A changing climate has hurt butterfly species in the Sierra Nevada, reducing species richness by about fifty percent in the last 35 years. so reports a team at UCDAvis led by Arthur Shapiro, and reported in the PNAS: Compounded effects of climate change and habitat alteration shift patterns of butterfly diversity — PNAS Here we present 35Continue reading “Sierra butterflies hit by global warming, habitat destruction”
Tag Archives: Climate
The duty to nature (great enviro speech of l990)
Mr. Chairman, since the last World War, our world has faced many challenges, none more vital than that of defending our liberty and keeping the peace. But the threat to our world comes not only from tyrants…it can be more insidious though less visible. The danger of global warming is as yet unseen, but realContinue reading “The duty to nature (great enviro speech of l990)”
Why Resistance to the Idea of Global Warming Is Rising: The “More So Syndrome”
This morning Richard Harris of NPR's Morning Edition filed a typically excellent report on why, according to polls, substantially fewer Americans believe in global warming than believed just two years ago. According to the (unaffiliated) Harris Poll, now only 51% of Americans believe that carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases will cause the earth's temperatureContinue reading “Why Resistance to the Idea of Global Warming Is Rising: The “More So Syndrome””
Climate Stability to Vanish in the 2020’s: Dr. Jeff Masters
Dr. Jeff Masters, a scientist, hurricane watcher, founder of a national Internet weather site, and as respected as any meteorologist in the public eye known to this journalist, predicts when climate stability will collapse: There were 88 presentations on arctic sea ice at the 2008 AGU [American Geophysical Union] conference. None of the presenters expressedContinue reading “Climate Stability to Vanish in the 2020’s: Dr. Jeff Masters”
Sunbathing in Scotland by 2060?
From the staid London Times: The government’s chief scientific adviser has warned that climate change could destabilise populations across Europe, potentially triggering a wave of migrants heading for cooler regions such as the British Isles and Scandinavia. Professor John Beddington believes that, without deep cuts in greenhouse gas emissions, average temperatures could rise by aboutContinue reading “Sunbathing in Scotland by 2060?”
End of the Road for Zombie Arguments on Global Warming?
Readers may already have encountered the kerfuffle over a new book by the best-selling Freakonomics team, Stephen Dubner and Steve Levitt, who in a single chapter manage to stand up and push forward most of the brain-dead –aka zombie — arguments on the subject of climate change. It's sad to see such smart guys makeContinue reading “End of the Road for Zombie Arguments on Global Warming?”
More Climate Data for the Fire
As usual, Toles explains the big picture with ease, leaving the rest of us to squabble over the details: To be specific, the last couple of months have brought several grim climate studies to the fore, none of which has raised so much as a ripple of consciousness, as far as yours truly can tell.Continue reading “More Climate Data for the Fire”
A Conservative Voice of Reason on Climate Change
Lindsay Graham, the senior senator from South Carolina, co-authored an op-ed over the weekend published in the New York Times, in which he called for the passage of climate change legislation. Graham of course is a Republican, but he defied "the Party of No" cliche, arguing sensibly that (according to the Huffington Post): I thinkContinue reading “A Conservative Voice of Reason on Climate Change”
Australian Winter Turns Apocalyptic: Global Warming Blamed
Is my headline an exaggeration of reality? If you ask a denier site such as Watts Up With That, no doubt they would scoff, and say it's the usual natural variability. But deniers not only ignore the bad news about global warming obvious to most people on the ground, in places like Sydney and SoCal,Continue reading “Australian Winter Turns Apocalyptic: Global Warming Blamed”
The Age of Stupid — A Documentary About Us. (Hey, Wait as Minute…)
Gotta admire the wit of English filmmaker Franny Armstrong. Instead of warning us of climate change disasters to come, she mocks our thick-headed inability to listen to these warnings from from the distant future. It's a clever way to make a point. Her film, bluntly called "The Age of Stupid," is built around the ideaContinue reading “The Age of Stupid — A Documentary About Us. (Hey, Wait as Minute…)”
Kit Stolz 