Talk Morgan Forums Community The Malvern Arms Too hot to drive

Nobel laureate Ivar Giaever is speaking about global warming:

[video:youtube]https://youtu.be/TCy_UOjEir0[/video]

Yes, he is a bit of a hero to the climate denialisms because he's got a Nobel prize for physics. It's a shame he's never actually done any climate research or published any work on it.

He makes some pretty basic errors in his claims, I have no idea why for example he likes to state that it's not possible to measure the average temperature of the Earth, when there's an entire body of data in the form of the surface temperature record, the validity of which has been tested many times and found to be accurate.

I expect his fans either don't know or don't care about his paid work for the Heartland Institute, funded by Exxon Mobil, Philip Morris, and the Koch Family Foundation.

If you've not heard of the Heartland Institute, they bear a little examination. Not only are they enthusiastic purveyors of climate denialism, they also promote such fashionable and worthy causes as denial of tobacco's health-damaging properties, and the use by American businesses of overseas child labour.

I'm afraid Glaever has zero credibility these days in the international scientific community.

I don't know why you are so quick to knock this man's credentials when the original chairman of the IPCC was an Indian railway engineer who wrote dirty books.

Blimey John, I don't know where you are getting your information from? The first chairman of the IPCC was Bert Bolin, a Swedish meterologist.

If you are referring to the 3rd chairman, Rajendra Pachauri, it is true that he started his career with the Indian Railways, and it is also true that he resigned amid some unproven allegations which provoked much media coverage at the time.

The 'dirty book' I presume is the novel he wrote, Return to Almora, which is about the reminiscences of a retired bureaucrat, which contains memories of his sexual experiences. Do you consider all sex to be dirty, or just that which is written about by people the reputation of whom you are seeking to impugn ?

His scientific credentials to my knowledge have never been questioned, and it was during his tenure that the IPCC was awarded the Nobel prize.

Just a note for those who are wondering why the video tags did not work. You must follow the form in the popup when you click on the video button/YouTube Video. To start off with the forum software does not work with https: you must remove the 's' to make it read just http:

This is the correct format(including the video tags) :


A bit fiddly but it can be done, and this is the result.

Hm! It is hard for me to believe that a gas (CO2) which is only a share of 0.04% of the air and of which 3% is human, should have such serious influences on the Earth's climate.

I invite you to consider 2 concepts: Firstly, that things in small concentrations can have very far-reaching effects. The fatal dose of Botulinum toxin for a healthy 80kg adult is 0.000168mg - or 0.000000000168 Kg. It's only a tiny proportion of the weight of the person being killed, but they will still die. It's the numbers of molecules that matter, not the proportion.

Secondly, the effect of altitude. The proportion of Oxygen in the atmosphere is the same at the top of Mount Everest as it is at sea level, at 21% So why can't a human being survive at those altitudes?

It's not the proportion of molecules that's significant, it's the absolute number. We are adding vast numbers of CO2 molecules to the atmosphere, and it's doing a great deal of damage even though it's not changing the proportion that much.

There's no scientific merit in comparing a powerful toxin with an inert gas.

The reason it's more difficult to breathe at higher altitudes is due to the lower atmospheric pressure which affects lung performance.

OK, whatever. I'm out. Life's too short.

Blimey you lot -I only said it was a bit hot !