Monthly Archives: August 2010

Tropical Depression FOUR is here

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And somewhat notable.

We are looking more closely than usual at hurricanes this season because this is expected to be a fairly intense year for this category of meteorological event. Tropical Depression Four is now located at about 12.6N 41.1W, otherwise known as out in the middle of the Atlantic. It is heading WNW at a speed that would put it north of Puerto Rico mid morning on Thursday.

At the moment, it looks like TD4 is going to grow, be a pain for ships in the area but not overly severe, then very possibly be mauled by upper level winds. The probably that this feature will develop in to a Category 1 hurricane over the foreseeable future is less than one in five. It will likely turn into a tropical storm very soon then dissipate next week.

Which Kindle Do You Really Want Now?

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Which Kindle should you buy (or beg the relatives to give you for your birthday)??? The Regular 6 inch Kindle or the fancier Kindle DX?

It is said that the two extant technologies …. Kindle-like low power ePaper displays vs “real tablet computers” will merge.

I’m sure this is true. It is just as sure as the fact that almost every computer monitor sold to the average customer is the shiny hard to read kind instead of the more functional non-shiny kind. And when the technologies merge, the marketing departments will grin and the users will squint.

Does any of this matter to you now? Yes. Because there are predictions that there will be a major change in technology in less than two years which might make the choices you make now seem silly.

Like this:

So, the answer? If you need a Kindle now, get the cheap one. Then, save your pennies and upgrade later.

Listen to the Scientists (on Creationism)

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And then …. there’s this:

At the beginning of every school year, I try to post new and “the best of” blog posts specifically written for teachers. If you want to see this year’s “back to school special” posts in a list, click here. I’ll be posting these items through the month of September. There will likely be one or two items new every day.

Please feel free to send a link to all your teacher friends so they know about it!!!! And, if there is something you’d like to see discussed, let me know.

What was that splash? Oh. Greenland melting.

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See the missing bit? That is a 1.5 kilometer retreat of the so-called “calving front” of the glacier.

In truth, this particular sort of even is not that unusual, but what is interesting is that new satellite monitoring capabilities allow researchers to notice these events more or less when they happen, as opposed to during less frequent inspections of satellite imagery.

And, there are some climate-change related features of this event.

Continue reading What was that splash? Oh. Greenland melting. →

1969 Global Warming White House Memo

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Anthropogenic global warming has been suspected for decades, and a simple one paragraph long characterization of the problem 40 years ago was substantially identical to any accurate characterization we might make today. One has to wonder why after 40 years of time we still see headlines telling us that it might, after all, turn out to be true that anthropogenic global warming is real. Indeed, it is a bit disconcerting when the inestimable climate blog RealClimate notes that this is the 35th “Anniversary of Global Warming” as a term in the peer reviewed scientific literature (though I suspect it is older). (See RealClimate’s post on the anniversary for very important details!)

The phenomenon of anthropogenic global warming as a point of policy discussion is older than 35 years. Below is a memo from one White House staffer to another both to eventually become quite famous in their own ways, regarding the “carbon dioxide problem.” You will find a link to a copy of the original, and some context notes for you youn’uns who may not remember the mid 20trh century. Below the fold.
Continue reading 1969 Global Warming White House Memo →