Global Temperatures to Rise 4.3 Degrees by Mid-Century

[the48er]

Major edit -- Of course -- thanks igil: Valley's (and his editor's!) arithmetic in going from Celsius to Fahrenheit was really wrong. The minimum Fahrenheit increase is closer to 4.3 degrees Fahrenheit. Still catastrophic, but obviously much less so.

Seattle Post-Intelligencer guest columnist Paul Valley calls attention to the Stern Review, which is due out with a major report on the economics of global warming later this year. Preliminary evidence includes contributions from the Hadley Center, "one of Europe's leading research bodies on climate change." Global temperature increases of at least 4.3 degrees Fahrenheit by mid-century would mean not only vast coastal flooding, but unimaginable epidemics.

[tridim]

1. That would probably require moving underground

We'd survive it as a species, but it would suck terribly.

[HysteryDiagnosis]

3. A view from underground......

[Igel]

2. Compare the temperature increases he gives in Celsius

with the temperatures he gives in Fahrenheit.

That's his problem: the idiot writer interpreted an *interval*, i.e., a temperature increase, as a temperature. His Fahrenheit numbers are quite predictably 32 degrees too high. Except for the 8 degrees C number ... that he either misread from his nifty handy-dandy Internet C to F converter, or he typed in the wrong number.

Notice that double 39 is around 44. Math wizard, he ain't.

[madaboutharry]

4. Somehow it seemed strange

Even if we ignore global warming all together, how could it be that in forty years or so it would be 150 degrees in Phoenix in July? Thanks for helping clarify.

[slackmaster]

6. That was the first thing I noticed

1 degree C = 2.2 degrees F.

What a clown.

Moderators: I recommend creating a "Math Challenged" group under Lifestyle, Peer Support & Self-Help, and moving this thread there.

[the48er]

13. Why Stop There?

How about another one for rude, haughty jerks?

[slackmaster]

14. OK, and one for "Defensiveness"

:nuke:

BTW, my remarks were directed at the author of the piece, not YOU! Calling a fellow DUer a name, e.g. "clown" or "rude, haughty jerk" or "trigger-happy fuckwit" is specificially prohibited in the posting rules.

(My suggestion to you would be to read articles more closely before linking to them. This would have been a good candidate for the Lounge because it is pretty funny.)

[the48er]

15. Oh, Come Now

You make no specific reference to the author, but you do to "this thread" (which was my doing, not that of "the author") and you do so in a pretty nasty context. But I'll certainly allow that it's possible that I misinterpreted and was overly thin-skinned. If so, I apologize for my bad manners. But I venture to say that others might have made the same mistake. Be honest: might you not take umbrage were similar comments directed in your general direction in similar circumstances?

[slackmaster]

17. I've made the same mistake innumerable times

Be honest: might you not take umbrage were similar comments directed in your general direction in similar circumstances?

I always give people the benefit of the doubt, until they prove they are unworthy.

[HornBuckler]

5. Just curious, why hasn't this been moved to the 9/11 forum?

There is a bit of tongue in cheek inwhat I write, but there is a bit of honesty too.

:)

[Psephos]

7. What an innumerate imbecile

It beggars the mind that the Post-Intelligencer would let this fifth-grade math error find its way into print.

Not only does this loser not understand the conversion from Celsius to Fahrenheit, but then he goes ahead and doubles the error.


This isn't right. This isn't even wrong.
- Wolfgang Pauli, on a paper submitted by a physicist colleague


Meanwhile, the48er, consider checking out some of the excellent books on critical number skills by John Allen Paulos. Here's a good one:

Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0809058405/sr=8-2/qid=1148263841/ref=pd_bbs_2/102-4247228-4282534?%5Fencoding=UTF8

Peace.

[the48er]

8. I Made an Honest Mistake

... and I fixed it as soon as possible.

Don't be so gratuitously mean, pal.

[Psephos]

10. Hey, the48er, I wasn't referring to you! :-)

I was talking about the writer of the piece for the newspaper.

You're cool - AND I see you made an edit soon after posting.

Meanwhile, I was serious about that Paulos book - it's a great read.

Peace.

[the48er]

11. Thanks -- I Appreciate It

As a matter of fact I did check out that book several years ago, carrying it around like the Chairman's Little Red Book for a few days. I'm not exaggerating. One of my main concerns -- bordering at times on obsession -- since the late '80s has been adult functional illiteracy, to which innumeracy is obviously related.

As a matter of fact, I posted (but have not yet developed) something along these lines. This may interest you.

[brokensymmetry]

9. Interesting report!

Thanks for posting it.

[kahleefornia]

12. was reading some freeper posts today

Do you know that they don't believe in climate change? I mean to say, not because of human activity, not because of natural processes, not for any reason. They completly deny that their little world will ever or has ever been any temperature than it is RIGHT NOW. That "global warming" is a tool of liberal environmental extremist agenda...whatever that would be. Yeah, we all just really want more expensive gasoline....there's no other reason for us to try making a change in our consumption of polluting fuel.

Until I had read these posts, I really only thought there was a small handful of wackos who didn't think the climate was changing. Now I am dismayed to find there are a whole lot more wackos than is really tolerable. These folks, though not scientists, seem to have it ALL figured out. Scary.

[muriel_volestrangler]

16. Original Independent article, without the dodgy fahrenheit conversion

http://news.independent.co.uk/environment/article485005.ece

Some Seattle P-I subeditor needs firing. Not only did they insert the incorrect fahrenheit figures, they spelled the author's name wrong! It's "Vallely", not "Valley". That has to have been a subeditor. No-one gets their own name wrong.

[the48er]

18. That's Pretty Funny

"This article is from the (RED) edition of The Independent, guest-edited for 16 May 2006 by Bono."

So there you have it: the whole thing's Bono's fault. We can't fire him.

[Strelnikov_]

19. Not Surprising, Considering CO2 May Be Nearing A Level Not Seen For 55 M

years.

At that time, earth was a tropical planet, with no polar ice.

Makes one wonder, doesn't it?