35 of 38 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Not a science tutorial and not supposed to be, November 17, 2009
This review is from: Science as a Contact Sport: Inside the Battle to Save Earth's Climate (Hardcover)
1) This is fine, first-hand book on the evolution of climate science over the last 30 years or so with nuanced descriptions of the science arguments and the difficulties in explaining science to policymakers and the public. Thank Stephen especially for the long campaign to regularize the uncertainty descriptions used in the IPCC 3rd and 4th Reviews. Other reviews have covered many of the topics I might have, so I won't repeat, but will offer something different.
2) If you want more history, start with:
Spencer Weart,
The Discovery of Global Warming (New Histories of Science, Technology, and Medicine), which also has an equivalent website at the American Institute of Physics.
Then, read two of Stephen's earlier books:
Global Warming: Are We Entering the Greenhouse Century?, 1989. and
Laboratory Earth the Planetary Gamble We (Science Masters), 1996.
This sequence offers a good look into what was known or not *at the time, not just by hindsight*, how real science works, and how scientists weigh data and competing hypotheses. Much of real science is trying to bound uncertainty, and good scientists change their minds. Some things that were theoretically very likely in 1989, but had not yet emerged from the noise into statistical significance, have long since done so.
3) If you want tutorials, here are my favorites, for 3 levels of background in ascending order
General audience, easily including high school, and inexpensive.
David Archer,
The Long Thaw: How Humans Are Changing the Next 100,000 Years of Earth's Climate (Science Essentials), 2009. 180 easy pages. See my review over there for advice on figuring out whether or not someone might be an expert [like Archer] or not.
College undergrad textbook, for non-science majors, i.e., a little more math and science:
David Archer,
Global Warming: Understanding the Forecast, 2008. Not so cheap, but good. 194 (denser) pages.
Serious, but the Real Stuff:
Search: ipcc wg i technical summary
for the ~70-page Technical Summary, what the scientists *really* think. Free. Anyone who has read SaaCS should understand why the Summary for Policy Makers is almost always weakened and uses obscure language compared to the TS. I hear this quite consistently from other IPCC authors, who are often amazed *anything* makes it into the SPM. Consider reading the TS for WG's II and III as well.
4) Bottom line:
So, SaaCS is a good book to read. Even better is to attend live talks by good climate scientists. Stephen is especially adept at giving talks for various backgrounds. There is no real substitute for listening to a real expert, watch them answer questions, and maybe even talk to them. In some places, that may be hard, but many good research universities offer public talks, and speakers may do outreach talks elsewhere.
Here in the SanFrancisco Bay Area, there must be at least 30+ IPCC authors around, and so many talks they sometimes have schedule conflicts. Among Stanford U, SLAC, UC Berkeley, LBNL, LLNL, various government groups, business organizations, and NGOs, anyone should be able to find a few good ones, *if they want to*.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Turned a skeptic into a believer., December 16, 2009
This review is from: Science as a Contact Sport: Inside the Battle to Save Earth's Climate (Hardcover)
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
I must admit to having been a fence-sitter on the whole global warming/climate change controversy, not knowing which side to believe. However, this book has moved me firmly into the believer camp as it very logically lays out what's been discovered, why it's important and what it means to the future of our increasingly fragile planet. Highly recommended for anyone willing to take a serious, open-minded look at what is a very serious issue. It's well-written and makes its point(s) without the rhetoric and emotionalism that's so often present.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Interesting quasi-biography, not a tell-all on the intricacies of global warming, November 6, 2009
This review is from: Science as a Contact Sport: Inside the Battle to Save Earth's Climate (Hardcover)
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
if one were to trust the marketing of the book, (marketed as answering key questions such as "Why, if we knew of the threats way back in the Carter Administration, can't we act decisively to limit greenhouse gases, deforestation, and catastrophic warming trends? Why are we still addicted to fossil fuels? Have we all just been fiddling for 40 years as the world burns around us?"), it does a remarkably poor job.
Schneider, however, succeeds in providing an engaging account of his own growth and glimpses of various key personalities in this field such as Gore, Crutzen, Broeker, etc. Written mostly in a first-person narrative style, Schneider takes us through his rationale on some of his public statements which helps define a broader viewpoint regarding the initial (heated) public discussions that formed the genesis of the "global warming movement". For a reader curious about the personalities involved in this critical topic, this book will be of great value. For someone who was looking to get a rigorous treatment of the controversies on data, evidence etc will have to be satisfied with mostly a very well-thought-out chapter on "media wars". Overall, a good, rare look at the key personalities, but unfortunately, the book may not advance the debate on potential solutions to global warming significantly.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
