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Archive for January 23rd, 2011
An interview with the first man to swim the length of the Amazon river
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on January 23rd, 2011
Mongabay: Explorers have been making their way down the world's mightiest river for hundreds of years. Untold numbers of people have not completed the journey, drowning in its murky waters, being eaten by animals, losing their way, succumbing to tropical disease, being killed by pirates or hostile local populations. But today a trip down the Amazon is less special--it has even been rafted and kayaked by a few intrepid souls. Traversing the majority of the Amazon can be done easily by commercial boat, provided...
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Some Himalayan glaciers advance, despite warming
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on January 23rd, 2011
Reuters: Some Himalayan glaciers are advancing despite an overall retreat, according to a study on Sunday that is a step toward understanding how climate change affects vital river flows from China to India.
A blanket of dust and rock debris was apparently shielding some glaciers in the world's highest mountain range from a thaw, a factor omitted from past global warming reports. And varying wind patterns might explain why some were defying a melt.
"Our study shows there is no uniform response of Himalayan...
United Kingdom: Ancient woodland under threat
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on January 23rd, 2011
Telegraph: The Department for the Environment is due to publish a consultation this week setting out plans to privatise forests.
The controversial plan has been attacked by the Archbishop of Canterbury and a host of celebrities including Judi Dench, Bill Bryson and Richard Briers.
More than 170,000 members of the public have signed a petition against the sale, and according to polls the majority of people are against it.
However ministers are remaining firm in their determination to sell off at least...
United States: The world is warming and waiting for science
Posted by on January 23rd, 2011
Orlando Sentinel: In his column "Global-warming predictions hurt cause" (Orlando Sentinel, Jan. 13), Mike Thomas highlights a few erroneous predictions of climate scientists and laments that they are all doomsdayers. It's time for a change in strategy, he concludes.
To be sure, there have been some ill-advised short-term projections and strong statements about aspects of the climate system that are not fully understood. These are unfortunate and disrupt public confidence in the science of climate change. However,...
California’s ‘big one’ might be a megastorm
Posted by LA Times: Tony Barboza on January 23rd, 2011
LA Times: California's "big one" may not be an earthquake at all, but a devastating megastorm that would inundate the Central Valley, trigger widespread landslides and cause flood damage to 1 in 4 homes in the state.
The prospect of such a storm was raised this month by scientists predicting the consequences of an "atmospheric river" of moisture from the tropical Pacific hitting California with up to 10 feet of rain and hurricane-force winds over several weeks.
A team of more than 100 scientists, engineers...
Nature’s cooling albedo disappearing faster than thought
Posted by Miller-McCune: Michael Todd on January 23rd, 2011
Miller-McCune: Those who reject the notion of climate change often note that there’s a level of prediction in the other side’s concerns, and they correlate prediction with speculation and ultimately conflate it with guessing. That’s not entirely fair, but there is an element of educated guessing going on in developing models that will accurately predict tomorrow’s climate. The assumption from naysayers is that when the models don’t perform flawlessly, that failure can only show that global warming isn’t happening....
Celebrities voice forest privatisation fears
Posted by Press Association: Rosa Silverman on January 23rd, 2011
Press Association: Famous names ranging from Annie Lennox and Dame Judi Dench to the Archbishop of Canterbury have implored the Government not to sell off the country's publicly-owned forests.
Almost 90 prominent figures signed a letter claiming that such a sale would be "misjudged and short-sighted".
The long list of concerned celebrities, politicians, media figures and others includes artist Tracey Emin, model Lily Cole, chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, former Mayor of London Ken Livingstone, novelist Julian...
Natural signs that show spring comes earlier
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on January 23rd, 2011
Guardian: Spring is sooner recognised by plants than by men, states the Chinese proverb – a point that has been backed by science. Researchers have found that the behaviour of plants and the animals that feed on them shows spring is arriving earlier every year. It also appears that this advance is accelerating, according to Dr Stephen Thackeray of the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, in Lancaster. "We have measured the date of the arrival of spring according to the behaviour of more than 700 species of British...
United Kingdom: Fish threatened by global warming to be moved north
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on January 23rd, 2011
Independent: Fish from the Lake District will be moved to cooler waters in Scotland under radical plans -- which will be unveiled this week -- aimed at coping with climate change.
The first seven of more than 100 reports by government agencies and utility companies will set out how Britain needs to change to cope with hotter summers and wetter winters. They will highlight the risks -- and potential costs -- of more landslides, buckled railway lines, crumbling water pipes and rising sea levels threatening lighthouses...
Genetically modified crops are the key to human survival, says UK’s chief scientist
Posted by Washington Post: Juliet Eilperin on January 23rd, 2011
Guardian: Moves to block cultivation of genetically modified crops in the developing world can no longer be tolerated on ethical or moral grounds, the government's chief scientist, Sir John Beddington, has warned. He said the world faced "a perfect storm" of issues that could lead to widespread food shortages and public unrest over the next few decades. His warning comes in the wake of food riots in north Africa and rising global concern about mounting food prices.
"A number of very important factors are...