Octopus Overlords

The rapid pace of global climate change is almost certainly driven by human activity, like burning fossil fuels, according to a U.S. government report that contradicts assertions by President Donald Trump and members of his administration.

“For the warming over the last century, there is no convincing alternative explanation supported by the extent of the observational evidence,” said the report by a group of more than 50 U.S. government scientists released on Friday.

The report, which is required by Congress every four years, was written by scientists from government bodies such as the Environmental Protection Agency and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

It reinforces the conclusions drawn by an overwhelming majority of scientists around the world in recent years that emissions from burning fossil fuels are the primary driver of global warming, leading to sea level rise, flooding, droughts, and more frequent powerful storms.

Trump has repeatedly called climate change a hoax, and in June announced that he would withdraw the United States from a global pact to combat it - calling the deal’s demands for emissions cuts too costly for the U.S. economy.

War-torn Syria is the only other country outside the pact.

Researchers from the University of Cambridge and Mycorrhizal Systems Ltd (MSL) have confirmed that a black truffle has been successfully cultivated in the UK for the first time: the farthest north that the species has ever been found.
...
After nine years of waiting, the truffle was harvested in March 2017 by a trained dog named Bella. The aromatic fungus was growing within the root system of a Mediterranean oak tree that had been treated to encourage truffle production. Further microscopic and genetic analysis confirmed that Bella’s find was indeed a Périgord black truffle (Tuber melanosporum).

The black truffle is one of the most expensive delicacies in the world, worth as much as £1,700 per kilogram. Black truffles are prized for their intense flavour and aroma, but they are difficult and time-consuming to grow and harvest, and are normally confined to regions with a Mediterranean climate. In addition, their Mediterranean habitat has been affected by drought due to long-term climate change, and yields are falling while the global demand continues to rise.
...
The researchers have attributed the fact that black truffles are able to grow so far outside their native Mediterranean habitat to climate change. “Different species respond to climate change on different scales and at different rates, and you often get an ecological mismatch,” said Büntgen. “For instance, insects can move quickly, while the vegetation they depend on may not. It’s possible that truffles are one of these fast-shifting species.”
...
The first harvested truffle, which weighed 16 grams, has been preserved for posterity, but in future, the truffles will be distributed to restaurants in the UK.

French President Emmanuel Macron said Wednesday that France would cover the amount the U.S. contributed for climate science research to a United Nations panel after President Trump signaled America would exit the Paris climate change pact.

“They will not miss a single euro,” Macron said, according to Reuters, referring to the U.N.'s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

The U.S. has given the IPCC about 2 million euros a year in the past.
...
Earlier this month, an official in Macron's cabinet said Trump is "for the time being" not invited to the climate change summit scheduled to be held next month in France.

tjg_marantz wrote: Fri Dec 08, 2017 5:34 pm Oof. This is hard to watch.

https://news.nationalgeographic.com/201 ... hange-spd/

Eighteen climate scientists from the U.S. and elsewhere hit the jackpot Monday as French President Emmanuel Macron awarded them millions of euros in grants to relocate to France for the rest of Donald Trump's presidential term.

The "Make Our Planet Great Again" grants — a nod to Trump's "Make America Great Again" campaign slogan — are part of Macron's efforts to counter Trump on the climate change front. Macron announced a contest for the projects in June, hours after Trump declared he would withdraw the U.S. from the Paris climate accord.

More than 5,000 people from about 100 countries expressed interest in the grants. A majority of the applicants — and 13 of the 18 winners — were U.S.-based researchers.

Macron's appeal "gave me such a psychological boost, to have that kind of support, to have the head of state saying I value what you do," said winner Camille Parmesan, of the University of Texas at Austin. She will be working at an experimental ecology station in the Pyrenees on how human-made climate change is affecting wildlife.

In an interview with The Associated Press, Parmesan described funding challenges for climate science in the U.S. and a feeling that "you are having to hide what you do."

Kraken wrote: Wed Dec 13, 2017 3:33 am "Camille Parmesan" sounds suspiciously French-Italian anyway.

em2nought wrote: Thu Dec 14, 2017 2:56 am The global warming has reached a chilly 40 degrees here below Orlando tonight.

Alefroth wrote: Thu Dec 14, 2017 2:31 pm

em2nought wrote: Thu Dec 14, 2017 2:56 am The global warming has reached a chilly 40 degrees here below Orlando tonight.

How far below? Are we talking Morlock level?

Alefroth wrote: Thu Dec 14, 2017 2:31 pm

em2nought wrote: Thu Dec 14, 2017 2:56 am The global warming has reached a chilly 40 degrees here below Orlando tonight.

How far below? Are we talking Morlock level?

Paingod wrote:One imagines the security agencies are just in "Smile and Nod" mode until we can get a real president back.

Republican, Democrat - I don't care as long as they acknowledge scientific evidence as reality and stop ripping apart the US as a global leader.

Pyperkub wrote: Mon Dec 18, 2017 6:23 pmI'm pretty sure we weren't just "a" global leader, but rather "the" global leader.

Zaxxon wrote:

Pyperkub wrote: Mon Dec 18, 2017 6:23 pmI'm pretty sure we weren't just "a" global leader, but rather "the" global leader.

On the bright side, we've fallen "only" to "a" global embarrassment, rather than "the" global embarrassment. So far.

Rip wrote: Thu Dec 28, 2017 9:09 pm Meh.

If the liberals can scream about climate change every time there is a storm or a warm period why shouldn't he flip it?

Rip wrote: Thu Dec 28, 2017 9:09 pm Meh.

If the liberals can scream about climate change every time there is a storm or a warm period why shouldn't he flip it?

GreenGoo wrote: Thu Dec 28, 2017 9:26 pm And that's just one way he has diminished the US's standing in every aspect, not just climate change.

em2nought wrote:Most of us didn't ask for such a big part on the world's stage in the first place.

em2nought wrote: Thu Dec 28, 2017 11:48 pm

GreenGoo wrote: Thu Dec 28, 2017 9:26 pm And that's just one way he has diminished the US's standing in every aspect, not just climate change.

Most of us didn't ask for such a big part on the world's stage in the first place. Let the heir apparent, China, take over. Then we'll see how much the rest of the world likes that.

GreenGoo wrote: Fri Dec 29, 2017 1:03 am

em2nought wrote: Thu Dec 28, 2017 11:48 pm

GreenGoo wrote: Thu Dec 28, 2017 9:26 pm And that's just one way he has diminished the US's standing in every aspect, not just climate change.

Most of us didn't ask for such a big part on the world's stage in the first place. Let the heir apparent, China, take over. Then we'll see how much the rest of the world likes that.

Do you remember why the US took a leading role in world geopolitics or even when it occurred? Have those reasons become less important as time goes on? Why would you willingly want your country to become diminished? Why do you hate America?

GreenGoo wrote: Thu Jan 04, 2018 9:07 pm