Apr. 29th, 2009
In presenting or arguing science, consistency is important. Climate change is an important example of how we want to take anecdotal evidence and use it as proof of a real theory or as an argument against it.
During winter, the climate change deniers frequently trot out the idiocy of "How can there be Global Warming. It is snowing outside!" All this does is illustrate that they don't understand what they're talking about. "Global Warming" or climate change doesn't mean that suddenly everywhere in the world it is a desert or even too warm for snow.
Tempting though it may be, one can not use the recent days of record temperatures to say "Look! Global Warming! I told you so!" as these too are isolated incidents. The truth lies in long-term data trends, world-wide effects and in models that show that some areas might get more snow than normal or more severe weather of all kinds.
But I am human and I do get that impulse from time to time. The best thing is to squash it.
During winter, the climate change deniers frequently trot out the idiocy of "How can there be Global Warming. It is snowing outside!" All this does is illustrate that they don't understand what they're talking about. "Global Warming" or climate change doesn't mean that suddenly everywhere in the world it is a desert or even too warm for snow.
Tempting though it may be, one can not use the recent days of record temperatures to say "Look! Global Warming! I told you so!" as these too are isolated incidents. The truth lies in long-term data trends, world-wide effects and in models that show that some areas might get more snow than normal or more severe weather of all kinds.
But I am human and I do get that impulse from time to time. The best thing is to squash it.