International Journal of Inactivism — Mindless Link Propagation section

  • 06:05:15 pm on April 22, 2009 | 0

    Barry Brook reviews Ian Plimer’s book Heaven and Earth. [cached]

    There is another important general point about the book. In the final chapter (pg 473), Ian quotes Charles Babbage; this quote is relevant to the thrust of his book, and underscores to me why it is so distorted. Babbage outlined three criteria for detecting non-science: trimming, cooking and forgery. […]

    Ian says that creationists use all three tricks — I’d agree. But he then says that the IPCC uses at least two of them, and rants on for a few pages as to why. But of course herein is the great irony of Plimer’s position: a rogue accuses others of what he is most guilty. The pseudo-sceptics of climate science, like the tobacco lobby, liberally undertake all three malpractices to convince their audience of their position. Their twisted logic goes something like this: We know we do it, so surely the ‘other side’ (climate scientists, IPCC etc.) must do it too! Of course, the other side deny that they do it, so we must deny as well. And so it goes on. […]

    Fig 1 — Contrasts actual yearly temperatures to mean model projections (not individual, variable, simulation runs) — and doesn’t include the data beyond the low point in January 2008. This is comparing apples and oranges (illustrating a complete lack of understanding of stochastic modelling) and it’s trimming to boot (elsewhere in the book, data up to early 2009 is included, so why not here?). […]

    Fig 54 — Possibly the original Mann et al. 1998 hockey stick (not updated 2008 version or 2007 IPCC mutli-proxy version) — with the uncertainty bounds deleted. He then (and throughout the book, in fact), claims that climate scientists ignore uncertainty. Yes, well…

     

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