When I started in the field of atmospheric chemistry more than 20 years ago, we atmospheric scientists were a small, quiet lot, relatively speaking, at least in the view of the general public. I had to repeat my field of study to people I met. "Atmis-what?" I remember one time at some bar in Atlanta I met this guy who asked me what I did. I told him that I did modeling. He did a double-take.
"Who with?"
I told him.
He returned to silence and left me alone the rest of the night.
I remember reading a few articles as a grad student on global warming. I remember wondering how big of a deal it was going to become in my lifetime, but as a 20 year old, I was fully living in the present and the future was so far away it was in the realm of theoretical.
IPCC reports on the climate, on global warming, have come and gone several times during my career so far. There was usually a bit of worktime lunch hour buzz about the issues. I even worked on an IPCC project once - an intercomparison of chemistry used in various global models, which was of interest to me, and my co-authors and that's about it.
But surely enough, things have been changing and we are finally reaching what one of my colleagues called the "Global Warming Epiphany". Finally, the awareness of the general public is opening up to global warming and the signs that it is happening. Suddenly, this quiet little field has become a hotbed of political posturing and games. These scientists, these climate scientists, some of which are my colleagues, are suddenly finding that their work is being contested in the media, their messages are being watched (and constrained) by the government, and the eyes of the world are upon them. Despite knowing for decades that this time was coming, I think these scientists are still a little caught off guard by the heavy-handed politics
I'm glad the issue is finally getting attention. Finally, the arguments against global warming a) even happening and b) being caused by humans are slowly but surely petering away. The debate is becoming focused on what course of action we can take to minimize the impact. But the crux of that change is that we have landed squarely in the world of politics. Thus these scientists are finding their messages, their work being twisted and rephrased by government representatives. I can't imagine the frustration. Because think what you will about scientists, but I can promise you that most really are completely and totally wed to the truth. Most are not out for fame. Really. There are exceptions of course, but most are truly geeks and experience heart flutterings when the pieces finally click together...or when they neatly fall apart. It is most certainly an art.
In a very funny, sentimental, and almost embarrassing way, though, I feel like my friendly little group of scientists is being lost. No longer are we a bunch of geeks with our heads in the corner of our research world, fascinated by esoteric arguments and feeling fullfillment from our way of defining and solving problems. We're losing our naiveity. I don't mean that comment to reflect that I think the scientists I work with are anything less than the smartest people I have ever known. Most are full of common sense and awareness as well. I just mean that some of the joy of doing science for the simple experience of doing it has been replaced by a global urgency and that our scientific freedom is more difficult to retain.
The latest IPCC summary for policymakers on the impacts of global warming is out.
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