Masood Mortazavi's Weblog

Saturday February 03, 2007

[ Science ] IPCC

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change was set up by WMO and UNEP to "assess scientific, technical and socio- economic information relevant for the understanding of climate change, its potential impacts and options for adaptation and mitigation." The fourth assessment of the IPCC will be released under Climate Change 2007. You can also consult IPCC's February 2, 2007 Paris conference webcast for a preview.

These assessment reports do not come out haphazardly. The third assessment was called Climate Change 2001. So, 6 years of further work and data has gone into the new assessment.

David Adam of The Guardian reports from Paris, summarizing some of the highlights of the recent report releases by IPCC's Working Group I, focused on "Physical Science Basis" of climate change.

Average temperatures could increase by as much as 6.4C by the end of the century if emissions continue to rise, with a rise of 4C most likely, according to the final report of an expert panel set up by the UN to study the problem. The forecast is higher than previous estimates, because scientists have discovered that Earth's land and oceans are becoming less able to absorb carbon dioxide.

You can also listen to Guardian's interview with its reporter, Mr. Adam.

The working group has made available The IPCC Working Group I Fourth Assessment Report Summary for Policymakers (SPM). Page 15 of the report contains green house gas concentration measures based on examination of ice-core going back to 10,000 years.

2007-02-03 15:52:59.0 -- ; Permalink ; Trackback.
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Friday January 19, 2007

[ Media ] How Things Change

Things have changed in America since 28 years ago when I first arrived here as a very young teenager.

[By way of a preamble, feel free to read my note on the taboo against political discourse.]

In these days, even a Fresh Air (purportedly, the NPR art review program) turns into an odd farce when it attempts to sandwich ugly lies and political propaganda on the Middle East spoken by self-professed PR men in a delicious mix of music and film reviews --- a perfect concoction mixed on its way to co-opt the innocent and brain-wash the tired driving masses haplessly listening to prime time radio shows in hope of a bit of culture!

Perhaps, we are witnessing the era of the classy, well-oiled totalitarianism gone weary.

However, I will have to hold my judgement until a Terry Gross or some other anchor of a nationally distributed and widely-consumed program interviews people like Ali Abunimah on prime-time to reach millions.

In the meantime, the choice of the driver with an FM radio is a very personal one -- either submission to well-placed prime-time propaganda oozing with jazz and propagated, somewhat ironically, as some Fresh Air (e.g. the Jan. 18 program) or an effortful patience to seek and read alternative perspectives (e.g. this review of the response to president Carter's recent book or this direct translation of a sentence.)

It is not a great choice and many of us do not even have the patience to care or the luxury to make it ... So, good night, and I'll pray for a better day!

2007-01-19 23:37:52.0 -- ; Permalink ; Trackback.
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