/t Clyde Spencer]
http://news.msn.com/science-technology/increased-co2-levels-make-fish-unafraid-of-predators?
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9th International Conference on Climate Change
July 7 – 9 — Las Vegas, Nevada
Includes the Findings of the New Report by the Nongovernmental International Panel on Climate Change (NIPCC) Climate Change Reconsidered II, Volumes 1, 2, and 3
http://climateconference.heartland.org/
My sausage contains high-quality pork, beef, & centipedes.
I think it’s doing a disservice to the credibility to sceptical science and WUWT in particular that you are giving so much coverage to the NIPCC report. Surely you don’t take it seriously and don’t hope that it would be seen as a flag bearer for everybody that dissents from the IPCC? Next to no other news source wanted to have anything to do with it. I think as a community we ought to be more careful about what we promote and not just make noise about anything that goes against the IPCC line.
Peter Burmer says:
April 21, 2014 at 9:33 am
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=moby
strange how extreme weather makes the population grow.
Honduras is ranked 1st to have the most extreme weather in the last 20 years.
http://www.wunderground.com/ne…
Took a look at the population growth over the last 43 years.
in 1989 its population was estimated at 4.98 million people, nearly double the 1970 population of 2.63 million it is now 8,448,465 (July 2013 est.)
@Stark Dickflüssig
Thanks. I was wondering what a “Moby” was. Perhaps Mr. Burner can be more specific about his objections.
I nominate Chris Turney, leader of the Mawson expedition’s ‘Ship of Fool’ for the Lisa Jackson, A.K.A. Richard Windsor lump of coal.