climate december 2011

The COP-17 Durban Edition

US student led away by security after heckling the official US Negotiator

QUOTES

I am speaking on behalf of the United States of America because my negotiators cannot.  

... A Borah (Middlebury College) interrupting US Negotiator on 8 Dec to wide applause from the crowd

Todd D. Stern, the Obama administration's special envoy was put on the defensive by a narrative developing here that the United States opposed any further action to address global climate disruption until after 2020.

... J Broder in the New York Times, 8 Dec 2011 

We are going backwards here.

... Bobby Peek, Friends of the Earth, Durban 7 Dec 2011

Greenpeace, WWF, Oxfam, and the International Trades Union Congress have adopted a joint position demanding that the U.S. stand aside and let those who are willing to move ahead in saving lives, habitats and economies -- in agreeing to a climate saving deal.  Here in Durban, the U.S. is once again trying to kill off the global climate talks by eviscerating the midsummit draft agreement.  On Saturday, the U.S. axed a whole section of the draft agreement that would have offered real protection to those who are being hardest and fastest hit by global warming.  During the talks the U.S. is fond of insisting that they want to be involved, but at the same time makes derailing demands and announces commitments that barely survive the plane trip home.

... Kumi Naidoo, Greenpeace International, 7 Dec 2011

MORE TAKES 

B McKibben the most important news story DK 12 Dec 11
M Alt in the wake of Durban HP 10 Dec 2011
Leahy looking for a climate champion TV 7 Dec 2011
M Moore the winter of our occupation CD 7 Dec 2011
K Naidoo US obstructionism is hurting climate HP 7 Dec
B Ki-moon l'avenir de la planète est en jeu NObs 6 Dec
D Roberts the brutal logic of climate change Grist 5 Dec 
C Hedges where were you? TD 5 Dec 2011
T Friedman this is a big deal NYT 3 Dec 2011
J Gooddell the big lie in the Durban talks RS 1 Dec 11
D Tutu climate justice PS 30 Nov 2011

EVENTS & NEWS

Durban beschliesst neuen Klimavertrag 12 Dec 2011
Durban wraps up with modest accomplishments 11 Dec
die klimaretter haben sich verrannt 11 Dec 2011
Durban on the edge 10 Dec 2011
marathon continues, negotiators don't give up 10 Dec 2011
climate conference in chaos 10 Dec 2011
new deal tabled at talks after rebellion 9 Dec 2011
father of climate change: 2C limit is not enough 8 Dec 2011
US college student shames US delegation in Durban 8 Dec 11
US called 'immoral' at UN Climate Conference 7 Dec 2011
J  Inhofe (R) claims Durban talks are being ignored 7 Dec 11
Durban threatens to fail because of money 7 Dec 2011
J Huntsman (R): science 'not enough' for US action 6 Dec 11
thousands protest in Durban for climate justice 3 Dec 11
Holland: wohnen in Ebbe- & Flut-Haeusern 1 Dec 2011
US: "decisions at Durban mean nothing" 1 Dec 2011
US citizens subject to indefinite military detention 1Dec
EU proposes a new Green Fund 30 Nov 2011
the climate Trojan horse to abolish capitalism 27 Nov 11
EU wants a new climate deal for 2015 29 Nov 2011

DURBAN-RELATED FEATURES

women's rights leaders accept Nobel Peace Prize 11 Dec
China's path to climate-friendly superpower  7 Dec 11
T Dickinson the GOP's crackpot agenda 7 Dec 2011
German pirates party votes for basic income 3 Dec 2011
Canada may miss $ 7 bill carbon bill by exiting Kyoto 2 Dec
Bhutan has gross happiness product; 40.9%  are happy 2 Dec
climate change threatens food security NObs 1 Dec 11 
F Pearce the triumph of king coal e360 31 Oct 11

OTHER CLIMATE EVENTS

Chile glacier melts at record speed 8 Dec 2011
French glaciers have lost quarter of area in 40 yrs 6 Dec
Wale profitieren von neuer Waerme in Arktis 2 Dec 11
German autobahn to be covered with public park 30 Nov
Ocean acidification kills Northwest oysters 21 Nov

FINDINGS

three-quarters of climate change is man-made Nature

NEOLOGISM

Klimagerechtigkeit / justice climatique / climate justice

bedingungsloses Grundeinkommen  /
renta básica universal /
renda básica de cidadania /
allocation universelle /
basic income guarantee /

TOTALLY UNRELATED SLUSH

Mika explains Avatar youtube

climate november 2011

--text posts are at the blisteredorb--

Delhi slum dwellers wait for hours in line at privately owned water tap (Nat Geo)

EVENTS

Thailand PMs want to abandon capital 15 Nov 2011
UK false spring: plants fooled into flowering 12 Nov 2011
US delays Keystone XL pipeline decision 11 Nov 2011
Alaska coast battered by hurricane 10 Nov 2011
Alaska coast prepares for storm surge 9 Nov 2011
Thailand flood deaths top 500 6 Nov 2011
Thailand flood cripples hard-drive suppliers 6 Nov 2011
New England record damage from snow storm 4 Nov 2011
World: biggest jump ever in GHG emissions 4 Nov 2011
... 2010 GHG increase six percent over 2009
... higher than worst case scenario
France oysters dying 4 Nov 2011
New England schools use up snow days pre winter 2 Nov
Cambodia floods affect over 1 million 2 Nov
New York record pre-Halloween snow storm 30 Oct 11
Thai gov decides to rip up Bangkok's streets 28 Oct 2011
Italy: flash floods, mudslides in Tuscany 27 Oct 2011
Thai floods reach northern Bangkok 24 Oct 2011
Thai government decides to flood Bangkok 20 Oct 11
Thailand: record flood in Bangkok 16 Oct 2011
Texas wildfires destroy state park 12 Oct 2011
SE Asia floods kill hundreds 10 Oct 2011

TRENDS

why is it so hard to stop climate change? 9 Nov 2011
climate health costs projected to be enormous 7 Nov 2011
looming water scarcity Spiegel 3 Nov 2011
breaking a long silence on population control 31 Oct 2011
world at 7 billion: Q&A with Ban Ki-Moon Time 26 Oct 11
Chinese researchers see dramatic glacier loss Spiegel 25 Oct
'the water is rising tour' sinking island nations Kos 25 Oct 
economic protests sweep the Globe 15 Oct 2011
rising temps devastate forests worldwide 1 Oct 2011
... changing forests NYT interactive 30 Sep 2011

ATTRIBUTION, PRE COP-17

panel charts extreme weather in warming world 18 Nov
science panel: get ready for extreme weather 18 Nov 2011
global warming toll on extreme weather Time 18 Nov 11
N. Klein "capitalism vs. the climate" Nation 9 Nov 2011

COMMENTED ON BLISTERED ORB

B. Walsh "the victim of overpopulation" Time 26 Oct 11
OECD social justice "bottom of the heap" NYT 29 Oct 2011

COP-17 BLOG

The road to Durban The Guardian since Nov 2011

CIVIL EVOLUTION

J Sachs "the new progressive movement" NYT 13 Nov 2011
M Taibbi  "learning to love the OWS protests" RS 11 Nov 11
W Myers "social psychosis & sanity" CD 10 Nov 2011
D Suzuki "occupy--for our grandchildren" CD 10 Nov 2011
J Stiglitz "the globalization of protest" CD 7 Nov 2011
S King "time for the wealthy to pay their fair share" TP 7 Nov
J Habermas scolds predatory capitalism Spiegel 7 Nov 2011
P Krugman "here comes the sun" NYT 6 Nov 2011
P Krugman "oligarchy, American style" NYT 4 Nov 2011
S Zizek "interview with Smiley & West" NPR 3 Nov 2011
B Moyers "how Wall Street occupied America" Nation 2 Nov
S Zizek "occupy first. demands come later" Guardian 29 Oct 
K Rigg "the war against climate science unravels" HP 26 Oct 
P Krugman "Republicans, party of pollution" NYT 20 Oct 2011
C Hedges "a movement too big to fail" TruthDig 17 Oct 2011
J Nocera "this time it really is different" NYT 10 Oct 2011
M Morford "how to make a creationist weep" SF 21 Sep 11
D Korten "the path to real prosperity" Yes 8 Sep 2011
J Rifkin "how the 99% use lateral power" HP 8 Nov 2011
D Revkin "condom, electricity & climate divides" NYT 2 Nov
J Atcheson "it's the 1% doctrine, stupid" CD 31 Oct 2011
R. Constanza "needed: the solution generations" CD 28 Oct
R Nader "occupy Wall Street on the move" CD27 Oct 2011
M Morford "seashells of fun and horror" SF 26 Oct 2011
D Lithwick "occupy the no-spin zone" Slate 26 Oct 2011
G Lakoff "how to frame yourself: OWS" CD 19 Oct 2011
N Kristof "America's primal scream" NYT 15 Oct 2011
P Krugman "rabbit-hole economics" NYT 13 Oct 2011
T Friedman "something's happening here" NYT 11 Oct 2011
J Stiglitz "how to put America back to work" CD 8 Sep 11
T Friedman "the whole truth & nothing but" NYT 6 Sep 11
J Atcheson "Atlas Mugged" CD 2 Sep 2011

... and: UN Human Development Report 2011

MITIGATION

most efficient solar panel ever 11 Nov 2011
A Gore "history is made in Australia" 8 Nov 2011
Australia passes 'controversial' carbon tax 7 Nov 2011
regulating the rush for land 31 Oct 2011
new garbage law passed in Germany 28 Oct 2011
California poised to finalize cap-and-trade 20 Oct 2011

ADAPTATION

klimawandel wird zur katastrophalen normalitaet 6 Nov 11
will a fossil boom delay renewables? NYT debate 6 Nov 11

FINDINGS

grim future for frogs AP 16 Nov 2011
record high 2011 global CO2 emissions CDIAC 4 Nov 2011
Fukushima fallout twice as bad as official estimates 27 Oct
real after-tax income growth of 1% 1979-2007 CD 26 Oct 11
temp record analysis no room for doubt Economist 22 Oct 11
study finds no ground for skeptics' concern Guardian 20 Oct
NAFTA is starving Mexico FPiF 20 Oct 2011
GM crops promote superweeds & food insecurity 19 Oct 11
climate makes many species shrink in size HP 16 Oct 2011
climate may turn chocolate into luxury HP 3 Oct 2011
how fewer working hours can save the planet Yes 9 Sep 2011 

DISENLIGHTENMENT & DEVOLUTION

US cities cut police, switch to contractors 16 Nov 2011
Republicans oppose better school lunches 16 Nov 2011
SWAT team takes out Occupy food bank 14 Nov 2011
climate denialism: an Anglo-Saxon thing  grist 11 Nov 2011
is climate skepticism Anglo-Saxon? Guardian 11 Nov 2011
Kapitalismus in der Reichtumsfalle Zeit 11 Nov 2011
the Republican wrath of Ayn Rand CD 11 Nov 2011
questions for the Republican candidates NYT 9 Nov 2011
poverty in US now at record levels Alternet 8 Nov 2011
Greek people deprived of referendum Guardian 8 Nov 2011
Republicans filibuster infrastructure bill Kos 7 Nov 2011
how to lie about climate in one picture Kos 5 Nov 2011
the Republicans: a dangerous game Economist 5 Nov 2011
Rand Paul amendment to stop funding bike lanes  1 Nov 11
kneecapping the Environment CD 28 Oct 2011
why are bikes being targeted by Congress? CD 28 Oct 2011
Romney embraces climate denial HP 28 Oct 2011
is the EPA selling out your water? CD 26 Oct 2011
Perry slashed environ protection as gov HP 17 Oct 2011
the Evangelical rejection of reason NYT 17 Oct 2011
where did global warming go? NYT 15 Oct 2011
Perry officials doctor environmental report 14 Oct 2011 
Republicans shift power away from EPA  HP 14 Oct 2011
portrait of a climate skeptic journalist Guardian 13 Oct 11
climate skeptics are winning Independent 11 Oct 2011
Perry repeats climate skepticism HP 1 Oct 2011
NYT editorial: in the land of denial NYT 6 Sep 2011

POLL

European public opinion on climate HP 7 Oct 2011
American public opinion on climate Economist 8 Sep 2011
Americans unsure about evolution triples MSU poll  

QUOTE

"These estimates show that 2010 was by far a record year for CO2 emissions from fossil-fuel combustion and cement manufacture."

T Boden, T J Blasing, CDIAC

NEOLOGISM

food desert

context: "...there tend to be more diet-related deaths in places where 'fringe' retailers accept food stamps.  Fringe retailers ... are those shops that specialize in food high in salt, fat and sugar, plus non-food items such as fizzy drinks.  ... food stamps are supposed to protect the poor from malnutrition, not make them ill"  Cf.  The Economist "America's food deserts" print ed 29 Oct 2011

explanation: a food desert is a (usually urban) area whose (usually U.S. American) inhabitants have little access to fresh food as a consequence of predatory capitalism, whereby corporate-friendly zoning, market deregulation, and estate prices make it profitable for fringe retailers such as gas stations, franchised fry pits, and dollar stores to sell snacks -- instead of grocers to open shop or local farmers to market produce.  The corporate-driven absence of safe bicycle paths, usable buses, and subway systems immobilizes low-income residents, locking them down in housing within food deserts.  In Climate Philosophy, we can conceive of U.S. food deserts as emblematic of the market-driven global changes to come.  

ANOTHER NEOLOGISM

the solutions generation

context: "In 'empty world' times of resource abundance, competition is favored.  The great acceleration powered by abundant fossil fuels favored individualism, competition, and greed-based capitalism.  The coming 'full world' will favor cooperation and networking."  cf. R. Constanza "needed: the solution generations" Solutions 28 Oct 2011

Flashback:

the grasshopper generation

by K Andersen 2010

ANNOUNCEMENT

... sixty-one months left.

climate october 2011

U.S. Drought Monitor Oct 2011 screenshot

Uni Bremen Arctic Sea Ice 25 Sep 2011 screenshot

--text posts are at the blistered orb--

EVENTS

Thailand: century flood  Spiegel 7 Oct 2011
Cal./Nev.: winter already in the Sierra? 4 Oct 2011
Cambodia: worst flood in a decade Guardian 2 Oct 2011
Philippines: typhoon after floods BBC 1 Oct 2011
Great Britain: record-breaking heat 1 Oct 2011
India: flooding kills dozens, maroons many AP 26 Sep 2011
Somalia: famine, unspeakable violence NYT 25 Sep 2011
China: heavy flooding, mass evacuations  Xinhua 22 Sep 2011
Arctic: whales can take Northwest Passage BBC 21 Sep 2011
Japan: typhoon Roke: destruction, floods Zeit 21 Sep 2011
Pakistan: people flee from record floods Zeit 13 Sep 2011
Arctic ice at historic low AFP 11 Sep 2011
Pakistan: deadly floods, again Climate Signals 10 Sep 2011
US Northeast: 100,000 told to flee floods MSN 9 Sep 2011
Arctic: historic minimum in sea ice extent ASI Blog 9 Sep 2011
Pakistan: 200+ dead, record floods again Spiegel 9 Sep 2011
Japan: deadly typhoon strikes Zeit 4 Sep 2011

TRENDS

UK cod collapse due to overfishing Guardian 30 Sep 2011
Africa: Oxfam warns about 'land rush' BBC 22 Sep 2011
Arctic sea ice melt at record minimum Spiegel 9 Sep 2011
Meereseisflaechen so klein wie nie Univ Bremen 9 Sep 2011

ATTRIBUTION

record melt --> high pressure --> altitude cold --> ozone hole?
G Manney et al. "unprecedented Arctic ozone loss in 2011"
Nature 2 Oct 2011 10.1038/nature10556


global warming --> powersurge --> bad crops --> no food
GRAIN "food & climate: the forgotten connection"
Common Dreams 29 Sept 2011

DEVOLUTION

A map of organized climate denial NYT 4 Oct 2011
GOP vs. clean energy Switchboard 27 Sep 2011
corporate media turn blind eye to protests OS 27 Sep 2011
why Americans are in climate denial HuffPost 24 Sep 2011
House vote slaps at EPA rules 23 WSJ 23 Sep 2011
reality TV and lack of empathy AlterNet 20 Sep 2011
climate denial: is it weird enough yet? NYT 13 Sep 2011

EVOLUTION

shifting the suburban paradigm  NYT 2 Oct 2011
Peugeot Diesel/Electric hybrid 27 Sep 2011
Mercedes Smart with photovoltaic drive 23 Sep 2011
Fiat 500 Electric 22 Sep 2011

MITIGATION

Japan: $280 billion for no nukes Reuters 12 Sep 2011
Germany: bullet trains to run on wind power NYT 4 Oct 2011

FINDINGS

food prices and the Arab spring CD 28 Aug 2011
Greenland meltdown 2011 data are in RC 21 Sep 2011
unprecedented Arctic ozone loss in 2011 Nature 2 Oct 2011
climatic habitat shift in Antarctic Abyss HuffPost 11 Sep 2011
bacteria spreading in warming oceans HuffPost 9 Sep 2011

ANTI-CAPITALISM

P Krugman confronting the malefactors NYT 8 Oct 2011
D Morris it's labor vs. capital, stupid CD 7 Oct 2011
A Lowrey the economics of occupy W-Street Slate 5 Oct 2011
D Korten why I am in solidarity Yes 5 Oct 2011
anon best occupy W-Street rant YouTube 4 Oct 2011
J Kunstler here come the OWsers! clusterf*ck 3 Oct 2011

POLL

Americans who accept evolution: 57%
Americans who acknowledge climate change: 69%
Republicans who acknowledge climate change: 49%
Tea Partiers who acknowledge climate change: 41%
Tea Parties who'd vote for a climate denier: 33%
Republicans who'd vote for a climate denier: 16%
Democrats who'd vote for a climate denier: 5%

22 Sep 2011 poll by the Public Religion Research Institute in partnership with Religion News Service (pdf) (link)

QUOTE

"das alte Wachstumsmodell ist gescheitert"
(the old model of growth has failed)
Jeremy Rifkin, Die Zeit 27 Sep 2011

"we look like a joke, right?"
Bill Clinton about US climate deniers
HuffPost 20 Sep 2011

"prepare for a climate skeptic defeating Obama"
Leo Hickman, The Guardian 8 Sep 2011
And yet: would it matter?  cf. Richard Black, BBC, 8 Sep 2011

"total area of sea ice in Arctic Ocean smallest since observations started; much faster pace of ice melting than forecasted"
JAXA press release 16 Aug 2011

NEOLOGISM

moop

ANNOUNCEMENT

... sixty-two months left.

climate september 2011

US Drought Monitor current conditions

 "Obama lost his chance for a spot on Mount Rushmore by not addressing the moral issue of the century."

Jim Hansen, the white house and tar sands, 3 Sep 2011
(at ClimateStoryTellers.org)

TRENDS

China benefits as US solar industry withers NYT 2 Sep 2011
US tea party defends sprawl Grist 31 Aug 2011
species flee warming faster than thought BBC 20 Aug 2011

EVENTS

disasters in the US: an extreme year AP 2 Sep 2011
Greenland glacier is breaking up MSNBC 1 Sep 2011
hurricane Irene cost ranks in top ten NYC 30 Aug 2011
Vermont worst flooding in a century AP 29 Aug 2011
Arctic sea routes open as ice melts BBC 25 Aug 2011
no relief in sight for Texas drought yahoo 22 Aug 2011

POLICY

U.S. environmentalists weigh their options NYT 3 Sep 2011
Obama withdraws EPA smog regulation AP 2 Sep 2011
Germany sets renewables record Grist 30 Aug 2011
Cheney: 'I didn't change. The world changed' WSJ 30 Aug 2011
U.S. State Dept approves of pipeline Alternet 29 Aug 2011
20 pct of German power now solar/wind Die Zeit 29 Aug 2011
Kyoto suspends Romania from carbon market AFP 28 Aug 2011
U.S. offers support to Canadian pipeline NYT 27 Aug 2011 
U.S. keystone pipeline protests Dissent 26 Aug 2011
Emerging powers press rich world on CO2 cuts AFP 26 Aug 2011
Repubs target EPA's regulatory authority HuffPost 25 Aug 2011
Germany waters down climate regulation Die Zeit 23 Aug 2011

SCIENCE

editor resigns over climate skeptic paper BBC 2 Sep 2011
climate shock puts the world on notice Forbes 29 Aug 2011
weather and war Slate 24 Aug 2011
'Climategate' scientist cleared--again Forbes 24 Aug 2011

DISINFORMATION

Nestle: be scared of organic food Grist 30 Aug 2011
what did you learn in school today: Texas AAS 25 Aug 2011

HEROES TO FUTURE GENERATIONS

Tar Sands sit-in ends with surge of support HuffPost 3 Sep 2011
Tim DeChristopher's letter from prison Grist 28 Aug 2011
... wiki on Tim DeChristopher's protest action

OTHER PEOPLE WHO ARE GETTING IT

J Jensen "Unterwegs zur Plutokratie" Die Zeit 3 Sep 2011
E Linden "betting the farm against climate" LAT 28 Aug 2011
D Elgin "simple life misconceptions" HuffPost 27 Aug 2011
H Bude "No future war gestern" Die Zeit 25 Aug 2011
S Zizek "der autoritaere Kapitalismus ist der Gewinner" ibid.

PHILOSOPHY

in the Journal for Global Ethics 7 (2011) climate issue:

M Schönfeld "plan B: global ethics on climate change"
M Thompson "climate, imagination, and Kant"
B Williston "moral progress & Canada's climate failure"
E Hernandez "climate and philosophy in Latin America"
B Janz "Watsuji, Fudo, and climate change"
S Kuo "climate and Confucian ecological intelligence"
X Chen, M Schönfeld "a Daoist response to climate change"
J Decker "the consumption of farmed animal products"

... sixty-three months left.

climate summer 2011

IARC-JAXA arctic sea ice cover extent, updated daily 
(click on the image to enlarge)
 
--text posts are at the blistered orb--


EVENTS

World Oceans in 'shocking' decline  20 Jun
Africa drought worst in sixty years 14 Jul
Arctic sea ice way beyond the albedo tipping point 20 Jul
UK beaches see rise in jellyfish 21 Jul
Alaska fire order of magnitude higher than historical size 28 Jul
Somalia famine spreads to more areas 3 Aug
US most of the country in grip of record heat wave  5 Aug
N-Europe, Russia, and US abnormally warm conditions 17 Aug
US Southwest in grip of mega-drought 19 Aug

... wiki on the 2011 East Africa drought
... wiki on the 2011 China floods

TRENDS

expanding deserts & falling water tables
(read here by Lester Brown, Aug 23) 

species flee warming faster than previously thought
(read here by I Chen et al, Science 333:1024-1026)
(write-up by J Carpenter Aug 20)

climate-related decline in global crop production
(read here by D Lobell et al, Science 333: 616-620)
(write-up by R Harris, May 7)

ATTRIBUTION

Somalia famine linked to global warming Aug 24

DEVOLUTION

Only 30% of Americans think warming is anthropogenic 22 Jul
69% of Americans think scientists falsify climate research 3 Aug
... 57% think there is significant scientific disagreement 3 Aug
Aussies protest against carbon tax 16 Aug
Rick Perry, climate skeptic 24 Aug

EVOLUTION

Greens react to planned German nuclear phase-out 31 May
Hundred dollar hamburger? 14 Jun
Greens enjoy taste of power in Australia parliament 3 Jul
UN official warns climate change 'threatens peace' 21 Jul

MITIGATION

China threat over EU airline emissions trading 6 Jun
IPCC's Pachauri on consequences of stalled climate talks 25 Jul

FINDINGS

climate to wreak havoc on food supply 2 Jun
global warming lull 1998-2008 down to China's coal growth 5 Jul
GHG regulations and job growth linked in new study 21 Aug

REVIEWS

D Arnold, ed. The Ethics of Global Climate Change 2011
reviewed by K Shrader-Frechette, NDPR

QUOTE

'the window for cutting CO2 is closing'
Lord Stern 31 May link

ANNOUNCEMENT

sixty-four months left.

news holiday

The Mad Hun is away from his desk and out of the office.  Wishing everyone a nice, safe, and enlightening summer.  There is still time for civil evolution. 
See you in the fall  ...

climate may 2011

--text posts are at the blistered orb--

EVENTS

Singapore hit by flash floods 4.5.
NZ: Auckland hit by tornado 4.5.
Hawaii: twin twisters seen offshore 4.5.
US two EF-5 tornadoes strike on same day 3.5.
UK warmest April for more than 100 years 3.5.
US Texas drought worst since 1895 1.5.
US killer twisters likely among largest, strongest 30.4.
US tornado outbreak death toll hits 337 30.4.
US insurer expect $ 5 billion damage 30.4.
US satellite pic: energy steam roller over America 30.4.
US April '11 four times more twisters than average 29.4.
US Alabama 1,700 injured by tornadoes 29.4.
US historic flooding along Mississippi, Ohio rivers 29.4.
US Alabama twisters spread devastation 28.4.
US Mississippi river flood greatest since 1927 28.4. 
US Red Cross responding to flooding, tornadoes, wildfires across more than half of the United States 27.4. 
US Texas inferno, winds renew extreme fire danger 27.4.
US Texas wildfires rage amidst historic drought 27.4.
US Tuscaloosa hit by EF-5 tornado 27.4.
US severe weather across South could set record 27.4.
US mid-South more twisters, flooding expected 26.4.
US Texas drought remains after spring storms 26.4.
US Missouri levees ready to burst 26.4. ... breached 27.4.
US extremely dangerous tornado situation 26.4.
US Texas multiple tornadoes 25.4. and again 27.4.
US St Louis historic tornado 23.4.
US Missouri/Kansas drought eases with rains 21.4.
UK drought looking increasingly likely 19.4.
Brazil Cerrado savanna clear-cut for farming 15.4.
Cuba faces worst drought for 50 years 14.4.
UK driest March for 50 years 1.4.
China worst drought in 60 years appears to have ended 1.4. 
Syria Red Cross/Red Crescent distribute drinking water 15.3. 
Vietnam hit by drought again, faces water shortage 2.3. 
US 'killer' winter storm seen from space, US blanketed 2.2.

TRENDS

1. sea level rise from Arctic melt now 1.6. meters 4.5.

2. three billion more Asians may be affluent by 2050 4.5.

3. downward trend of the past thirty years continues
cf. April 2011 compared to past years (no permalink)
at Arctic Sea Ice & Analysis 5.4.

4. crop losses feared from US drought 28.4.

5. CO2 rising faster now 11.4.

6. water shortage threaten food future in Mid East 5.4.

7. Amazon shrank by 1.5 mio km2 in 2010 (3.5 x Texas) 7.4.

8. US Ogallala aquifer depletion 5.4.

ATTRIBUTION

climate change will bring extreme precipitation and floods
Scientific American 304 (2011):16 (Biello)

more on tornadoes, floods, climate and risk
NYT Dot Earth 4.5.2011 (Revkin)

what's with the weather? is climate to blame?
e360 Yale 21.4.2011 (Kenward)

water supplies in western US threatened by climate change: interior dept. 4.26.

Himalayan farmers correct that snow cover, water resources, and the ecosystem are changing in their region 4.26.
...local perceptions of climate change validated by scientific evidence in the Himalayas
Biology Letters 2011 doi: 10.1098 (Chaudhary, Bawa)

PERPETRATION

which nations are most responsible for climate change? 4.21.

AMERICAN DISENLIGHTENMENT

47 percent of residents of Detroit functionally illiterate 4.5
Sarah Palin defends oil subsidies 4.5.
US climate denial: "whipped up by wind, not climate" 28.4.
Superman renounces US citizenship 27.4.
Florida governor rejects EPA water guidelines 22.4.
can US handle historic wildfires? 18.4.

GLOBAL EVOLUTION

Onandaga Nation blasts 'Geronimo' codename for Bin Laden 4.5.
Latin American Green City index 3.5.
Germany: complete nuclear phase-out doable by 2014 3.5.
Mideast revolts and global warming 26.4.
Obama targets 'climate change deniers in Congress' 21.4.

MITIGATION

Germany: CO2 sequestration pilot project launched 4.5.
major polluters say 2011 climate deal "not doable" 28.4.
tornados in USA: warum so viele Tote? 20.4.
fugitive emissions, the big climate issue of fracking 16.4.

CLIMATE ESSAYS

T Lenton: 2C or not 2C? That is the climate question 4.5.
J Sachs: world is drowning in corporate fraud 3.5.
wie der Umbau der Weltwirtschaft gelingen kann 28.4.
B Knopf: brauchen wir Atomstrom fuer den Klimaschutz? 15.3.

ENERGY NEOLOGISMS

fusion-triggered fission

solar gasoline

quantum photovoltaics

heat engines with shape-memory alloys

shock-wave auto engine

magnetic air conditioner

all from: G P Collins, D Biello, et al, "seven radical energy solutions," Scientific American 304 (May 2011): 38-45 (online subscription required).  The seven solution involve six neologisms.  The seventh proposal (ibid., p. 45) is 'clean coal,' which ain't a neologism; it's an oxymoron.

ANNOUNCEMENT

sixty-seven months left.

climate april 2011

--text posts are at the blistered orb--

EVENTS

Europe prays for rain in century drought 22.4.
Texas governor R Perry (R) prays for rain 21.4. 
Chicago lowest temps since 1940s 20.4.
US largest tornado outbreak in history 19.4.
China violent storms kill 18 in Guangdong 18.4.
US violent storms kill 44 in the South 17.4.
North Carolina worst hit by extreme storms 17.4., 20.4.
Chicago record-setting snowstorm 17.4.
Mexico massive wildfires in Coahuila 16.4. (pic)
Somalia drought hits villagers and refugees 15.4.
Ark., Okla., Ala. extreme storms 15.4., 17.4.
US Southwest drought grows more severe 14.4.
Cuba suffering from severe drought 14.4.
Colombia flood, mudslide engulfs bus 14.4.
N-Dakota, Minnesota floods 12.4. and 11.4.
Texas drought 'extreme,' 'exceptional' 11.4., 14.4.
Wisconsin record-breaking tornadoes 11.4.
Iowa town ravaged by tornado 10.4.
Germany car accidents due to sand (!) storm 9.4., 8.4.
Oklahoma sees driest four months since 1921 6.4., 6.4.
North Korea lost 50-80 percent of winter crops 3.25.
Syria drought, factor in unrest, worsens 1.4.

TRENDS

the growing food crisis 4.23. 
the growing oil crisis 4.23.
food prices: World Bank warns millions face poverty 14.4.
markets: American faith in capitalism falls sharply 6.4. 
fish stocks: global fish consumption hits record high 1.2.

ATTRIBUTION

Southern Hemisphere more rain b/c of Ozone hole 21.4.
impact of Polar Ozone depletion on subtropical precipitation
Science 21 April 2011: 1202131 (Kang &al.)

AMERICAN DISENLIGHTENMENT

fact-check on GOP claims about climate change, EPA 22.4.
NYT editorial: how not to plan for a future 20.4.
income of 400 US oligarchs quadruples in 12 years  18.4.
the new Republican landscape 17.4.
OECD study: US high on prisons, low on pensions 17.4. 
... OECD: Society at a Glance 2011 Social Indicators (click) 
Nature editorial: into ignorance 16.4.
US food quality I: 47% of supermarket meat infected 15.4.
Rep. Crowley (D-NY) 'speechless' about GOP policies 14.4.
US teens, taught by media, look favorably on torture13.4.
high-speed rail budget cut by $1.5 bill; $1 bill left 11.4.
why the US is destroying its education system 11.4.
House of Rep approves Anti-EPA bill despite Senate 8.4.
GOP quarrel over ethanol 7.4.
House of Rep full committee hearing--climate change  31.3.
US food quality II: the "pink slime" meat filler 5.1.

GLOBAL EVOLUTION

UK prosecutor tells convicted protesters to appeal 18.4.
US GHG drop to 15 year low 18.4.
US powershift 2011 17.4.
US climate change case headed to Supreme Court 17.4.
... NYT editorial: the court and global warming 18.4.
California sets nation's highest renewable power goals 12.4.
US powershift 2011 12.4. (official site)
China tells US to quit as human rights judge 10.4.
Latin America shakes off US imperialist yoke 9.4.
Germany: die Aschenbroedel-Wirtschaft 8.4.

MITIGATION

eight railroad innovations 20.4.
Texas Notrees largest wind energy storage system 15.4.
challenges for REDD as forest conservation plan 14.4.
California Ivanpah XL-large solar plant financing now OK 14.4.
shale gas as dirty as oil, coal for warming 12.4.
US GOP EPA ban rejected by Senate Dems 6.4.
UK Royal Society debate geoengineering 4.4.

CLIMATE ESSAYS

A Lowrey the great global freakout of 2011 23.4.
F Drieschner der himmel ueber dem AKW 22.4.
N Chomsky is the world too big to fail? 21.4.
M Morford please step away from fear 20.4.
B McKibben 2011 powershift speech 18.4. 
G Houser: the climate youth will lead (not Al Gore) 17.4.
M Winship: harry potter and the network of neutrality 16.4.
B McKibben: what if your Prez's just not that into you? 15.4.
A Revkin: climate, communication, and the 'Nerd Loop' 14.4.
M Klare: the planet strikes back 14.4.
T Flannery interview with BBC 13.4.
A Gupta: beyond the mantra of a middle class 12.4.
J Sachs the people's budget 8.4.

CLIMATE NEOLOGISM

season creep
from: Wash Post plant's earlier bloom times 8.4.

stuck on stupid
from: Van Jones at powershift 2011 16.4.

WIKILEAKS

secret memos expose war for oil link 19.4.

ANNOUNCEMENT

sixty-eight months left.

climate findings

--text posts are at the blistered orb--

QUOTES

"climate change is a phenomenon that is relevant, in principle, to all research disciplines. (...) And for the first time ... the journal is explicitly set up to include the social sciences within its remit ... to help us to penetrate territory that lies beyond our traditional zones of engagement."

journal launch: welcome Nature Climate Change
editorial 31 March 2011
Nature 471 (2011): 548

"Lenton and Watson's Earth--shaped by life, an escapee of close calls and again on a perilous course in the wake of biological innovation--is a similarly novel depiction.  The Copernican revolution had no direct effect on people's everyday lives, but it ushered in a new era of self-consciousness.  Perceiving Earth as a complex system of co-evolution similarly alters our outlook"

review of Lenton/Watson 2011
Nature 470 (2011): 460-461 (Lucht)

CONSEQUENCES

(2010 Russia drought reduced wheat harvest by 33%) 
regional drought has global impact
Nature 472 (2011): 169 (Sternberg)

(Should Africa prepare for floods or droughts?)
Africa needs climate data to fight disease
Nature 471 (2011): 440-442 (Thompson &al.)

(sea level rise is result of complex causes;
from now on North polar melt surpasses all other drivers)
geophysics: faster ice melt, higher sea levels
Nature 471 (2011): 268 (staff)
... acceleration of the contribution of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets to sea level rise
Geophys. Res. Lett. 38 (2011): L05502 (Rignot &al.)

(black carbon main driver for Himalaya glacier melt)
climate modeling: melting of the Third Pole
Nature 471 (2011): 413 (staff)
... sensitivity studies on the impacts of Tibetan Plateau snowpack pollution on the Asian hydrological cycle and monsoon climate
Atmos. Chem. Phys. 11 (2011): 1929-1948 (Qian &al.) 

(China, largest wheat producer, now imports grain)
China's water crisis needs more than words
Nature 470 (2011): 307 (Yu)

CHANGES

(Q: why cold winters on hot planet? A: upstream cooling)
cold winters from warm oceans
Nature 471 (2011): 584-586 (Boos)
... winter cold of eastern continental boundaries induced by warm ocean waters
Nature 471 (2011): 621-624 (Kaspi, Schneider)

(overall positive climate forcing by black carbon)
global warming: the soot factor
Nature 471 (2011): 456-457 (Quaas)
... see also above, Consequences: Third Pole

(history of American southwest shows hydrological variability)
climate change: old droughts in New Mexico
Nature 470 (2011): 472-472 (Williams)
... extended megadroughts in the southwestern US during Pleistocene interglacials
Nature 470 (2011): 518-521 (Fawcett &al.)

ATTRIBUTION

(global warming => severe cold streaks)
climate change: cold spells in a warm world
Nature 472 (2011): 139 (staff)
...  cold snaps will persist in warming world
yahoo/Live Science/Amazing Planet 13 Apr 2011
... persisting cold extremes under 21st C warming scenarios
Geophys. Res. Lett. (2011) in press (Kodra, Ganguly et al.)

(climate change => more pollen)
more sneezing in a warmer world
Nature 471 (2011): 8 (staff)
... recent warming by latitude associated with increased length of  ragweed pollen season in central North America
PNAS 108 (2011): 4248-4251 (Ziska &al.)

MITIGATION

(forget nukes; wind is just plain better)
government must pay for clean-energy innovation
Nature 472 (2011): 137 (Hoffert)
(... but we'll still need them for a while)
do not phase out nuclear power--yet
Nature 471 (2011): 411 (Ferguson)

(biggest-ever forest protection up in the air)
Canadian forest deal at risk
Nature 471 (2011): 560  (Pala)

(juggling heat & pressure for deep CO2 sequestration)
some implications of cold CO2 injection into deep saline aquifers 
Geophys. Res. Lett. 38 (2011): L06407

(mid-course corrections necessary for REDD)
cash alone will not slow forest carbon emissions
Nature 471 (2011): 267 (White)

(review of T Flannery's Here on Earth 2011;
hoping for a human-Gaia cooperative future)
Earth systems: the biosphere rebooted
Nature 471 (2011): 303-304 (Benton)

(PRC premier Wen announces five year plan; goals:
1. increase energy efficiency
2. curb carbon emissions
3. reduce economic growth)
China unveils green targets
Nature 471 (2011): 149 (Qiu) 
... five year planning: goals for 2015  
Nature 471 (2011): 149 figures
(in retrospect, new five year plan in line with targets)
... China's climate target: is it achievable?
Nature 462 (2009): 550-551 (Qiu)  

GREEN FACTOIDS

(more species = cleaner drinking water)
biodiversity improves water quality through niche partitioning
Nature 472 (2011): 86-89 (Cardinale)

PROGRESS & REGRESS

("Nature" on the American Disenlightenment)
into ignorance (editorial)
Nature 471 (2011): 265-266

(Google fellow Dessler to spread the word--Q&A)
turning point: Andrew Dessler
Nature 471 (2011): 257 (Gewin)

(if you still need proof Lovelock wins: here it is--review of Lenton/Watson "Revolutions that Made the Earth" 2011)
Earth systems: shaped by life
Nature 470 (2011): 460-461 (Lucht; see quote above)

AND THE "JUST WHAT I NEEDED TO READ" AWARD GOES TO:

(first place: methane hydrate release now unstoppable)
rising Arctic Ocean temperatures cause gas hydrate destabilization and ocean acidification
Geophys. Res. Lett. 38 (2011): L08602 (Biastoch &al.)

(second place: the savannah conversion has started)
widespread decline in greenness of Amazonian vegetation due to the 2010 drought
Geophys. Res. Lett. 38 (2011): L07402 (Xu &al.)