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The Mark: A new climate change policy for Canada
My proposal for a compromise deal that could break the long stalemate between Alberta and the other provinces on climate change appears in the Mark. The compromise solution is an “opt-in” federal climate change program. The program would include a...
Meditations on climate change "skepticism"
The radio program "Are we alone?" from the SETI Institute does a regular series on skepticism in science. This week's show looks at climate change skepticism and features a terrific interview with Steve Schneider, as well as some thoughts from...
Will Coral Reefs Disappear? Results from AAAS Symposium
The Guardian has a short summary of some of the presentations in our Sunday symposium at AAAS organized by Joan Kleypas. The headline "World's coral reefs could disintegrate by 2100" comes out of field and modeling work presented by Jacob...
Highlights of AAAS: Communicating science
The best line at the AAAS meeting came from Steve Schneider in a talk on science communication: “Science is not a democracy. Quality trumps equality.” It is a fantastic accurate description of the difference between the practice of science and...
Science lesson on the Late Show
Al Gore's long interview with David Letterman last night could serve as an object lesson for scientists on how to relate a complex subject like climate change to a popular audience. Though it is a sad comment on the media that a late night comedian...
2C or not 2C: Copenhagen and global temperature threshold (Part 1)
Media coverage of climate change often gives the impression the world’s scientific community all met and firmly established that the warming beyond +2 degrees C is dangerous to the future of society. The planet does not have one clear "dangerous"...
The path of climate science and the dissenting views
A scientific finding is not necessarily correct just because it appears in the peer-reviewed literature. There are a number of reasons. For one, not all journals are created equal. Some have less stringent review process. Some are more willing to...
Huge disparity in emissions targets within Canada
If Canadians want an illustration of the disagreement on climate policy within the provinces, or foreigners want to know why Canada has become an obstacle to an international or even continental climate accord, look no further than this graph....
China's emissions pledge depends entirely on economic growth
Last week, China announced that it will reduce carbon "intensity" by 40 to 45 per cent below 2005 levels by the year 2020. The emissions intensity (emissions/$GDP) approach taken by the Canada and the US in the past has been much maligned here as a...
US to pledge emissions cut in Copenhagen
It's a step. Not a great leap for mankind; there is no teeth behind a emissions promise without legislation and an action plan to back it up. But a step nonetheless. Mr. Obama will tell the delegates to the climate conference that the United States...
The "CRU hack" and the deplorable state of reporting and blogging
This episode is a sad sad sad comment on the state of blogging and news reporting. Three reasons. First, for legal reasons, I'd like to think that no news organization should be allowed to report on the content of that mail. This is the equivalent...
Public confusion about scientific consensus
The Globe and Mail reports that a new poll from Hoggan & Associates found Canadians are embarrassed over the lack of Canadian action on climate change. Now it is possible that readers will dismiss that finding because the pollsters are...
