| The ruckus over the alleged editing of the climate | | | | emissions are contributing to global warming, but |
| warming data at the University of East Anglia in | | | | the significance of that contribution is, for me, still |
| the UK is another episode in the continuing saga | | | | open to question. |
| of academic dishonesty that has beset scientific | | | | The specific data which has been challenged |
| research so publicly in the last decade. We have | | | | relates to atmospheric temperature records. Just |
| seen cases of fixed clinical trials of drugs, | | | | recently, we have heard that the last decade has |
| manipulation of data and false reporting in the | | | | been the warmest since records began 150 years |
| MMR vaccine (measles, mumps, rubella triple | | | | ago. Well, current understanding is that the earth |
| vaccine) scandal (which led to the striking-off of a | | | | is some 4,500 million years old, so a time span of |
| doctor in England) and numerous other examples | | | | 150 years is relatively speaking, not even a gnat's |
| of scientific fraud. | | | | whisker. |
| It is by no means a new phenomenon - cases go | | | | I appreciate that the climate may well be |
| back many years. Piltdown Man, for example, was | | | | warming, and that there are significant dangers to |
| a notorious tale of scientific duplicity. This | | | | countries and to human population in countries |
| originated in 1912 and was not exposed as a | | | | such as Bangladesh and the Maldive Islands, and |
| forgery until 1953. A skull reportedly discovered in | | | | even the East Coast of England. It does concern |
| 1912 in a gravel pit was purported at the time to | | | | me though that we may well be misusing our |
| be evidential of the 'missing link' between Man and | | | | resources in bringing industry and society into line |
| Apes. Whilst some people might have built | | | | on carbon emissions, when those resources could |
| reputations and careers based on the discovery, | | | | better be used in building defences (in the |
| there was arguably little real harm done by the | | | | broadest possible sense) against planetary climate |
| forgery. | | | | change which may well be outside human cause |
| However, in the case of the MMR scandal, some | | | | or control. |
| children may have suffered as a result of not | | | | In the case of Piltdown Man, for example, there |
| being appropriately vaccinated on the basis of the | | | | were several eminent detractors from the |
| evidence presented by the researcher - at the | | | | hypothesis of the missing link, but their voices |
| time it caused a lot of worry for many parents | | | | were drowned in the groundswell of excitement |
| who avoided the triple vaccine for their children | | | | surrounding the topic. I do hope that the same is |
| because of the alleged link (proven to be | | | | not happening over climate change, with dissenting |
| completely false) with autism. | | | | voices being silenced and the whole peer-review |
| Now, on a massive scale, we have the potential | | | | process under a cloud. Additionally, the reported |
| for a similar scandal. With more than 170 nations | | | | inability of climate-change dissenters to get |
| attending the International Climate Change | | | | published in the leading scientific journals is a cause |
| Conference in Copenhagen there is a huge | | | | for serious concern. Rigorous research and robust, |
| bandwagon in motion and vested interests (on | | | | honest peer-review are essential components in |
| both sides of the argument) almost on a | | | | the progress of science (and mankind) - without |
| planetary scale. | | | | them we are really in trouble. |
| For me, the case for man-made global warming is | | | | We need solid, objective research, and quickly, to |
| not yet proven (I do have some background in | | | | determine the scientific significance of man-made |
| physics and oceanography). Certainly, there is | | | | carbon emissions in relation to the natural |
| evidence to suggest that industrial and societal | | | | background climate change. |