Subtitled: It is very likely that this report likely means very little for many with medium confidence.

The UN’s IPCC began releasing an update recommending that countries prepare for “weird weather”.  Seriously.  They are “virtually certain” (which, apparently means a 99-100% probability) that warmer temperatures will increase in frequency and magnitude and cold extremes will decrease.  If you actually want to waste some time, you can go read the summary report.  I recommend looking at the number of “medium confidence”, “likely” and “limited evidence” statements are in the report.  In essence, there is one paragraph in the 29 page report that attempts to link anthropogenic influences to climate change but it is littered with “medium confidence” and “likely” characterizations.  There have been pokes at this by the major news outlets, but it clearly isn’t getting legs as the report seems to be light on substantial data.

This should be worrisome.  At least to those that strongly believe in anthropogenic induced climate change.  When a purportedly scientific panel – at least one that, in the past, has been cited as the experts in climate change – starts qualifying their hypotheses with such adjectives, it has lost its focus on the scientific method.  This is largely the crux of skeptics’ arguments.  Copernicus didn’t theorize that with medium confidence it is likely that the Sun is the center of our solar system.  Nor do Isaac Newton’s three laws of motion contain any likelys or confidence measures.  I do not expect the IPCC to have similar absolutes but people should realize that their work and the conclusions they draw are probablistic based and heavily qualified.  So you’ll end up hearing statements like, “It is exceedingly unlikely that climate change will not affect some weather extremes”.

The IPCC Chairman says, “Despite all uncertainties, it is crucial for policy-makers to remain aware of the scientific reality of climate change,” says Pachauri. “If science is not given the primacy it deserves it is unlikely that any of the actions will be taken that this report is begging of.”

Where is the science that he refers to that is the basis for the actions in the report (the full report is delayed)?

By the way, a “no-op” in computer programming is an instruction with which the computer effectively does nothing.  It is a “no operation” instruction.

GorT

GorT is an eight-foot-tall robot from the 51ˢᵗ Century who routinely time-travels to steal expensive technology from the future and return it to the past for retroinvention. The profits from this pay all the Gormogons’ bills, including subsidizing this website. Some of the products he has introduced from the future include oven mitts, the Guinness widget, Oxy-Clean, and Dr. Pepper. Due to his immense cybernetic brain, GorT is able to produce a post in 0.023 seconds and research it in even less time. Only ’Puter spends less time on research. GorT speaks entirely in zeros and ones, but occasionally throws in a ڭ to annoy the Volgi. He is a massive proponent of science, technology, and energy development, and enjoys nothing more than taking the Czar’s more interesting scientific theories, going into the past, publishing them as his own, and then returning to take credit for them. He is the only Gormogon who is capable of doing math. Possessed of incredible strength, he understands the awesome responsibility that follows and only uses it to hurt people.