To find this terrestrial carbon sink, scientists have turned to computer models
—
garbage in, garbage out
“To find this terrestrial carbon sink, scientists have turned to computer models” ~
“garbage in, garbage out” ~ PeterPrinciple
And the amount of GIGO generated will be in direct proportion to how badly a scientist wants to: [1] find “evidence” of something that will help politicians be able to justify raising taxes, [2] which will ensure even more “government funding” for his College or University’s “science projects”, [3] which will in turn ensure his ability to obtain tenure and other career “perks”, both personal and professional, down the road.
Scientists question trees’ role in global warming January 12, 2006. 6:00am
European scientists could turn climate science on its head after suggesting trees may contribiute greenhouse gases. (ABC TV)
http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200601/s1545977.htm
BBC News Scientists in Germany have discovered that ordinary plants produce significant amounts of methane, a powerful greenhouse gas which helps trap the sun’s energy in the atmosphere.
...The findings, reported in the journal Nature, have been described as “startling”, and may force a rethink of the role played by forests in holding back the pace of global warming. To their amazement, the scientists found that all the textbooks written on the biochemistry of plants had apparently overlooked the fact that methane is produced by a range of plants even when there is plenty of oxygen. The amount of the gas produced increased when the air was warmer, and when there was more sunlight. The paper estimates that this unexplained phenomenon could account for 10-30% of the world’s methane emissions. The possible implications are set out in Nature by David Lowe of New Zealand’s National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research, who writes: “We now have the spectre that new forests might increase greenhouse warming through methane emissions rather than decrease it by sequestering carbon dioxide.” ...If this turned out to be true, it would have major implications for the rules of the Kyoto Protocol on climate change, which allows countries and companies to offset emissions from the burning of fossil fuels like coal and oil by funding the planting of new forests or the restoration of deforested areas ..” Continue: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/4604332.stm