Big Picture Science - Skeptic Check: Hostile Climate
It’s a record we didn’t want to break. The carbon dioxide
concentration in the atmosphere has hit the 400 parts-per-million mark, a
level at which some scientists say is a point of no return for stopping
climate change. A few days later, a leading newspaper prints an op-ed
essay that claims CO
2 is getting a bad rap: it’s actually good for the planet. The more the better.
Skeptic Phil Plait rebuts the CO
2-is-awesome idea while a
paleontologist paints a picture of what Earth was like when the
notorious gas last ruled the planet. Note: humans weren’t around.
Plus, our skit says NO to O
2 … and a claim that climate
change skeptics have borrowed from the Creationists’ playbook in
challenging the teaching of established science in schools.
Guests:
- Phil Plait – Astronomer, Skeptic, and author of Slate Magazine’s blog Bad Astronomy
- Peter Ward – Paleontologist and biologist, Department of Earth and Space Sciences, University of Washington in Seattle
- Josh Rosenau – Programs and Policy Director at the National Center for Science Education
- Eugenie Scott – Executive Director of the National Center for Science Education
Permalink:
http://radio.seti.org/episodes/Skeptic_Check_Hostile_ClimateYou
can listen to this and other episodes at
http://radio.seti.org/, and
be sure to check out
Blog Picture Science,
the companion blog to the radio show.