Report on Global Warming?

Question

I have to write a report on "Global warming is it just propaganda" for my college professor. I have read and read data on this issue, but would like to hear what regular people have to say about this issue.

Answer 1

There's plenty of "objective proof" that global warming is real. Here are a few good summaries of a huge mountain of data:

http://www.globalwarmingart.com/wiki/Image:Climate_Change_Attribution.png
http://ipcc-wg1.ucar.edu/wg1/wg1-report.html
summarized at:
http://www.ipcc.ch/SPM2feb07.pdf
http://profend.com/global-warming/

In considering whether or not this is "propaganda" or a giant conspiracy, it's useful to see what large and very distinguished scientific organizations say. They ALL say global warming is real, and mostly caused by us.

The National Academy of Sciences, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the American Meteorological Association are all among them. No one has ever accused these longstanding institutions of putting out "propaganda".

Who is saying that it is "propaganda"? Just a few "skeptics" and a bunch of right wing fanatics. With no proof. Their most popular argument (It's the Sun) has been refuted by the data. As have all their other pseudoscientific arguments:

http://environment.newscientist.com/channel/earth/dn11462

Why would anyone choose to believe them, instead of the vast majority of scientists? Only a minority of people do.

There's a lot less controversy about this is the real world than there is on Yahoo answers:

http://www.worldpublicopinion.org/pipa/articles/home_page/412.php?lb=hmpg1&pnt=412&nid=&id=

And vastly less controversy in the scientific community than you might guess from the few skeptics talked about here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_opinion_on_climate_change
http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/306/5702/1686

"There's a better scientific consensus on this [climate change] than on any issue I know... Global warming is almost a no-brainer at this point. You really can't find intelligent, quantitative arguments to make it go away."

Dr. Jerry Mahlman, NOAA

Good websites for more info:

http://www.ucsusa.org/global_warming/science/
http://www.realclimate.org
"climate science from climate scientists"

EDIT - BOATMAN 1 - Read your own link. His whole point is that while there've been past changes, we're responsible for this one. "Of course, 1 Celsius ain't much compared to the 15°-20° Celsius cooling throughout the Cenozoic - but it's happening fast, and and it's not over yet! With all the changes the Earth has experienced over its history, one might think one more change is no big deal. In the long run, yes. But the future of humanity depends crucially on what happens in the "short run": the next millennium or two. If we didn't mess around with the climate, our Earth's climate might remain stable for another thousand years or more. As it is, we're bringing on more sudden changes."

Answer 2

It sounds like an interesting topic. I'm glad your professor is having you investigate the issue.

"Global warming" is such a broad term and can have different meanings to different people. I suggest you define the term precisely at the beginning of your paper. The Earth is warming, no one really doubts that. The question is by how much? And is the warming is caused mainly by man, partly by man or completely natural? If man is playing some role, is the warming going to be catastrophic? This is what the debate is all about.

The weather stations used to measure climate change were not really designed to identify a trend in globally averaged temperature measured in tenths or hundredths of a degree. Anthony Watts is leading an effort to photograph and document the quality of stations in the GHCN. So far, they have photographed 1/3 of US stations and found that 85% of them had an artificial warm bias and do not meet the minimum standards of the NOAA. Stations outside the US are thought to have an even greater warm bias. It could be that up to half of the observed warming is not even real but an artifact of these poorly sited weather stations. Some of them are located on top of parking lots!
http://surfacestations.org

A number of scientists have become well known for alarmist statements and exaggerations. The UN's IPCC has lost a lot of credibility recently because of some of their statements. The IPCC pushed the Mann "Hockey Stick" and it turned out to be completely bogus. The Dutch science magazine, Natuurwetenschap & Techniek, did a nice article on this. Here is the English translation.
http://www.uoguelph.ca/~rmckitri/research/Climate_L.pdf

And of course, Al Gore's award-winning movie, Inconvenient Truth, is more propaganda than science. In one place, Gore has a chart he identifies as from Lonnie Thompson. Only thing is, it is Mann's chart with instrumental temperature spliced on the end. It is really quite comical when you look closely at the pictures! It shows temperature going up and down at the same time!
http://www.climateaudit.org/?p=2328
http://www.climateaudit.org/?p=2335

Answer 3

Global Warming has been ongoing for the past 11500 years since the last Ice Age. In between there have been many smaller Cooling Cycles.

You need to scrutinize and challenge the data given by your professor.

Just because some scientist is cited doesn't mean that it is fact. Often data is spun for a political agenda. Sometimes data is misinterpreted or intellectually void of other important considerations.

Example: You seldom see data that responsibly includes the cause and effect of the thermohaline conveyor, the quantity of earths oceans to absorb CO2, the capacity of earths plants to photosynthesize CO2, any quantitative measure of methane gas release from the oceans or animal flatulence - the list goes on.

Also, challenge the term "Historical Data". This can be interpreted to mean the period of time since meteorologists kept records (circa 1850) or ship records (Christopher Columbus era) or Ice Core Samples (250,000) - BIG DIFFERENCE!

Bottom line: Don't dispute reported facts submitted to you by your professor - instead challenge the things he hasn't considered. It will have him scratching his head!!!

I think you will find that there is Global Warming but not the nightmare scenario that AL GORE, THE UN and others are saying about it. And, that all the hype is Junk Science - there is not much we as humans can do about it that we are not already doing!

Answer 4

It is possible to write your report but it's going to be difficult. The reliable sources of information that question global warming aren't so much claiming that it's propoganda but that it's caused by things other than human activity.

By visiting the websites and blogs of skeptical scientists and journalists you can find several alternative explanations but, as I say, they're not really claiming it's propoganda. That's something more commonly claimed by those who don't really understand the issue and aren't really capable of coming up with en educated or scientific alternative.

If you want some scientific reasons to question global warming then please feel free to e-mail me and I can e-mail you back with various articles that have been written.

Answer 5

It is obvious with Jello's participation in these forums is to misinform people. They aren't looking for science or they should qualify mine.

Weather is the interaction of 3 things, water vapor, air pressure(cold & warm air) and temperature. Changing any of the 3 factors changes weather. This is accepted science.

Go to http://www.thermoguy.com/globalwarming-heatgain.html and see that UV is causing buildings as well as the surface of the planet to generate heat close to boiling temperature. (For Jello, this is hot) The heat creates lower air pressure and changes weather.

The technology used to capture the data is accurate to +-2% independent of professional opinion. Take the 2% and you still have extreme heat generation. The technology used is traceable and verifiable to International Temperature Standards. The professionals used were architects, engineers, certified trades, etc, all of them trained at recognized universities or tech schools.

The science is absolutely solid except now ask a meteorologist what happens when each new building becomes a heat sink because of the exterior properties. We aren't insured for it and we are reacting to the symptoms with ozone depletion as well as massive GHG emissions.

Writing a paper on paint your building, shade your building and save the globe, no more unnatural heat generation. The link will take you to over 17,000 hours of research supporting the science.

Answer 6

There are actually some people who believe global warming is real just because Conservatives say it is. Some will just follow the word of Pat Roberson or Newt Gingrich, and if they believe it's true, that's good enough for them.

Others look for objective proof. This doesn't exist.

Others see the harm consensus science has done in the past and how a few people used this science to send millions to their death in their past and vow to never let this happen again. One example is the pseudo science of Eugenics.

Nothing is different between Eugenics and Global Warming.

Will people scare others for their own gain and profit? Sure they will. This is why we need to keep science objective.

Answer 7

i believe that the global warming "debate" is similar to the debate on the link between smoking and lung cancer in the 80s. the tobacco companies funded scientists to disagree with the scientific consensus in the same way that oil companies are funding "skeptics".

i dont think you should include opinions unless it is in the form of a survey because it will most likely be bias.

Answer 8

I'm not sure why you'd want hear what regular people say. You should base your report on facts from scientists, climatologists etc. You'll only get bias opinions here.

Answer 9

I would say it is a new and hot topic to get doctarate degree in various fields like- anthropology, chemistry, biology, oceanology, biochemistry, scociology. the list can be more. hence no scientist want to miss the bus.

Answer 10

When you write your report be sure to include this data on global temperatures!
http://math.ucr.edu/home/baez/temperature/

Then see how your "professor" reacts!