Here is a man - Gabriel, who states in a public forum that teachers are brainwashing students about global warming, and all he can do to back up his hyperbolic statement is cite some more newspaper stories.
A person who cares about the truth and authenticity regarding scientific facts does not quote from political articles from newspapers, and make wild claims in public forums. It is common knowledge that newspapers distort and exaggerate material to stir up a controversy. Anybody can quote newspaper stories and OpEds to spread any kind of conspiracy. The claim made on Goanet was that there were no peer-reviewed scientific papers about receding glaciers in the Himalayas - a claim that is demonstrably false. A simple search through the scientific literature can reveal that there are numerous research papers providing evidence for the retreat of Himalayan glaciers. What is astonishing, however, is that after being proved wrong, instead of admitting his mistake, Gabriel is now making additional misleading insinuations. They are: 1. That the paper I cited from the Annals of Glaciology may not be a scientific paper because IPCC did not cite it. 2. That IPCC report relies only on "tall" claims from the World Wildlife Fund report. 2. That the measurements of the glaciers in the paper that I had cited may not have been made properly by the scientists, as if the world's foremost climatologists and the experts who peer-reviewed their papers are not as bright and knowledgeable as Gabriel, having not studied geology at Dhempe College. Any sensible person can easily find out the fact that all three of the above claims are equally bogus by simply reading the description of the peer-reviewed scientific journal Annals of Glaciology, the IPCC report and all the other papers on retreat of Himalayan glaciers ( I myself have been able to track down at least 10 papers before 2007). Here are the three studies on Himalayan glaciers besides the one mentioned in World Wildlife Fund report that IPCC has cited: 1. Hasnain, S.I., 2002: Himalayan glaciers meltdown: impacts on South Asian Rivers. FRIEND 2002-Regional Hydrology: Bridging the Gap between Research and Practice, H.A.J. van Lanen and S. Demuth, Eds., IAHS Publications, Wallingford, No. 274, 417-423. 2. Shrestha,A.B., 2004: Climate change in Nepal and its impact on Himalayan glaciers. Presented European Climate Forum Symposium on “Key vulnerable regions and climate change: Identifying thresholds for impacts and adaptation in relation to Article 2 of the UNFCCC”, Beijing. 3. Pu, J.C., T.D.Yao, N.L.Wang, Z. Su andY.P. Shen, 2004: Fluctuations of the glaciers on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau during the past century. Journal of Glaciology and Geocryology, 26, 517-522. Here are the other papers on retreat of Himalayan glaciers that I could easily find: 1. Fujita K, Nakawo M, Fujii Y, Paudya lP., 1997, Changes in glaciers in Hidden Valley, MukutHimal, Nepal Himalayas, from 1974 to 1994. Journal of Glaciology, 43(145), 583-588. 2. Fujita K, Takeuchi N, SekoK., 1998, Glaciological observations of YalaGlacier in LangtangValley, Nepal Himalayas, 1994 and 1996. Bulletin of Glacier Research, 16, 75-81. 3. Fujita K, KadotaT, RanaB, Kayastha RB, AgetaY., 2001, Shrinkage of Glacier AX010 in Shorongregion, Nepal Himalayas in the 1990s. Bulletin of Glaciological Research, 18, 51-54. 4. Kulkarni, A.V., and 6 others, 2007, Glacial retreat in Himalaya using Indian Remote Sensing satellite, Current Science, 92(1), 69-74. 5. Kulkarni, A.V., B.P. Rathore, S. Mahajanand P. Mathur, 2005, Alarming retreat of Parbatiglacier, Beas basin, Himachal Pradesh, Current Science, 88(11), 1844-1850. 6. Liu, S., and 7 others, 2006a, Glacier retreat as a result of climate warming and increased precipitation in the Tarimriver basin, northwest China, Annals of Glaciology, 43, 91-96 7. Sharma, K.P., C.J. Vorosmarty, B. Moore III, 2000, Sensitivity of the Himalayan hydrology to land-use and climatic changes, Climatic Change 47, no. 1-2, 117-139. 8. Su, Zh., and Y. Shi, 2000, Response of monsoonal temperate glaciers in China to global warming since the Little Ice Age, Journal of Glaciology and Geocryology, 22(3), 223-229. 9. Yamada, T., & Motoyama, H. (1988). Contribution of glacier meltwater to runoff in glacierized watersheds in the Langtang Valley, Nepal Himalayas. Bulletin of Glacier Research, 6, 65–74. 10. Ye, Q., T. Yao and R. Naruse, 2008, Glacier and lake variations in the Mapam Yumcobasin, western Himalaya of the Tibetan Plateau, from 1974-2003 using remote-sensing and GIS technologies, Journal of Glaciology, 54 (188), 933-935. A responsible rational person would have recognized the fact that the statement in the IPCC report is an error in precisely and accurately reporting the finding from a study conducted by the International Commission for Snow and Ice Hydrology in 1999. This error does not invalidate the massive amount of other evidence for global warming and its anthropogenic nature. As a geology graduate the burden is on Gabriel to cite genuine peer-reviewed scientific articles to back up his denials and other wild claims, such as brainwashing of students by teachers. Otherwise, it would be clear to me that he is just another global warming denier motivated by politics, ideology or some other bias. He is clearly not just a human cause denier because evidently he does not believe that Himalayan glaciers are melting, relying only on newspaper stories. For glaciers to melt all we need is rising temperatures, irrespective of whether they are caused by artificial or natural means. Cheers, Santosh --- On Sun, 1/31/10, Gabriel de Figueiredo <[email protected]> wrote: > > Funny world we live in. > > Hyperbolic quotes? If the article "Glacier variations and > climate change in the central Himalaya over the past few > decades" was indeed a scientifc paper, why was it not > included in the IPCC report, rather than the tall claims > made by the WWF? > > Glaciers melt in the warm seasons (thus providing water > flows for major river systems) and grow in winter. So > measurements must be taken at the same time every year, with > averages taken to iron out discrepancies due to vagaries of > nature. > > Anyhow, read today's "Britain protests over false melting > glacier claims" at > http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/climate-change/britain-protests-over-false-melting-glacier-claims-1885157.html > > Quote: > Britain has officially expressed its concern to the UN's > Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) about lax > scientific procedures used by the body which supplies the > world with the facts about global warming. > > Evidence has emerged the IPCC made exaggerated claims in > its last report in 2007 about the melting of Himalayan > glaciers by 2035, the destruction of the Amazon rainforest, > and increased frequency of violent storms. The panel also > used research that had not been peer-reviewed. That has > prompted the British Government to communicate formally its > disquiet to the IPCC and its chairman, Dr Rajendra Pachauri. > > Unquote > > Also, "Glacier Melt Rate to Be Re-Examined By UN Panel > (Update2) " at > http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601091&sid=a.Y7tFNVis00 > > Check also > http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/7111356/Alan-Titchmarsh-Climate-scientists-should-stick-to-the-facts-and-not-use-guesswork.html > Quote: > We live on a volatile planet. The very term 'climate > change' is tautological in that that is what climate does > – change. It would be a great story indeed if there was no > shift in the climate at all. > But as anybody who's lived for more than 50 years knows, > things seldom carry on happening at the same rate for very > long. > > If you look back, there have been times in the planet's > distant past – long before any human intervention – > during which it has been very warm indeed. But nowadays, if > you say this kind of thing, you're immediately branded as a > climate change denier, which I find frustrating, > particularly when it comes from scientists, who should be > prepared to put all the facts on the table. > Unquote > > Although I graduated from Dhempe College in Panjim majoring > in Geology (under Prof Frank B Antao) way back in 1977, I > haven't practiced the subject since graduation as I moved > into the technological world of Computer Science immediately > after. This, however, does not deter me from questioning the > science (or non-science) of climatology. > > Gabriel. >
