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Climate research nearly unanimous on human causes, survey finds

Fri, 2013-06-07 00:38 — Maeryn Obley

'Our findings prove that there is a strong scientific agreement about the cause of climate change, despite public perceptions to the contrary'. Photograph: John McConnico/AP

Image: 'Our findings prove that there is a strong scientific agreement about the cause of climate change, despite public perceptions to the contrary'. Photograph: John McConnico/AP

guardian.co.uk - May 15th, 2013 - Suzanne Goldenberg

A survey of thousands of peer-reviewed papers in scientific journals has found 97.1% agreed that climate change is caused by human activity.

Authors of the survey, published on Thursday in the journal Environmental Research Letters, said the finding of near unanimity provided a powerful rebuttal to climate contrarians who insist the science of climate change remains unsettled.

The survey considered the work of some 29,000 scientists published in 11,994 academic papers.

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Norway, Canada, the United States and the Tar Sands

Fri, 2013-06-07 00:32 — Maeryn Obley

It is crunch time on tar sands. (photo: Greenpeace)

Image: It is crunch time on tar sands. (photo: Greenpeace)

readersupportednews.org - May 11th, 2013 - Dr. James Hansen

Today 36 Norwegian organizations sent an open letter to Prime Minister Stoltenberg expressing opposition to development of Canadian tar sands by Statoil (the Norwegian state is majority shareholder of Statoil). Signatories include not only environmental organizations, but a broad public spectrum, including, appropriately, many youth organizations. It is encouraging that Norwegian youth press their government to stop supporting tar sands development, given the fact that Norway saves much of its oil earnings for future generations and given the fact that Norway is not likely among the nations that will suffer most from climate change.

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Underlying Resilience Theoretical Foundations

Thu, 2013-06-06 03:31 — mdmcdonald

Dear all,

Yesterday was a great pleasure for me, thank you all for the inspirations and very nice atmosphere.

Instead of writing a decent summary, I have summarised some notes in the way of formulating questions that could be of interest for the project. (Or, at least to myself.) I think it could also be very useful to write a paper to help structuring all ideas.

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Geospatial Data Release Calendar

Thu, 2013-06-06 03:21 — mdmcdonald
Mike, Alexander,

Good to meet you both today (and help eat the food).

The official data release calendar id here:
http://www.statistics.gov.uk/hub/release-calendar/index.html
<http://www.statistics.gov.uk/hub/release-calendar/index.html>

Also attached is the National Risk Register of Civil Emergencies for the UK.
Enjoy.

Regards, Allan.

Professor Allan J. Brimicombe MPhil PhD CGeog FRGS FGS AcSS
Head, Centre for Geo-Information Studies
University of East London

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Climate Change: Human Disaster Looms, Claims New Research

Wed, 2013-06-05 23:43 — Kathy Gilbeaux

      

A human shadow is seen on a dried out field after drought in Germany. Photograph: Patrick Pleul/EPA

guardian.co.uk - by Fiona Harvey - May 19, 2013

Some of the most extreme predictions of global warming are unlikely to materialise, new scientific research has suggested, but the world is still likely to be in for a temperature rise of double that regarded as safe.

The researchers said warming was most likely to reach about 4C above pre-industrial levels if the past decade's readings were taken into account.

That would still lead to catastrophe across large swaths of the Earth, causing droughts, storms, floods and heatwaves, and drastic effects on agricultural productivity leading to secondary effects such as mass migration.

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Study - Energy budget constraints on climate response
http://www.nature.com/ngeo/journal/v6/n6/full/ngeo1836.html

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WHO - World Health Statistics 2013

Tue, 2013-06-04 10:21 — Kathy Gilbeaux

who.int

World Health Statistics 2013 contains WHO’s annual compilation of health-related data for its 194 Member States, and includes a summary of the progress made towards achieving the health-related Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and associated targets.

This year, it also includes highlight summaries on the topics of reducing the gaps between the world’s most-advantaged and least-advantaged countries, and on current trends in official development assistance (ODA) for health.

For additional information, see link below:
http://who.int/gho/publications/world_health_statistics/2013/en/index.html

World Health Statistics 2013 - (Full Report - 172 page .PDF report)
http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/10665/81965/1/9789241564588_eng.pdf

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The Dictatorship of Data

Sun, 2013-06-02 23:55 — Maeryn Obley

Body count: U.S. Defense Secretary Robert McNamara briefing the press on Vietnam at the Pentagon in 1965.Image: Body count: U.S. Defense Secretary Robert McNamara briefing the press on Vietnam at the Pentagon in 1965.

technologyreview.com - May 31st, 2013 - Kenneth Cukier and Viktor Mayer-Schönberger

Big data is poised to transform society, from how we diagnose illness to how we educate children, even making it possible for a car to drive itself. Information is emerging as a new economic input, a vital resource. Companies, governments, and even individuals will be measuring and optimizing everything possible.

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To stop MERS, longer quarantines may be necessary

Sun, 2013-06-02 23:11 — Maeryn Obley

usatoday.com - May 29th, 2013 - Maria Cheng

A detailed look at two cases of a deadly new respiratory virus called MERS suggests people who have the disease should be isolated for at least 12 days to avoid spreading it, doctors reported Wednesday.

The new germ, a respiratory infection, was first seen in the Middle East and so far has sickened more than 40 people worldwide, killing about half of them.

In the report published online in the journal Lancet, French scientists said the first patient visited Dubai.

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A Majority on Earth Will Soon Face Severe, Self-Inflicted Water Shortage: Scientists

Tue, 2013-05-28 16:03 — Kathy Gilbeaux

submitted by Samuel Bendett

(SEE LINKS TO CONFERENCE AND DECLARATION BELOW)

homelandsecuritynewswire.com - May 28, 2013

A conference of 500 leading water scientists from around the world, held last week in Bonn, issued a stark warning that, without major reforms, “in the short span of one or two generations, the majority of the nine billion people on Earth will be living under the handicap of severe pressure on fresh water, an absolutely essential natural resource for which there is no substitute. This handicap will be self-inflicted and is, we believe, entirely avoidable.”

The scientists pointed to chronic underlying problems led by mismanagement, and offered a prescription to policy makers in a 1,000-word declaration issued at the end of a 4-day meeting in Bonn, Germany. The conference, Water in the Anthropocene, was organized by the Global Water System Project (GWSP).

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Peak Phosphorus

Sun, 2013-05-26 17:25 — Maeryn Obley

A dead agricultural field.

Image: A dead agricultural field.

foreignpolicy.com - April 20th, 2010 - James Elser and Stuart White

From Kansas to China's Sichuan province, farmers treat their fields with phosphorus-rich fertilizer to increase the yield of their crops. What happens next, however, receives relatively little attention. Large amounts of this resource are lost from farm fields, through soil erosion and runoff, and down swirling toilets, through our urine and feces. Although seemingly mundane, this process cannot continue indefinitely.

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