Climate
Note: This site is being upgraded, and kinks are being worked out.
All comments you post will eventually be posted.
This New version of WordPress has many new features, including Comment Preview, which many of you asked for.
It will take a while to work out all the kinks and for me to figure out all of the features. Indeed, they’re not even upgrading the to the latest version of WordPress until I master these.
But I can add color.
And headers.
And headers with color.
Without going into the HTML. So woo-hoo — more things for me to spend time on.
On the bright side, there is a constantly updated word count, which will be great feedback that should motivate me to writer shorter posts! As if.
Hopefully most kinks will be out this weekend. Thank you for your patience!
Congratulations on the upgrade!
Just finished “Six Degrees” and “Under a Green Sky”. (I had a showing of “An Inconvenient Truth” for some friends, and I was reading frantically through books and blogs. Your post on “The full global warming solution” was featured, too.) Now I’m reading “Hell and High Water” – author’s name slips my mind, but his picture’s cute!
I look forward to an article from you on biochar.
Fine, but please do not overdue the color.
In particular, it is difficult for me to see green on white.
Congrats on the new and improved website!
Sweet! While you’re tinkering, any chance you could boost the contrast on the blockquote sections? The soft gray always makes my eyes glaze over and skip chunks.
Hey, Joe, you’re being dissed over at NewsBusters by Noel Sheppard, one of the most disgusting members of the denier pack:
http://newsbusters.org/blogs/noel-sheppard/2009/04/03/global-warming-debate-morano-vs-climateprogresss-romm
Go get ’em.
[JR: I’m not sure it is worth the effort. Note that Newsbusters pretty much admits that what I was said was true — since, of course it was.]
While Joe brings us better blogging through technology, here’s some food for thought from the New Scientist: http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20227024.400-rainforests-may-pump-winds-worldwide.html
It’s a model of global climate put forward by two Russian meteorologists, which states that forests spread moisture throughout continent-wide areas by creating low pressure systems that in turn generate wind, driving moisture for miles. In the case of coastal forests, precipitation is sent into the interior of a continent, the forest acting as a giant pump.
When coastal forests are cleared, the pump shuts down and less moisture makes its way inland. They hypothesize that this is what ‘switched’ Australia from being fertile in its interior to being desert.
But the study does imply that large-scale reforestation, and also planting of forests in currently forest-free areas, has the potential to combat the drought conditions that we’ve been warned will increase as climate change intensifies.
Harrier, that assumes the newly planted trees will thrive, even assuming irrigation.
Sorry (so extremely sorry) to say, I doubt that.
And hope I am wrong.
There will always be places on Earth that get rain, even if we face runaway climate change.
During the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum, there were tropical forests growing in what is now Wyoming. That implies not only more warmth, but more moisture in what today is a hot, dry place.
I actually think that business-as-usual will take us to another Thermal Maximum, because the PETM is so similar in shape to our current emissions path. But warming of that magnitude didn’t kill life on Earth- it didn’t even kill our primate ancestors. Life on land managed the PETM fairly well. I believe that we could do the same. I would still very much like to prevent global temperatures from ever reaching that point, but I’m not going to collapse in despair at the prospect of failure, because such a warm Earth is not without precedent.
Addressing the original point then: you must have faith that life will endure. There will always be places in which things will grow, and in almost every place, there’s a certain something that will grow there. It’s just a matter of finding it.
Harrier, unless we end up like Mars, or would it be Venus….
Just watched the Roll Call TV interview. Must have been hard to sit so close to Moron-o without strangling him.
[JR: Yes, I was a last minute fill in. Didn’t really realize until late that it was a debate with Morano — a pointless activity.]
Harrier,
That Russian theory of what creates low pressure systems sounds completely stupid. Air at 30C has max 2.5% moisture, one water molecule in 25 N2. So pressure change could small and air would be denser.
What really happens is water vapor condensing gives out large amounts of heat causing air to rise, and the rising air experiences lower air pressure it expands cooling causing more moisture to condense and heat and rise again. The rising air lowers air pressure.
A high pressure system is the opposite, dry air descending.
As for Australia, its in the middle of the desert latitudes, was moister when the continent was further south 20 million years ago. Aboriginals only light small grass fires never kill mature trees.
Hey Joe,
Please please add a Print Style Sheet. At the moment, whenever anyone prints any of your blogs they get about 2 unnecessary pages of gumpf plus ALL the comments…
A print style sheet would remove the unnecessary gumpf, comments and generally optimise it for printing… it’ll spread your message further and wider!
It’s also really easy to do…
rich
And (if possible) a read/new tally for the comment section.
Don’t print, it wastes trees.
Instead,
plant more trees.
We badly need them.
David B. Benson,
I respectfully disagree. What Richard Hawkins is requesting is a way to print using less paper. I think at this point it is more important to share critical information about climate change than worry about the method of transmission.
It uses carbon to read Joe’s blog on the computer, too, doesn’t it?
Plus, that argument is like saying scientists shouldn’t be flying around in helicopters filming ice sheets break up, or flying to Copenhagen to negotiate a global treaty.
If we are going to get the job done, we are going to have to leave some footprint doing it. Keep the eyes on the prize!
Gail — Yes, you are right.
But I’ll stand by the slogan
Plant More Trees!
We Badly Need Them.
Thank God for CARBON DIOXIDE.
This colorless, odorless gas (known as Dry Ice in its solid form) is essential for life on earth.
That is why, of course, the vast abundance of this essential atmospheric gas (96%) is produced naturally by Mother Earth — or Gaia, as some ecoloon Green Shirts insist on calling her.
Even though CO2 is an infinitesimal part per million of the atmosphere, is it vital for the growth of all plants and vegetation, and for sustaining life on earth for all species.
Simply put, the more Carbon Dioxide, the lusher and healthier the vegetation. The more delious crops for food is grown, and the more homo sapiens prosper.
JACK: Thanks for all the great work CO2.
CO2: You’re welcome Jack! My Pleasure!
JACK: When’s Carbon Dioxide Day?
CO2: Dunno Jack. But sounds like a great idea. Organize it.
JACK: I will.
CO2: Well alright then.
[JR: Well reasoned, well argued, and well documented appropriately-named commenter! Now if you could just break your torturing addiction! Small note — Many things that are vital for life are dangerous in excess, like iron and water….]
Jack have a look at this…
Oxygen toxicity
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oxygen_toxicity
Jack Bauer — Things are seldom as they seem.
Increased levels of carbon dioxide will promote C3 metabolism plant forms such as kudzu more than promoting C4 metabolism plant forms such as
maize
sorghum
sugarcane
millet
….
Are you sure you want that?
Nature abhors a vacuum.
Some species will die off, and they will surely be replaced by others.
But how come, seriously, it always seems that the good stuff – like pecan trees – die off, and the useless crappy stuff – like poison ivy and multiflora – flourish?
ugh. It’s a bit weird. I have spent the day in the garden, planting peas with hope, and pruning many, many dead branches from roses, hydrangeas, and hollies. I haz a sad…