Oluwaloni Adeniran
9/20/12
Notes-9/19/12
A Cinematic History of Climate Science and War – by Joshua Wolfe
Guest Speaker: Joshua Wolfe- expert on climate, http://climatescience.tv/, co-wrote
“Climate Change: Picturing the Science”.
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Wants to look at the history of climate science through film.
Looking at the history through film is different.
More through the eyes of scientists at that time.
The history of modern climate science is woven into the history of war.
Fonteranius: First to talk about global warming the way we understand it today.
Mathematically and scientifically. He said that greenhouse gases would go into the
atmosphere and raise temperatures.
Guy Stewart Callendar 1938:
After WWII his idea and theory was picked up. The
motivation for this was D-day invasion of Normandy. Terrible weather- wait till weather
cleared and attacked. Three meteorologists concurred without satellite data. Weather
and climate, we were right so we won the war.
Tactical Weather: Movie after Korean War. What climate and weather can do to affect
war. Sixty nations (International Geophysical Year) IGY1 to study weather and
understand climate. IGY heroic attempt to understand the planet.
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Science was different back then in the 1960’s.
Science was on the cover of Time magazine even when Kennedy beat Nixon.
Movie - importance of oceanography with respect to weather and climate.
JFK - “research necessary to understand factor.”
Ongoing effort to understand oceans.
(Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory) GFDL US weather bureau- early
climate model. Wanted to use weather for war.
A lot of resources (funding) to learn to control weather.
Early climate science, only ground station models.
Weather satellite: 1965 film on satellite technology from NOAA. See planet and
inaccurate weather models.
 Cloud patterns tell about weather.
 Troposphere where weather occurs.
The 1957-1958 International Geophysical Year (IGY) was an international effort to
coordinate the collection of geophysical data from around the world. It marked the
beginning of a new era of scientific discovery at a time when many innovative
technologies were appearing. The IGY still lives today in many NOAA programs,
databases, and participation in international collaborations. Not only does 2007 mark
NOAA's 200th anniversary, it is also the 50th anniversary of the IGY.
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Oluwaloni Adeniran
9/20/12
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Notes-9/19/12
Changes in weather, how masses of cloud systems move. Cloud masses and
patterns.
Severe weather reported after pictures of cloud formations. Use this to forecast
and read weather.
Infrared Satellite 1- get orbital information. T1R0S1 ground stations received
data.
Satellites take pictures at predetermined times.
Tapes used to take pictures, erase to reuse and take pictures again.
One interesting thing, HPPC at CUNY CCNY compared to computers used to
interpret cloud data.
Looking back at narrative on history of climate science.
Bell Labs 1920’s – 1970’s hired Frank Capra – great at propaganda films starring
Dr. Fred Baxter. Telephone system, one of the great research institutions.
Mike McKraken: first climate model to see if it would work.
Idea1: melt the ice caps to get at natural resources.
Idea2: controlled explosions to enlarge Panama Canal.
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“We don’t know how we’re affecting the environment.” Release of GHG melt
polar ice caps because of increased temperatures.
Dr. Frank Baxter – “ without water, earth would just be a rock.”
Edward Tellar2: and other neoconservative scientists, peaceful atomic bombs. Two
groups of scientists came out of the Manhattan Project. Liberals who said, “Wow we can
do so much more with nuclear weapons.” Conservatives who said, “This is scary we
should leave this alone.”
James E. Hansen 1983: Greenhouse effect to change climate and day to day weather
because GHG trap in heat and raise temperatures. By 1990 see 0.1ºC temperature rise.
1983 is the first (geographic information systems)GIS model put out. 1988 ran scenarios of
if we increase our emissions, if we continue emissions at the same rate, and if we stopped
emissions of GHG.
Robert Revel 1985: The problem has a solution which involves energy and economics.
Policy must go into it.
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Edward Teller was a Hungarian-American nuclear physicist, known colloquially as "the father of
the hydrogen bomb"
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Oluwaloni Adeniran
9/20/12
Notes-9/19/12
The Keeling Curve: showed that GHG stays in the atmosphere and don’t go into the
oceans, trees or other places.
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Government and industry must invest for alternative fuels. Nuclear reaction for
energy instead of burning gas.
Developing other countries will lead to having both demanding more energy.
Carl Edward Sagan1985: testifying that he agrees. “Wouldn’t global warming help
colder climates?” “Scientists more qualified to answer the question. Inundation of
coastal cities would not be good for people living on the coasts.”
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Answers being given in the 1980’s are the same as now. The 1960’s were
different.
John Sinunu: 1988 was an election year. George H.W. Bush was asked what he would
do about the greenhouse effect. The thought was that government would take a stronger
stance on the greenhouse effect. George H.W. Bush’s quote is, “Those who haven’t seen
anything about the greenhouse effect don’t know about the Whitehouse effect; We will
do something.”
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Example: Mike Mann- Behind the Hockey Stick. Deniers sneak in with
information that you as a journalist cannot background check.
Fresh Prince of Bel Air: first episode, Hillary talks about global warming and
deforestation, and then a joke is made.
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Oluwaloni Adeniran
9/20/12
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Notes-9/19/12
Hold a talk with cameras so that magazines can put their spin on things for the
movement.
Global warming rap 1992 – should we act now to stop global warming?
Suggested by classmates – “I'm A Climate Scientist - Extended Version - (CLEAN)3”
– song from youtube.
Bill Clinton: Science of climate science. Temperatures will rise and change global
climate. “It is a grave mistake to bury our heads in the sand thinking the problem will go
away.”
George W. Bush: “We don’t know the solution for global warming. We want to know
more about it. It’s easy to find a solution if we know more about it.”
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“Climate Change: Picturing the Science” by Gavin Shmidt, Joshua Wolfe, and
Jeffrey D. Sachs came out right after the movie, “Inconvenient Truth” and the
discussions on the topic became better. They were able to have intelligent
conversation.
The television show Law & Order on climate change: A global warming
scientist was falsifying data because he feared deniers using any flaw in his
data against him.
Fractured Decision: Perry and Penn, from Penn and Teller, don’t believe in global
warming or climate science.
John Huntsman: He had a campaign meltdown. He said he believes in evolution and
trusts scientists on global warming. The Republicans counted this against him.
Class Discussion:
Change in people’s attitudes about climate science from believing scientists to
skeptics.
How should layman care about Greenland melting? What happens in the Arctic
affects the entire planet. Rising sea level will happen each year a tenth of a meter. The
melting in Greenland is a warning bell for future problems.
China will pay to be in the Arctic Council and will get rare earth resources for cell
phones and military applications.
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7wdKg8rYL0&feature=youtu.be
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