Comments on: Scientific intimidation

By: Antoni Jaume

Antoni Jaume — Wed, 31 Aug 2005 13:13:46 +0000

“If you want someone to give you money, sometimes you have to kiss a little a… Federal funds are not a right.”

I can understand the need for results, but if these funds are not a right, much less they are a tool to impose one’s own agenda.

DSW

By: mikep

mikep — Wed, 31 Aug 2005 09:37:53 +0000

Re 11 ands 12 in particualr. McCitrick knows the difference between degrees and radians perfectly well. His mistake was to suppose that Shazam, the statistical package he was using, required degrees as input when it required radians. Since he had published his data and methods so that they were reproducible the mistake was spotted. As soon as it was pointed out he corrected it. This seems a good example of science working properly. In contrast the underlying data and methods for the famous MBH paper – a paper that was widely quoted as a key study in the claim that the 1990s were the warmest decade for 1,000 years – have never been available in full, though some parts have been given out. In particular the study used, without initially saying, what at best can be described as an idiosyncratic version of principal components analysis which had the effect, compared to standard principal components, of playing up indicators which deviated from the mean in the very recent past. In experimental science results can always be checked by repeating experiments. In non-experimental sciences that is not possible. Therefore to ask for data and source code to be in the public domain does not seem to me unreasonable. Indeed journals such as the American Economic Review require it.

By: james

james — Tue, 30 Aug 2005 17:58:47 +0000

If you want someone to give you money, sometimes you have to kiss a little a… Federal funds are not a right.

By: Jeff Gannon

Jeff Gannon — Tue, 30 Aug 2005 14:24:27 +0000

Sure…it’s not intimidation to get a demand from federal republicans requiring you to produce everything you have ever done on any subject as well as personal data and records having nothing to do with the government if you are a cheeto stained denizen of Mom’s basement like Jimmy; but for people who have actually dealt with the real world it’s a bit of a stretch. And I’m sure it’s purely coincidental that the “request” is directed to people whose scientific peer reviewed findings don’t help bush’s oil industry cronies; as opposed to say, Exxon, whose man Philip Cooney was altering climate change documents at Bush’s white house.

By: Jimmy

Jimmy — Tue, 30 Aug 2005 04:57:11 +0000

I do not see Barton’s request as intimidation. Sure, Barton may use it for political purposes; he is, after all, a politician.

But the faux victimization of “distinguished scientists from respected universities” is really over the top.

By: jonathan

jonathan — Tue, 30 Aug 2005 04:46:23 +0000

intelligence intimidation?

By: Thomas

Thomas — Tue, 30 Aug 2005 03:54:58 +0000

Ah, so now we find the opponents of the Baath party, though the connection between the Baathists and those motivated by religious ideology remains controverted…

Really, if you can’t stray from the topic intelligently, then don’t bother.

By: dr ngo

dr ngo — Tue, 30 Aug 2005 03:53:39 +0000

“…im sorry, but im from Holland and i cannot memorise the names of your politicians (as you cannot memorize our capitals ;))”

Hey, come on! Whaddya take us for, illiterates? We all know that the capital of Holland is “H”!!

By: jonathan

jonathan — Tue, 30 Aug 2005 02:35:53 +0000

“I’m still very happy to see him issuing a vigorous and unambiguous denunciation of his colleagues in the House.”

I’m sorry, but how is this vigorous and unambiguous?
This is polite, civil and nice. If the Scientific world wants to win the public (and the money) they must be much more firm on key-issues like this.

This is not about global warming, scientific debate or the sending of large quantities of paper. This is about scientific method and about democracy. Politicians must understand they are serving the public and they must understand that it is a civil liberty to do research, as it is a civil liberty to discuss and express views.
To intimidate and express anger at a community that does research and expresses views in a method that is considered unbiased, across the entire globe, is weak and pathetic. This politician of yours needs a good asskicking, preferebly by the so-called vigorous McCain-guy

…im sorry, but im from Holland and i cannot memorise the names of your politicians (as you cannot memorize our capitals ;))

By: RedWolf

RedWolf — Tue, 30 Aug 2005 01:38:00 +0000

The issue is not global warming or even John McCain. It is censorship of science by hoodlums, the efforts of the American Baath party, better known as the religious right, to run this country despite being a tiny minority, behind the times, and above all immoral, unethical, rude, intolerant, and faithless.

By: Matt Weiner

Matt Weiner — Mon, 29 Aug 2005 23:33:32 +0000

Oops, it looks like McIntyre wasn’t involved in mixing up degrees and radians—that was McKitrick and Michaels. Still, it’s pretty clear who’s the hack here.

By: Matt Weiner

Matt Weiner — Mon, 29 Aug 2005 22:27:50 +0000

That (Sedgwick's link) refers to "the formidable McIntyre -McKitrick audit." That would be the McIntyre and McKitrick who mix up degrees and radians. Stephen Schneider, a Stanford climatologist, has what looks to be an informative site dealing with this and similar stuff. He's the Former Department Director and Head of Advanced Study Project at the National Center for Atmospheric Research Boulder.

By: dipnut

dipnut — Mon, 29 Aug 2005 22:17:21 +0000

“I know that McCain has disappointed on a variety of fronts.”

Acknowledged. My own feelings about McCain are somewhat stronger than disappointment.

By: Al Hill

Al Hill — Mon, 29 Aug 2005 22:04:48 +0000

Did you think no one would read all that?

By: Matt Daws

Matt Daws — Mon, 29 Aug 2005 21:57:49 +0000

And one should perhaps look at:

SEPP Key Issues

To decide if you think that site might be, ahem, a touch biased in such matters.