Climate Change Killed Egypt's Pyramid Builders : Discovery News

"Humans have a long history of having to deal with climate change," said study author Christopher Bernhardt.

Arctic sea ice just hit a record low. Here’s why it matters.

In 2007, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) figured we wouldn’t see ice-free summers in the Arctic until the end of the century or so. But later observations suggested that sea-ice extent is shrinking far more quickly than the IPCC had forecast.

It appears that earlier climate models underestimated certain “feedback” effects. As Arctic sea ice melts, more and more of the ocean is exposed to sunlight. Since the darker ocean surface absorbs more sunlight than the bright ice, this warms the region even further. What’s more, a recent study in the Journal of Geophysical Letters found that IPCC models had low-balled the rate at which melted ice drifts off, further accelerating the collapse. That explains why scientists have revised their forecasts, saying ice-free summers could come 50 years ahead of schedule.

Galley slave Putin savors yachts, planes, palaces, critics say | Reuters

(Reuters) - Vladimir Putin once compared ruling Russia to being a "galley slave", but four yachts that come with the job, not to mention palaces, aircraft and a wealth of luxury perks help explain his refusal to quit the presidency, leading critics said on Tuesday.

Listing 58 planes and helicopters and 20 homes with opulent fittings worthy of the tsars, not to mention 11 watches which alone are worth several times Putin's annual salary, a report published under the ironic title "The Life of a Galley Slave" by opposition leader Boris Nemtsov denounced a "blatant and cynical challenge" to millions of Russians barely managing to survive.

2009: Russia Suddenly Believes in Fighting Global Warming - Softpedia

In late April, the Russian Federation surprised everyone by accepting the fact that humans were, in fact, responsible for global warming, and recognizing that it had to do something to prevent any further degradation of the environment. While many consider the decision a radical shift in view from Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, this nevertheless doesn't change the good news.

22 Of The Top 25 CO2 Emitting Congressional Districts In 2009 Were Republican | ThinkProgress

The top five CO2 emitting districts were all Republican, with percentage of fossil-based electricity in those areas ranging between 91 percent and 100 percent.

Germany’s new “renewable” energy policy | Watts Up With That?

As formerly eco-evangelist Germany has demonstrated, countries cannot afford to have national energy policy moulded by movies like “Fuel” and “An Inconvenient Truth.” Their policies – and their future – need to be based on genuine truth and honest reality.

THE HOCKEY SCHTICK: Paper finds droughts & floods due to natural variability, not man-made greenhouse gases

A paper published in the Journal of Climate finds regional precipitation trends from 1977-2006 were related to natural variability of sea surface temperatures, not man-made greenhouse gases or aerosols. The finding contradicts claims by alarmists that mankind has "loaded the dice" for more droughts, floods, and extreme weather. In addition, the paper finds climate models are very poor at predicting both the intensity and patterns of regional rainfall, "especially a simulated increase in rainfall over the tropical Pacific and southeastern Australia that are opposite in sign to the actual drying in these areas."

Kelly Rigg: Invoking FDR: Where Is the Leadership on Climate Change?

With the exception of nuclear war, I can't think of any greater existential threat to human civilization than climate change and its related impacts. If ever we needed an "FDR moment," now would be it.