Skeptical Science
Encyclopedia
Skeptical Science is a climate science
blog
and information resource created in 2007 by Australia
n blogger and author John Cook. In addition to publishing articles on current events relating to climate science and climate policy
, the site maintains a large database of articles analyzing the merit of arguments commonly put forth by those who are skeptical
of the mainstream scientific opinion on climate change
.
, John Cook created Skeptical Science to be an internet resource that examined the scientific support of the most common skeptic arguments. The site currently maintains over 160 articles addressing the merit of common criticisms of the scientific consensus on global warming
, such as the claim that solar activity (rather than greenhouse gas
es) is responsible for most 20th century global warming. Each article, referred to as an "argument", first presents a quotation from a prominent figure who made a direct claim regarding global warming, then follows with a summary of "what the science says".
Rather than fully qualifying each claim, the site focuses mainly on challenging it by citing counterexample
s for why it is incorrect, and structuring these examples into an overall rebuttal of the original claim. The site primarily gains the content for these articles from relevant peer review
ed scientific papers. Many articles have been translated into several languages, and are split into up to three levels of technical depth. Rather than active advertising or media relationships, Cook has focused on structuring the site primarily for optimization in search engine results.
The home page of the site also features blog posts by a number of regular and guest contributors, which may be new rebuttals of a certain argument or simply the blogger's view on a relevant climate news item. Like the rebuttals, the blog entries tend to hold a consistent tone that the scientific opinion on anthropogenic global warming is generally accurate.
application that includes condensed summaries of most rebuttals featured on the site. Shine Technologies offered to develop the application completely free of charge for Cook.
The app is available for Android, iPhone, and Nokia
systems. It is fully contained, meaning it does not need internet connection to be used, although some features, such as news articles or the ability to tweet which arguments the user found most useful, do need a data or internet connection.
After 8 months on the market, the app had received 60,000 downloads. The app was entered into the 2010 Calling All Innovators competition, finishing in the Top 10.
, John Christy
, and Christopher Monckton
.
In 2010, a comprehensive report called The Scientific Guide to Global Warming Skepticism was made available for download from the site homepage. Written by Cook and other authors on the site, the report draws from many of the rebuttals published and serves as a non-technical, easy to understand summary outlining the evidence for global warming and the flaws in many of the criticisms of anthropogenic
global warming theory.
In 2011 the book Climate Change Denial: Heads in the Sand, co-authored by Cook and Haydn Washington, was published by UK publisher Earthscan
. The book serves to examine the ways in which denial of anthropogenic global warming is manifested through governments and the public.
has described it as "the most prominent knowledge-based website dealing with climate change in the world", and The Washington Post
has praised it as the "most prominent and detailed" website to counter arguments by global warming skeptics. In September 2011, the site won the 2011 Eureka Prize from the Australian Museum
in the category of Advancement of Climate Change Knowledge.
Cook has also been recognized for his conservative Christian
evangelical beliefs while maintaining his stance on anthropogenic global warming, two positions that some people would consider conflicting.
Climatology
Climatology is the study of climate, scientifically defined as weather conditions averaged over a period of time, and is a branch of the atmospheric sciences...
blog
Blog
A blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in...
and information resource created in 2007 by Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n blogger and author John Cook. In addition to publishing articles on current events relating to climate science and climate policy
Economics of global warming
-Definitions:In this article, the phrase “climate change” is used to describe a change in the climate, measured in terms of its statistical properties, e.g., the global mean surface temperature. In this context, “climate” is taken to mean the average weather. Climate can change over period of time...
, the site maintains a large database of articles analyzing the merit of arguments commonly put forth by those who are skeptical
Global warming controversy
Global warming controversy refers to a variety of disputes, significantly more pronounced in the popular media than in the scientific literature, regarding the nature, causes, and consequences of global warming...
of the mainstream scientific opinion on climate change
Scientific opinion on climate change
The predominant scientific opinion on climate change is that the Earth is in an ongoing phase of global warming primarily caused by an enhanced greenhouse effect due to the anthropogenic release of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases...
.
Concept
After reading a 2007 speech by US Senator James InhofeJim Inhofe
James Mountain "Jim" Inhofe is the senior Senator from Oklahoma and a member of the Republican Party. First elected to the Senate in 1994, he is the ranking member of the United States Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works and was its chairman from 2003 to 2007. Inhofe served eight...
, John Cook created Skeptical Science to be an internet resource that examined the scientific support of the most common skeptic arguments. The site currently maintains over 160 articles addressing the merit of common criticisms of the scientific consensus on global warming
Global warming
Global warming refers to the rising average temperature of Earth's atmosphere and oceans and its projected continuation. In the last 100 years, Earth's average surface temperature increased by about with about two thirds of the increase occurring over just the last three decades...
, such as the claim that solar activity (rather than greenhouse gas
Greenhouse gas
A greenhouse gas is a gas in an atmosphere that absorbs and emits radiation within the thermal infrared range. This process is the fundamental cause of the greenhouse effect. The primary greenhouse gases in the Earth's atmosphere are water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and ozone...
es) is responsible for most 20th century global warming. Each article, referred to as an "argument", first presents a quotation from a prominent figure who made a direct claim regarding global warming, then follows with a summary of "what the science says".
Rather than fully qualifying each claim, the site focuses mainly on challenging it by citing counterexample
Counterexample
In logic, and especially in its applications to mathematics and philosophy, a counterexample is an exception to a proposed general rule. For example, consider the proposition "all students are lazy"....
s for why it is incorrect, and structuring these examples into an overall rebuttal of the original claim. The site primarily gains the content for these articles from relevant peer review
Peer review
Peer review is a process of self-regulation by a profession or a process of evaluation involving qualified individuals within the relevant field. Peer review methods are employed to maintain standards, improve performance and provide credibility...
ed scientific papers. Many articles have been translated into several languages, and are split into up to three levels of technical depth. Rather than active advertising or media relationships, Cook has focused on structuring the site primarily for optimization in search engine results.
The home page of the site also features blog posts by a number of regular and guest contributors, which may be new rebuttals of a certain argument or simply the blogger's view on a relevant climate news item. Like the rebuttals, the blog entries tend to hold a consistent tone that the scientific opinion on anthropogenic global warming is generally accurate.
Smartphone app
Along with software development company Shine Technologies, in February 2010 the site launched a free smartphoneSmartphone
A smartphone is a high-end mobile phone built on a mobile computing platform, with more advanced computing ability and connectivity than a contemporary feature phone. The first smartphones were devices that mainly combined the functions of a personal digital assistant and a mobile phone or camera...
application that includes condensed summaries of most rebuttals featured on the site. Shine Technologies offered to develop the application completely free of charge for Cook.
The app is available for Android, iPhone, and Nokia
Nokia OS
Nokia OS is an informal name for the operating system in many Nokia mobile phones. These are informal names, there is no such product or trademark, though the term "Nokia OS" is used in official Nokia communications. Officially it is referred as ISA platform. It is a proprietary platform for...
systems. It is fully contained, meaning it does not need internet connection to be used, although some features, such as news articles or the ability to tweet which arguments the user found most useful, do need a data or internet connection.
After 8 months on the market, the app had received 60,000 downloads. The app was entered into the 2010 Calling All Innovators competition, finishing in the Top 10.
Projects
In addition to uncategorized blog posts, the site has published many multi-week features that serve to give a more in-depth analysis of a particular topic. Topics which have received special attention include a feature exposing climate 'myths' purported by many US politicians, a feature examining the accuracy of past predictions made by scientists studying global warming, as well as individual features to evaluate the claims made by the most prominent global warming skeptics, including Richard LindzenRichard Lindzen
Richard Siegmund Lindzen is an American atmospheric physicist and Alfred P. Sloan Professor of Meteorology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Lindzen is known for his work in the dynamics of the middle atmosphere, atmospheric tides and ozone photochemistry. He has published more than...
, John Christy
John Christy
John R. Christy is a climate scientist at the University of Alabama in Huntsville whose chief interests are satellite remote sensing of global climate and global climate change. He is best known, jointly with Roy Spencer, for the first successful development of a satellite temperature...
, and Christopher Monckton
Christopher Monckton, 3rd Viscount Monckton of Brenchley
Christopher Walter Monckton, 3rd Viscount Monckton of Brenchley is a British politician, public speaker, former newspaper editor and hereditary peer. Formerly a member of the Conservative Party, Monckton has been the Head of the Policy Unit for the UK Independence Party since November 2010. He was...
.
In 2010, a comprehensive report called The Scientific Guide to Global Warming Skepticism was made available for download from the site homepage. Written by Cook and other authors on the site, the report draws from many of the rebuttals published and serves as a non-technical, easy to understand summary outlining the evidence for global warming and the flaws in many of the criticisms of anthropogenic
Anthropogenic
Human impact on the environment or anthropogenic impact on the environment includes impacts on biophysical environments, biodiversity and other resources. The term anthropogenic designates an effect or object resulting from human activity. The term was first used in the technical sense by Russian...
global warming theory.
In 2011 the book Climate Change Denial: Heads in the Sand, co-authored by Cook and Haydn Washington, was published by UK publisher Earthscan
Earthscan
Earthscan is an English language publisher of books and journals on climate change, sustainable development and environmental technology for academic, professional and general readers....
. The book serves to examine the ways in which denial of anthropogenic global warming is manifested through governments and the public.
Reception
Skeptical Science has become a well-known resource for people seeking to understand or debate climate change, and has been praised for its straightforwardness. Marine biologist Ove Hoegh-GuldbergOve Hoegh-Guldberg (biologist)
Ove Hoegh-Guldberg , is the inaugural Director of the at the University of Queensland, and the holder of a Queensland Smart State Premier fellowship . He is best known for his work on climate change and coral reefs...
has described it as "the most prominent knowledge-based website dealing with climate change in the world", and The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
has praised it as the "most prominent and detailed" website to counter arguments by global warming skeptics. In September 2011, the site won the 2011 Eureka Prize from the Australian Museum
Australian Museum
The Australian Museum is the oldest museum in Australia, with an international reputation in the fields of natural history and anthropology. It features collections of vertebrate and invertebrate zoology, as well as mineralogy, palaeontology, and anthropology...
in the category of Advancement of Climate Change Knowledge.
Cook has also been recognized for his conservative Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
evangelical beliefs while maintaining his stance on anthropogenic global warming, two positions that some people would consider conflicting.