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The Science of Doom

2 May 2010
Climate change

At http://climateaudit.org May 3rd Steve McIntyre tells CA readers to look at the blog Science of Doom (see earlier posts on In the News for this interesting site) at http://scienceofdoom.com . It policy, as Steve notes, unlike that of Real Climate or Climate Progress and other sniffy pro AGW blogs, is not to criticise the heretics (or even pensioners) or use vacuous venom against sceptics, but it is committed to engaging with the general public. It explores how theories are built up, added to, and how long they may have been established, vital in the young field of climate science. Science of Doom began with the work of Ramanathan on radiative-convective models in the 1970s. Steve is therefore recommending this blog as the pro-global warming site worth visiting on a regular basis.

At http://climateaudit.org there is also a post on 1998 as ‘the warmest year’. Steve McIntyre says he has often wondered how they knew 1998 was the warmest year in a millennium – and of course they don’t, but it makes a good alarm bell. The 1998 claim does not appear in the IPCC 4th Report (2007) and he has jiggered out a couple of emails from the Climategate batch that seem to have a bearing on this, to the effect that chapter 6 of the Report was careful of the matter and worked at the language they used in the manner of lawyers and inserted a clause that gave them cover for their backs. This was because 1998, it had been revealed from US temperature data adjustment, was not the warmest year – but 1934 was. It is unlikely they would not have been so devious if this factor was not well known in the sceptic blogosphere.

The trickle of AGW orientated, and funded, stories continues … on and on … at www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/04/100429131248.htm we are told ‘Climate Change affects Subterranean Ecosystems’ – not only does higher levels of C02 result in higher temperatures (a given fact) but affects the boundary between plants and soil according to research on biodiversity and ecology. Bacteria, fungi and small invertebrates co-exist with plant roots – and some of these help plants to thrive. However, if plants start to function differently due to a rise in temperature or increased absorption of C02 at the surface this can impact on what is happening below the surface. Plant roots may release different quantities of substances. Plants that thrive on C02 will suppress fungi in the soil which will in turn affect soil organisms that rely on fungi (see www.nwo.nl/nwohome.nsf/pages/NWOP_5WPLQL). We apparently now have an International Year of Biodiversity – it’s amazing how public funded organisations mushroom and squander resources on meaningless office boy inventions. Lots of euros are being  thrown at this project – meanwhile the monsoon rains were drastically lower than normal across Bengal and Burma. If this has anything to do with low solar activity we can expect a greater impact in coming years – but according to the AGW bible the Sun only plays a minor role in global climate change. Some people, it would seem are in for a shock – possibly a severe jolt. Other people might go hungry.

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