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Derek Broughton · 26-11-2007, 09:31 PM posted to rec.ponds.moderated

wrote:

Interesting citation, given that Revelle died July 15, 1991.

"Balling is a declared "global warming skeptic." However, in Balling and
Sen Roy (2005) he writes: "There is substantial evidence that a non-solar
control has become dominant in recent decades. The buildup of greenhouse
gases and/or some other global-scale feedback, such as widespread changes
in atmospheric water vapor, emerge as potential explanations for the
recent residual warming found in all latitudinal bands."

...
It is also wise to separate the issues.
1. is there evidence of global warming
2. what is likely to happen if there is global warming
3. is this warming unprecedented
4. are humans to blame

Indeed. #1 is widely agreed, and #3 is incontrovertible. #4 is largely
irrelevant if #1 is true - _unless_ we can do something to reverse what
we're doing. otoh, we _can_ reduce greenhouse gas emissions, so perhaps we
should...

#2 is the really fun one. What was that other movie, where global climate
change resulted in a sudden ice age? "The day after tomorrow"? At least
one scientist really believed that's what happens if we have rapid
warming - but of course everyone thought Velikovsky was a kook, too.

On Sun, 25 Nov 2007 14:56:04 CST, wrote:
There is no mention of Revelle's article published in the early 1990s
concluding that
the science is "too uncertain to justify drastic action." /(S.F.
Singer, C. Starr, and R. Revelle, "What to do about Greenhouse
Warming: Look Before You Leap. Cosmos 1 (1993) 28-33.)/

Good for you for doing some background. I read about that far, and
thought "so what?" a whole lot of scientists have changed their opinion
since then. That's science - sometimes you _have_ to change your paradigm.
--
derek