Another Climategate scientist cleared (again)

Another Climategate scientist cleared (again)

by A Person | Published on July 3rd, 2010, 11:09 am | Science

Another 'Climategate' scientist has been cleared

NYT An American scientist accused of manipulating research findings on climate science was cleared of that charge by his university on Thursday, the latest in a string of reports to find little substance in the allegations known as Climategate.

An investigative panel at Pennsylvania State University, weighing the question of whether the scientist, Michael E. Mann, had “seriously deviated from accepted practices within the academic community for proposing, conducting or reporting research or other scholarly activities,” declared that he had not.

Dr. Mann said he was gratified by the findings, the second report from Penn State to clear him. An earlier report had exonerated him of related charges that he suppressed or falsified data, destroyed e-mail and misused confidential information.

Climategate has turned out to be a complete bust. Email mining is as honest as quote mining.

Not that it will change any minds, there are simply too many Americans brought up to distrust and disbelieve science. No wonder American science standards are in trouble. (2004, 2007, 2009)

A Person wrote:Not that it will change any minds, there are simply too many Americans brought up to distrust and disbelieve science.

I was going to say -- the scientists can be exonerated by any and all investigations, they'll still be "guilty" in the eyes of deniers.

I keep wondering what motivates everyday people to buy the line that climate change needs to be denied. They obviously don't get any money from keeping emissions at the present rate, the way energy companies would. And cutting back on consumption of energy would only lower their expenses. Maybe it's simply fear of change...

I think they deny it because there life is good now, and they don't want it to change. There fearful of giving up something for the greater good.

Liv wrote:I think they deny it because there life is good now, and they don't want it to change. There fearful of giving up something for the greater good.

I suppose that fear of change is natural. But to let it take control of your better judgment is not only counterproductive, it's downright lethal.

Just think -- if Nixon's efforts to make America energy independent had been successful, we would never have been even a tiny bit interested in Iraq, Kuwait or Iran. How much better off could this nation have become?

They'd find another excuse. Vietnam and Korea weren't fought over oil and oil was not the prime reason for Afghanistan and Iraq. In the 50 & 60's it was Communism, 90's and 00's it's Islam.