Don't forget to drink.......responsibly.........to World Peace!! Hope you enjoy the video....
Saturday, December 31, 2011
The Top 10 Anti-Environmental Things Congress Did in 2011
Posted on Climate Progress/Dec 31, 2011
by Miles Grant, cross-posted from the National Wildlife Federation
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How bad was 2011 for America’s wildlife, air, water, land and public health? After taking 191 anti-conservation votes, even the House of Representatives’ own members called it ”the most anti-environment House in the history of Congress.”
That’s not to say the last year hasn’t been without progress in Washington. The Environmental Protection Agency set long-overdue limits on mercury pollution that will prevent 11,000 premature deaths a year. The EPA and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration set new fuel efficiency standards for cars and trucks that will cut our oil addiction by billions of barrels. And the EPA is ready to establish landmark global warming pollution limits on power plants.
But those actions represent the Obama administration implementing past acts of Congress, often in the face of opposition from one or both parties in the current Congress. Inside the Capitol, many members of Congress spent 2011 attacking wildlife, trying to roll back public health protections, and doing the bidding of its Big Oil donors.
Read the full story here at Climate Progress
by Miles Grant, cross-posted from the National Wildlife Federation
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How bad was 2011 for America’s wildlife, air, water, land and public health? After taking 191 anti-conservation votes, even the House of Representatives’ own members called it ”the most anti-environment House in the history of Congress.”
That’s not to say the last year hasn’t been without progress in Washington. The Environmental Protection Agency set long-overdue limits on mercury pollution that will prevent 11,000 premature deaths a year. The EPA and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration set new fuel efficiency standards for cars and trucks that will cut our oil addiction by billions of barrels. And the EPA is ready to establish landmark global warming pollution limits on power plants.
But those actions represent the Obama administration implementing past acts of Congress, often in the face of opposition from one or both parties in the current Congress. Inside the Capitol, many members of Congress spent 2011 attacking wildlife, trying to roll back public health protections, and doing the bidding of its Big Oil donors.
Read the full story here at Climate Progress
Texas Drought and Global Warming
Pandango: A long detailed look at the drought in Texas by Professor of Meteorology John Nielsen-Gammon on his blog, Climate Abyss. This is not an easy read, but it's helpful in understanding the drought and high temperatures that have plagued Texas.
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Some of the issues discussed in his article includes:
*To what extent is global warming reducing Texas precipitation?
*To what extent is global warming increasing the frequency or intensity of La Niña?
*Have droughts increased in Texas over the past 100 years?
*So why was 2011 so dry?
*How much have Texas temperatures increased due to global warming?
*How much of the record summer heat was due to global warming?
*Is the global warming contribution important or minor?
It's a good read if you can wade through it. You can read his article here.
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Some of the issues discussed in his article includes:
*To what extent is global warming reducing Texas precipitation?
*To what extent is global warming increasing the frequency or intensity of La Niña?
*Have droughts increased in Texas over the past 100 years?
*So why was 2011 so dry?
*How much have Texas temperatures increased due to global warming?
*How much of the record summer heat was due to global warming?
*Is the global warming contribution important or minor?
It's a good read if you can wade through it. You can read his article here.
Friday, December 30, 2011
Wikipedia Favorite: Dollar Voting
"In economics, dollar voting is an analogy used to explain how the purchasing choices of consumers affect which products will continue to be produced and supplied to the market. Every dollar paid for a particular product may be considered a "dollar vote" for that product, such that the products with the largest number of dollar votes generate the most profit and will therefore continue to be produced. A boycott would be a vote against a product."
Read more here
Read more here
Wikipedia Favorite: Boycott
"Most organized consumer boycotts today are focused on long-term change of buying habits, and so fit into part of a larger political program, with many techniques that require a longer structural commitment, e.g. reform to commodity markets, or government commitment to moral purchasing, e.g. the longstanding boycott of South African businesses to protest apartheid already alluded to. These stretch the meaning of a "boycott."
Boycotts are now much easier to successfully initiate due to the Internet. Examples include the gay and lesbian boycott of advertisers of the "Dr. Laura" talk show, gun owners' similar boycott of advertisers of Rosie O'Donnell's talk show and (later) magazine, and gun owners' boycott of Smith & Wesson following that company's March 2000 settlement with the Clinton administration. They may be initiated very easily using either Web sites (the Dr. Laura boycott), newsgroups (the Rosie O'Donnell boycotts), or even mailing lists. Internet-initiated boycotts "snowball" very quickly compared to other forms of organization.
Viral Labeling is a new boycott method using the new digital technology proposed by the Multitude Project and applied for the first time against Walt Disney around Christmas time in 2009.[4]"
Read more here
Boycotts are now much easier to successfully initiate due to the Internet. Examples include the gay and lesbian boycott of advertisers of the "Dr. Laura" talk show, gun owners' similar boycott of advertisers of Rosie O'Donnell's talk show and (later) magazine, and gun owners' boycott of Smith & Wesson following that company's March 2000 settlement with the Clinton administration. They may be initiated very easily using either Web sites (the Dr. Laura boycott), newsgroups (the Rosie O'Donnell boycotts), or even mailing lists. Internet-initiated boycotts "snowball" very quickly compared to other forms of organization.
Viral Labeling is a new boycott method using the new digital technology proposed by the Multitude Project and applied for the first time against Walt Disney around Christmas time in 2009.[4]"
Read more here
Top 10 States Hit by Extreme Weather in 2011
Pandango: Guess which state was #1? Yup, Texas...
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Posted on Climate Progress:
by Andrew Freedman, Alyson Kenward and Mike Lemonick, cross-posted from Climate Central
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 2011 set a record for the most billion dollar disasters in a single year. There were 12, breaking the old record of nine set in 2009. The aggregate damage from these 12 events totals at least $52 billion, NOAA found.
While extreme weather knows no boundaries, and the impact of those events was felt coast to coast, Climate Central looked at the number of extreme events that affected each state to determine the 10 states that were clobbered the worst. According to Climate Central’s analysis, Texas tops that list of hardest hit, with a costly — and deadly — combination of intense drought, a punishing heat wave, the worst wildfires in state history, and plenty of tornadoes. Rounding out the top 10 was Alabama, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Kansas, Connecticut, Vermont and New Jersey.
Climate Central’s analysis factored the death toll in each state, damage costs, the disruption caused to daily life, and how unusual the events were compared with what transpires in an average year.
But for these 10 states, little of what transpired was average as extreme weather rewrote the record books in 2011.
To read the full article click here
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Posted on Climate Progress:
by Andrew Freedman, Alyson Kenward and Mike Lemonick, cross-posted from Climate Central
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 2011 set a record for the most billion dollar disasters in a single year. There were 12, breaking the old record of nine set in 2009. The aggregate damage from these 12 events totals at least $52 billion, NOAA found.
While extreme weather knows no boundaries, and the impact of those events was felt coast to coast, Climate Central looked at the number of extreme events that affected each state to determine the 10 states that were clobbered the worst. According to Climate Central’s analysis, Texas tops that list of hardest hit, with a costly — and deadly — combination of intense drought, a punishing heat wave, the worst wildfires in state history, and plenty of tornadoes. Rounding out the top 10 was Alabama, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Kansas, Connecticut, Vermont and New Jersey.
Climate Central’s analysis factored the death toll in each state, damage costs, the disruption caused to daily life, and how unusual the events were compared with what transpires in an average year.
But for these 10 states, little of what transpired was average as extreme weather rewrote the record books in 2011.
To read the full article click here
Caucus & Primary Dates 2012
Pandango: Below are the caucus and primary dates for deciding the Republican candidate for president.
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Iowa Caucus: Jan 3
New Hampshire Primary: Jan 10
South Carolina Primary: Jan 21
Florida Primary: Jan 31
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Iowa Caucus: Jan 3
New Hampshire Primary: Jan 10
South Carolina Primary: Jan 21
Florida Primary: Jan 31
GOP candidates urged to accept climate change by scientists
by Andrew Restuccia/The Hill/Dec. 29, 2011
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Fifty New Hampshire scientists Thursday called on the Republican presidential candidates to accept the “overwhelming” scientific evidence behind climate change.
The scientists issued the joint statement just weeks before the Jan. 10 New Hampshire primary, a key early test for the GOP White House hopefuls.
We urge all candidates for public office at national, state, and local levels, and all New Hampshire citizens, to acknowledge the overwhelming balance of evidence for the underlying causes of climate change, to support appropriate responses to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases, and to develop local and statewide strategies to adapt to near-term changes in climate,” the scientists said.
“Ignoring the issue of climate change places our health, our quality of life, our economic vitality, and our children’s future at risk.”
The GOP presidential candidates have raised questions about climate science, a politically thorny issue in Republican circles.
To read the full article click here
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Fifty New Hampshire scientists Thursday called on the Republican presidential candidates to accept the “overwhelming” scientific evidence behind climate change.
The scientists issued the joint statement just weeks before the Jan. 10 New Hampshire primary, a key early test for the GOP White House hopefuls.
We urge all candidates for public office at national, state, and local levels, and all New Hampshire citizens, to acknowledge the overwhelming balance of evidence for the underlying causes of climate change, to support appropriate responses to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases, and to develop local and statewide strategies to adapt to near-term changes in climate,” the scientists said.
“Ignoring the issue of climate change places our health, our quality of life, our economic vitality, and our children’s future at risk.”
The GOP presidential candidates have raised questions about climate science, a politically thorny issue in Republican circles.
To read the full article click here
Plastic Birds: Photos of our disposable lifestyle
Pandango: View an amazing slide show of birds that have died because of their inability to digest plastic...
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Photographs by Chris Jordan as seen on Adventures in Climate Change
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Photographs by Chris Jordan as seen on Adventures in Climate Change
Unknown Oil in Gulf of Mexico
by SkyTruth
Report DetailsNRC Report ID: 999227
Incident Time: 2011-12-29 15:00:00
Nearest City: LA
Location: PLATFORM INCIDENT
Incident Type: PLATFORM
Material: UNKNOWN OIL
Medium Affected: WATER
Suspected Responsible Party: DOR
SkyTruth Analysis
Lat/Long: 28.506610, -91.456300 (Approximated from BlockCentroid)
Reported Sheen Size: 1 miles by 1 miles (area 1 sq. miles)
Reported Spill Volume: 50 gallons
SkyTruth Minimum Estimate: 684.2 gallons
Report Description
CALLER IS REPORTING A SHEEN THAT APPEARS TO BE COMING FROM A PLATFORM AT EUGENE ISLAND 254A ONLY MARKINGS VISIBLE ON PLATFORM IS "DOR".
View Full Report
Report DetailsNRC Report ID: 999227
Incident Time: 2011-12-29 15:00:00
Nearest City: LA
Location: PLATFORM INCIDENT
Incident Type: PLATFORM
Material: UNKNOWN OIL
Medium Affected: WATER
Suspected Responsible Party: DOR
SkyTruth Analysis
Lat/Long: 28.506610, -91.456300 (Approximated from BlockCentroid)
Reported Sheen Size: 1 miles by 1 miles (area 1 sq. miles)
Reported Spill Volume: 50 gallons
SkyTruth Minimum Estimate: 684.2 gallons
Report Description
CALLER IS REPORTING A SHEEN THAT APPEARS TO BE COMING FROM A PLATFORM AT EUGENE ISLAND 254A ONLY MARKINGS VISIBLE ON PLATFORM IS "DOR".
View Full Report
Ocean Acidification Levels Reach Levels Predicted For 2100
by Good German/Disinfo.com/Dec. 30, 2011
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A group of 19 scientists from five research organizations have conducted the broadest field study of ocean acidification to date using sensors developed at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego.The study was recently reported in the journal PLoS One. It is an important step toward understanding how specific ecosystems are responding to the change in seawater chemistry that is being caused as the oceans take up extra carbon dioxide produced by human greenhouse gas emissions, said its authors. “These data represent a critical step in understanding the consequences of ocean change: the linkage of present-day pH exposures to organismal tolerance and how this translates into ecological change in marine ecosystems,” the authors wrote.
Read the full article here
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A group of 19 scientists from five research organizations have conducted the broadest field study of ocean acidification to date using sensors developed at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego.The study was recently reported in the journal PLoS One. It is an important step toward understanding how specific ecosystems are responding to the change in seawater chemistry that is being caused as the oceans take up extra carbon dioxide produced by human greenhouse gas emissions, said its authors. “These data represent a critical step in understanding the consequences of ocean change: the linkage of present-day pH exposures to organismal tolerance and how this translates into ecological change in marine ecosystems,” the authors wrote.
Read the full article here
United States Global Change Program: Climate Impact Brochures and Factsheets
Pandango: For some good resources on climate change and how it's impacts might affect you, you can go to the United States Global Change Program for brochures and factsheets.
I've shown some examples below. Even though the resources may not be very clear on my page, you can go to the website and click on the images for a full screen view that is perfectly clear and easy to read.
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I've shown some examples below. Even though the resources may not be very clear on my page, you can go to the website and click on the images for a full screen view that is perfectly clear and easy to read.
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Judge Blocks California Fuel Regulation
by Felicity Barringer/New York Times/December 29, 2011
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The ruling by the judge, Lawrence J. O’Neill of United States District Court in Fresno, said the rule unconstitutionally discriminates against out-of-state producers and tries to regulate activities that take place entirely outside state boundaries, from producers’ choice of farming methods to refiners’ use of coal-fired electricity.
By granting a preliminary injunction, which had been sought by ethanol producers, the judge dealt a blow to the state’s much-trumpeted effort to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by 2020. The low-carbon fuel rule had been expected to account for 10 percent of the overall reduction in emissions, or about 16 million metric tons.
Read the full story here
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The ruling by the judge, Lawrence J. O’Neill of United States District Court in Fresno, said the rule unconstitutionally discriminates against out-of-state producers and tries to regulate activities that take place entirely outside state boundaries, from producers’ choice of farming methods to refiners’ use of coal-fired electricity.
By granting a preliminary injunction, which had been sought by ethanol producers, the judge dealt a blow to the state’s much-trumpeted effort to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by 2020. The low-carbon fuel rule had been expected to account for 10 percent of the overall reduction in emissions, or about 16 million metric tons.
Read the full story here
Global warming study finds no grounds for climate sceptics' concerns
by Ian Sample/guardian.co.uK/Oct. 20, 2011
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Climate sceptics have criticised official global warming figures on the grounds that many temperature stations are poor quality and that data are tweaked by hand.
However, the Berkeley study found that the so-called urban heat island effect, which makes cities warmer than surrounding rural areas, is locally large and real, but does not contribute significantly to average land temperature rises. This is because urban regions make up less than 1% of the Earth's land area. And while stations considered "poor" might be less accurate, they recorded the same average warming trend.
"We have looked at these issues in a straightforward, transparent way, and based on that, I would expect legitimate sceptics to feel their issues have been addressed," Muller said.
Read the full story here
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Climate sceptics have criticised official global warming figures on the grounds that many temperature stations are poor quality and that data are tweaked by hand.
However, the Berkeley study found that the so-called urban heat island effect, which makes cities warmer than surrounding rural areas, is locally large and real, but does not contribute significantly to average land temperature rises. This is because urban regions make up less than 1% of the Earth's land area. And while stations considered "poor" might be less accurate, they recorded the same average warming trend.
"We have looked at these issues in a straightforward, transparent way, and based on that, I would expect legitimate sceptics to feel their issues have been addressed," Muller said.
Read the full story here
Thursday, December 29, 2011
The Debunking Handbook: The Worldview Backfire Effect
found on Climate Progress/Dec. 29, 2011
The Debunking Handbook is a guide to debunking myths, by John Cook and Stephan Lewandowsky. This Handbook boils down the psychological research on misinformation into a short, simple summary, intended as a guide for communicators in all areas (not just climate).
This is part four in a five-part series cross-posted from Skeptical Science.
------------------------
The third and arguably most potent backfire effect occurs with topics that tie in with people’s worldviews and sense of cultural identity. Several cognitive processes can cause people to unconsciously process information in a biased way. For those who are strongly fixed in their views, being confronted with counter-arguments can cause their views to be strengthened.
One cognitive process that contributes to this effect is Confirmation Bias, where people selectively seek out information that bolsters their view.
Read the full article here.
The Debunking Handbook is a guide to debunking myths, by John Cook and Stephan Lewandowsky. This Handbook boils down the psychological research on misinformation into a short, simple summary, intended as a guide for communicators in all areas (not just climate).
This is part four in a five-part series cross-posted from Skeptical Science.
------------------------
The third and arguably most potent backfire effect occurs with topics that tie in with people’s worldviews and sense of cultural identity. Several cognitive processes can cause people to unconsciously process information in a biased way. For those who are strongly fixed in their views, being confronted with counter-arguments can cause their views to be strengthened.
One cognitive process that contributes to this effect is Confirmation Bias, where people selectively seek out information that bolsters their view.
Read the full article here.
Fallacious Arguments
Pandango: Below is a website featuring fallacious arguments. Fallacious arguments are used when good evidence is not available to support an argument, so consequently, faux information and argumentation is used instead to make it seem like there is good evidence, when in actuality, there is none.
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by e-ducation.net
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by e-ducation.net
Tactics
Failure to State - if you make enough attacks, you may never have to defend your own position
Argument by Fast Talking - rapid delivery does not leave people time to reject what they hear
Argument by Repetition - if you say something often enough, people will begin to believe it (Proof by Assertion)
Argument by Rhetorical Question - asking a question in a way that leads to a particular answer
Against the man
Ad hominem - in order to maintain a civil debate I will not mention my opponent’s drinking problem (Name Calling)
Guilt by Association - a person is said to be guilty of error because of the group he or she associates with (Ad Hominem)
Tu Quoque - to conclude that someone's argument not to perform some act must be faulty because the arguer himself or herself has performed it
Appeals to Emotions
Appeal to Emotions - [the speaker knows he is talking to an aggrieved person whose house is worth much more than $100,000.] You need cash. I can help you. Here is a check for $100,000. (Wishful Thinking)
Appeal to Personal Interest - appeal to the personal preferences, dislikes, or weaknesses of those one wants to convince (Appeal to Motives in Place of Support)
Appeal to Pity - if you don’t give me an A, I don’t get into grad school
Audiatur et Altera Pars - is the principle that all of the premises of an argument should be stated explicitly. It is a fallacy when one is arguing from unstated premises: There's too much violence on TV. No wonder we have so much violence among kids these days
Genetic Fallacy - holding that if an argument has a particular origin, it must be right
Knights and Knaves - treating information coming from other persons as if some people were always right and some were always wrong
Grammatical ambiguities
Accent fallacy - ambiguity due to the different ways a word is emphasized or accented. E.g.: I'm in favour of a missile defence system that effectively defends America
Ambiguous Assertion - a statement left sufficiently unclear
Process-Product Ambiguity - the ambiguity resulting from a statement that could refer to either a process or to its product and it is unclear from the context which of the two is intended. Example: "John is checking the new employee's work." The word work can refer to act of working (a process) or to the completed work (a product)
Oversimplifications (Inductive Fallacies)
Accident Fallacy - to reason with the generalization as if it has no exceptions: Birds normally can fly. Tweety the Penguin is a bird. Therefore, Tweety can fly. (Fallacy of the General Rule, Dicto simpliciter)
Argument by Generalization - drawing a broad conclusion from a small number of cases (Converse of the Accident Fallacy)
Argument from Small Numbers
- after treatment with the drug, one third were cured, one third died, and the third escaped (therefore, if we treated 1000 people, 333 would be cured) (Unrepresentative Sample)
False Causes (Retroductive Fallacies)
Abductive Fallacy - where retroduction goes wrong. Retroduction (also called Abduction) means that you are trying to find which explanation is the right one for a known fact (Abductive Fallacy, Fallacy of Explanation)
Slippery Slope - the assumption that something is wrong (or bad) because it could develop into something that is wrong (or bad). But it depends on the likelihood of the trouble in question occurring, that determines whether the argument is going to be fallacious or not (Fallacious Reductio ad absurdum)
Argument of the Beard - assuming that two ends of a spectrum are the same: as being clean shaven must be the same as having a big beard, since in betweens exist (Sorites Fallacy, Barefoot, Bald Man Fallacy, Paradox of the Heap, Sorites Fallacy, Continuum Fallacy, Line-Drawing Fallacy)
Formal fallacies (Deductive Fallacies)
Drawing an Affirmative Conclusion From a Negative Premise - is a fallacious inference where the conclusion of a standard form categorical syllogism is affirmative, but at least one of the premises is negative
Some A are B; some B are not C; therefore some A are C
Some A are not B; some B are C; therefore some A are C
Some A are not B; some B are not C; therefore some A are C
where any "some" can be replaced by an "all"
All mice are animals, and some animals are not dangerous, therefore some mice are dangerous.
Exclusive Premises - No A are B. No B are C. Therefore, no A are C.
For the full list and explanation of fallacious arguments click here.
Rush Limbaugh: Climate Change Misinformer of the Year
Pandango: According to Wikipedia, Rush has 15+ million listeners and Hannity has 14+ million listeners, and I heard both of them discussing global warming issues last week and I really don't listen to their programs all that much. Senator Roger Wicker from Mississippi was on American Family Radio last week sounding a lot like Senator Inhofe discussing global warming and I rarely listen to that kind of programming, but when I Googled his name I discovered that he is on Christian radio quite a bit. Liberal radio and tv news programs seem to be way behind the curve in discussing the truth about global warming. But even if they did, they still don't have as many listeners and viewers as the conservative shows. It's a shame...
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by Jocelyn Fong and Shauna Theel, in a Media Matters cross-post/found on Climate Progress/Dec 29, 2011
In 1994 Rush Limbaugh declared, “There is no global warming going on,” adding that scientists “admit” they “may need 20 years more data to prove it.” Since then, Limbaugh has managed to shield his brain from 18 years of mounting evidence that humans are changing the climate. “Science has made enormous inroads in understanding climate change and its causes,” according to the National Research Council’s latest report assessing the state of climate science. “There is a strong, credible body of evidence, based on multiple lines of research, documenting that climate is changing and that these changes are in large part caused by human activities,” the report said.
Read the full article here, or click on the "Media Matters cross-post" link above.
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by Jocelyn Fong and Shauna Theel, in a Media Matters cross-post/found on Climate Progress/Dec 29, 2011
In 1994 Rush Limbaugh declared, “There is no global warming going on,” adding that scientists “admit” they “may need 20 years more data to prove it.” Since then, Limbaugh has managed to shield his brain from 18 years of mounting evidence that humans are changing the climate. “Science has made enormous inroads in understanding climate change and its causes,” according to the National Research Council’s latest report assessing the state of climate science. “There is a strong, credible body of evidence, based on multiple lines of research, documenting that climate is changing and that these changes are in large part caused by human activities,” the report said.
Read the full article here, or click on the "Media Matters cross-post" link above.
Wednesday, December 28, 2011
Anonymous Hacks Conservative Think Tank Stratfor
Pandango: NPR reported this story a couple of days ago, but I was waiting on some more info about their operation. Disinfo.com just reported the story via Common Dreams website.
Anonymous hacked into and stole credit card information from a conservative think tank, Stratfor - Strategic Forecasting, Inc. The company's primary focus is to help clients with security. They also publish security newsletters that are available to the general public. Stratfor is known for its secrecy, especially its top-secret client list.. What's really embarrassing about this story is that Stratfor, being a security think tank, didn't bother to encrypt their clients credit card information, so Anonymous mined through their website, stole some of their clients credit card numbers, and made Christmas donations using the stolen credit card information.
If you go to Stratfor's website it reads: Site is currently undergoing maintenance - Please check back soon.
Yeah...I bet it is...
You can read the story here
Anonymous hacked into and stole credit card information from a conservative think tank, Stratfor - Strategic Forecasting, Inc. The company's primary focus is to help clients with security. They also publish security newsletters that are available to the general public. Stratfor is known for its secrecy, especially its top-secret client list.. What's really embarrassing about this story is that Stratfor, being a security think tank, didn't bother to encrypt their clients credit card information, so Anonymous mined through their website, stole some of their clients credit card numbers, and made Christmas donations using the stolen credit card information.
If you go to Stratfor's website it reads: Site is currently undergoing maintenance - Please check back soon.
Yeah...I bet it is...
You can read the story here
Much of the scientific case for climate change in a single graphic
by Edward Carr/Open The Echo Chamber/Aug. 15, 2011
You can read his entire article here
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Edward Carr: This graphic, from Skeptical Science, is just awesome. I spend a good bit of my time thinking about climate change and its impacts on the global poor – mostly how we might address both global poverty and climate change, maximizing synergies and minimizing trade-offs between these efforts. I’ve been a lead author of two major global environmental assessments (the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment and GEO-4) and I am now a review author of the IPCC’s AR5. Despite all of this, I find that people still question my understanding of climate change – they want me to be deluded by false data, or somehow motivated by another political agenda that I can only accomplish through an environmental hoax. In short, they want me to be either stupid or a liar. Not that anyone will say that to my face, of course, but that is really what it boils down to.
So, I greatly appreciate when someone comes up with a means of communicating what we know about the changing climate that is both simple and clear. In one post, Skeptical Science has managed this. Everyone should take a look and have a quick read. First, the graphic:
You can read his entire article here
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Edward Carr: This graphic, from Skeptical Science, is just awesome. I spend a good bit of my time thinking about climate change and its impacts on the global poor – mostly how we might address both global poverty and climate change, maximizing synergies and minimizing trade-offs between these efforts. I’ve been a lead author of two major global environmental assessments (the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment and GEO-4) and I am now a review author of the IPCC’s AR5. Despite all of this, I find that people still question my understanding of climate change – they want me to be deluded by false data, or somehow motivated by another political agenda that I can only accomplish through an environmental hoax. In short, they want me to be either stupid or a liar. Not that anyone will say that to my face, of course, but that is really what it boils down to.
So, I greatly appreciate when someone comes up with a means of communicating what we know about the changing climate that is both simple and clear. In one post, Skeptical Science has managed this. Everyone should take a look and have a quick read. First, the graphic:
(video) Bill Maher Panel Discuss Global Warming
Pandango: Bill Maher discusses mega-fires and being surrounded by giant fires while in Los Angeles, California. Bill Maher commented that being surrounded by wildfires was a little "unsettling". Yeah, tell me about it...San Antonio was that way this past summer.
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The Debunking Handbook: The Familiarity Backfire Effect
by John Cook & Stephan Lewandowsky/Climate Progress/Dec. 27, 2011
-------------------------------
The Debunking Handbook is a guide to debunking myths, by John Cook and Stephan Lewandowsky. It boils down the research on the psychological research on misinformation into a short, simple summary.
This is part two of a five-part series cross-posted from Skeptical Science.
To debunk a myth, you often have to mention it — otherwise, how will people know what you’re talking about? However, this makes people more familiar with the myth and hence more likely to accept it as true. Does this mean debunking a myth might actually reinforce it in people’s minds?
Read the full article here
-------------------------------
The Debunking Handbook is a guide to debunking myths, by John Cook and Stephan Lewandowsky. It boils down the research on the psychological research on misinformation into a short, simple summary.
This is part two of a five-part series cross-posted from Skeptical Science.
To debunk a myth, you often have to mention it — otherwise, how will people know what you’re talking about? However, this makes people more familiar with the myth and hence more likely to accept it as true. Does this mean debunking a myth might actually reinforce it in people’s minds?
Read the full article here
The Debunking Handbook: The Overkill Backfire Effect
by John Cook and Stephan Lewandsky/Climate Progress/Dec.28, 2011
----------------------------------
The Debunking Handbook is a guide to debunking myths, by John Cook and Stephan Lewandowsky. Although there is a great deal of psychological research on misinformation, unfortunately there is no summary of the literature that offers practical guidelines on the most effective ways of reducing the influence of misinformation. This Handbook boils down the research into a short, simple summary, intended as a guide for communicators in all areas (not just climate) who encounter misinformation.
This is part three in a five-part series cross-posted from Skeptical Science.
One principle that science communicators often fail to follow is making their content easy to process. That means easy to read, easy to understand and succinct. Information that is easy to process is more likely to be accepted as true.1 Merely enhancing the colour contrast of a printed font so it is easier to read, for example, can increase people’s acceptance of the truth of a statement.2
Read the full article here
----------------------------------
The Debunking Handbook is a guide to debunking myths, by John Cook and Stephan Lewandowsky. Although there is a great deal of psychological research on misinformation, unfortunately there is no summary of the literature that offers practical guidelines on the most effective ways of reducing the influence of misinformation. This Handbook boils down the research into a short, simple summary, intended as a guide for communicators in all areas (not just climate) who encounter misinformation.
This is part three in a five-part series cross-posted from Skeptical Science.
One principle that science communicators often fail to follow is making their content easy to process. That means easy to read, easy to understand and succinct. Information that is easy to process is more likely to be accepted as true.1 Merely enhancing the colour contrast of a printed font so it is easier to read, for example, can increase people’s acceptance of the truth of a statement.2
Read the full article here
Tornadoes in 2011 Set Deadly Records
by Mark Fischetti/Scientific American/Dec. 28, 2011
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Many of us may remember the jaw-dropping images of the May 22, 2011, tornado that tore through Joplin, Mo., killing 158 people and leaving an incredible 14-mile path of destruction. But that system was only one of the record-breaking tornado events this year. Data compiled by meteorologist Jeffrey Masters shows that when deaths, damage and financial losses are considered, 2011 can be called the worst U.S. tornado year on record.
Read the full article here
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Many of us may remember the jaw-dropping images of the May 22, 2011, tornado that tore through Joplin, Mo., killing 158 people and leaving an incredible 14-mile path of destruction. But that system was only one of the record-breaking tornado events this year. Data compiled by meteorologist Jeffrey Masters shows that when deaths, damage and financial losses are considered, 2011 can be called the worst U.S. tornado year on record.
Read the full article here
Understanding Cognitive Dysfunction When Presented with Competing Facts on Climate Change
by Janet Stemwedel/Scientific American/July 6, 2011
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The problem arises in cases where the public, which has delegated knowledge-building to the scientists, then rejects the account of the facts that the scientists produce — or where the public can’t tell which putatively scientific accounts are actually reliable descriptions of reality. Today, we’re going to examine one such case, the American public’s relationship with climate science and climate scientists.
Read the full article here
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The problem arises in cases where the public, which has delegated knowledge-building to the scientists, then rejects the account of the facts that the scientists produce — or where the public can’t tell which putatively scientific accounts are actually reliable descriptions of reality. Today, we’re going to examine one such case, the American public’s relationship with climate science and climate scientists.
Read the full article here
The Debunking Handbook: The First Myth About Debunking
by John Cook & Stephan Lewandowsky/Climate Progress/Dec. 26, 2011
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The Debunking Handbook is a guide to debunking myths, by John Cook and Stephan Lewandowsky. Although there is a great deal of psychological research on misinformation, unfortunately there is no summary of the literature that offers practical guidelines on the most effective ways of reducing the influence of misinformation. This Handbook boils down the research into a short, simple summary, intended as a guide for communicators in all areas (not just climate) who encounter misinformation
This is part one in a five-part series by John Cook originally published at Skeptical Science.
Read the full article here.
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The Debunking Handbook is a guide to debunking myths, by John Cook and Stephan Lewandowsky. Although there is a great deal of psychological research on misinformation, unfortunately there is no summary of the literature that offers practical guidelines on the most effective ways of reducing the influence of misinformation. This Handbook boils down the research into a short, simple summary, intended as a guide for communicators in all areas (not just climate) who encounter misinformation
This is part one in a five-part series by John Cook originally published at Skeptical Science.
Introduction
Debunking myths is problematic. Unless great care is taken, any effort to debunk misinformation can inadvertently reinforce the very myths one seeks to correct. To avoid these “backfire effects”, an effective debunking requires three major elements. First, the refutation must focus on core facts rather than the myth to avoid the misinformation becoming more familiar. Second, any mention of a myth should be preceded by explicit warnings to notify the reader that the upcoming information is false. Finally, the refutation should include an alternative explanation that accounts for important qualities in the original misinformation.Read the full article here.
Monday, December 26, 2011
Hansen: Carbon Offsets Modern Equivalent of Medieval 'Indulgences'
Pandango: The excerpt below is from James Hansen's book Storms of My Grandchildren.
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by James Hansen/Common Dreams/Dec 30, 2009
We have finally arrived at the main story: what we need to do to solve the climate problem, and how we can save a future for our grandchildren.
People need to make basic changes in the way the live. Countries need to cooperate. Matters as seemingly intractable as population must be addressed. And the required changes must be economically efficient. Such a pathway exists and is achievable.
Read more of what Hansen has to say here
Satellite Imagery: Oil Spill in Nigeria May Be Much Worse
Pandango: Good story by Common Dreams on the oil spill in Nigeria.
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by Emily Gertz/Common Dreams/Dec 26, 2011
A Shell deepwater drilling site off the Nigerian coast that the company reported leaking on Wednesday may have spilled up to 2.4 million gallons, according to nonprofit environmental satellite monitoring group SkyTruth.
Read the full story here.
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by Emily Gertz/Common Dreams/Dec 26, 2011
A Shell deepwater drilling site off the Nigerian coast that the company reported leaking on Wednesday may have spilled up to 2.4 million gallons, according to nonprofit environmental satellite monitoring group SkyTruth.
Read the full story here.
Platform Spill Leaking 22,578 Gallons of Oil Near Louisiana
Gulf Oil Spill Tracker
Report DetailsNRC Report ID: 998922
Incident Time: 2011-12-24 09:00:00
Nearest City: LA
Location: PLATFORM INCIDENT- MISSISSIPPI CANYON 20
Incident Type: PLATFORM
Material: OIL: CRUDE
Medium Affected: WATER
Suspected Responsible Party: TAYLOR ENERGY
SkyTruth Analysis
Lat/Long: 28.938306, -88.982776 (Approximated from BlockCentroid)
Reported Sheen Size: 15 miles by 2.2 miles (area 33 sq. miles)
Reported Spill Volume: 4 gallons
SkyTruth Minimum Estimate: 22578.68 gallons
Report Description
CALLER REPORTED A SHEEN COMING FROM A PLATFORM DESTROYED BY HURRICANE IVAN.
View Full Report
Report DetailsNRC Report ID: 998922
Incident Time: 2011-12-24 09:00:00
Nearest City: LA
Location: PLATFORM INCIDENT- MISSISSIPPI CANYON 20
Incident Type: PLATFORM
Material: OIL: CRUDE
Medium Affected: WATER
Suspected Responsible Party: TAYLOR ENERGY
SkyTruth Analysis
Lat/Long: 28.938306, -88.982776 (Approximated from BlockCentroid)
Reported Sheen Size: 15 miles by 2.2 miles (area 33 sq. miles)
Reported Spill Volume: 4 gallons
SkyTruth Minimum Estimate: 22578.68 gallons
Report Description
CALLER REPORTED A SHEEN COMING FROM A PLATFORM DESTROYED BY HURRICANE IVAN.
View Full Report
Sunday, December 25, 2011
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