Tuesday, December 20, 2016

What does a Climate Scientist say to climate scientists freaking out over the impending Trump Administration?

Dr. Judith Curry runs the school of Earth Sciences at Georgia Tech, and is a peer-reviewed climate scientist.  She is also a "like warmer" - she believes that the climate has been warming (as do I) and that mankind is somewhat responsible (as do I).  However, she does not see things as a crisis, and has repeatedly spoken (including before Congress) on the large uncertainties in climate science.  Her paper The Uncertainty Monster is required reading for anyone interested in the state of the science.

So what does she say to the scientists who are freaking out over Donald Trump?
Get over it, your side lost.  Changes of Presidential administrations occur every 4 or 8 years, often with changes in political parties.
Get busy and shore up your scientific arguments; I suspect that argument from consensus won’t sway many minds in the Trump administration.
Overt activism and climate policy advocacy by climate scientists will not help your ’cause’; leave such advocacy to the environmental groups.
Behave like a scientist, and don’t build elaborate conspiracy theories based on vague conflicting signals from the Trump administration.  Stop embarrassing yourselves; wait for the evidence.
Be flexible; if funding priorities change, and you desire federal research funding, work on different problems.  The days of needing to sell all research in terms of AGW are arguably over.
'Tis a consummation devoutly to be hoped, that right there.

1 comment:

Ted said...

So. In other words /-- the party is over. The adults are back in charge. They no longer believe us when we say " ZMG!!!!! the sky is falling!!!!! ". .... and they are no longer willing to spend zillions they don't have based on a theory that we can't actually demonstrate ???

...... all because a number of us were caught with our hands in the cookie jar a few too many times ??