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→‎Lead section: policy responses: re: Dmcq: I'm happy to add a secondary source as you suggest
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::::The first sentence in the paragraph is a straightforward summary of the section 'Possible responses to global warming' and basically lists the headings in that so there's no problem with no cites on that. The bit you are talking about corresponds best I think with the section 'Political discussion' which doesn't seem to be fully up to date with the Paris Agreement but is near to it. I wasn't complaining about the scholarship at all or what was there, I was just wanting a secondary source for weight of the bit put in. Newspapers aren't great for detail but the do provide weight for instance the Guardian [https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/dec/12/paris-climate-deal-key-points] 'Governments have agreed to “pursue efforts” to limit warming to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels: something that would have seemed unthinkable just a few months ago.' [[User:Dmcq|Dmcq]] ([[User talk:Dmcq|talk]]) 19:50, 8 August 2016 (UTC)
::::The first sentence in the paragraph is a straightforward summary of the section 'Possible responses to global warming' and basically lists the headings in that so there's no problem with no cites on that. The bit you are talking about corresponds best I think with the section 'Political discussion' which doesn't seem to be fully up to date with the Paris Agreement but is near to it. I wasn't complaining about the scholarship at all or what was there, I was just wanting a secondary source for weight of the bit put in. Newspapers aren't great for detail but the do provide weight for instance the Guardian [https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/dec/12/paris-climate-deal-key-points] 'Governments have agreed to “pursue efforts” to limit warming to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels: something that would have seemed unthinkable just a few months ago.' [[User:Dmcq|Dmcq]] ([[User talk:Dmcq|talk]]) 19:50, 8 August 2016 (UTC)
::::: Thanks for the response. I'm happy to add a secondary source as you suggest. [[User:Enescot|Enescot]] ([[User talk:Enescot|talk]]) 17:58, 15 August 2016 (UTC)


== Coping vs Adapting ==
== Coping vs Adapting ==

Revision as of 17:58, 15 August 2016

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Semi-protected edit request on 5 July 2016

I think it should mention about the purple polar bears that are being affected. 86.20.78.92 (talk) 19:14, 5 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]

The section Global warming#Ecological systems, and a link to Climate change and ecosystems, with mention of polar bears, should suffice. — Andy W. (talk ·ctb) 19:38, 5 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]

citation needed: 97 to 100% agreed with the consensus: most of the current warming is anthropogenic

A citation is needed for this statement:

While up to 18% of scientists surveyed might disagree with the consensus view, when restricted to scientists publishing in the field of climate, 97 to 100% agreed with the consensus: most of the current warming is anthropogenic (caused by humans)

the statement is not supported by the provided source. The 18% almost certainly from Doran and Zimmerman "Examining the scientific consensus on climate change" (2009). That same article is also often sourced for a 97% figure, but that 97% did not agree with "most of the current warming is anthopogenic" but instead with "human activity is a significant contributing factor in changing mean global temperatures" Poodleboy (talk) 02:29, 16 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]

I, for one, would have no problem with changing the wording to match the wording in the book. Rick Norwood (talk) 11:29, 16 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
I favor
(A) Delete existing text in this section
(B) Add new text "Multiple assessments of scientists' individual opinions have found that 90-100% of publishing climate scientists agree that humans are causing recent global warming." cite: "Consensus on consensus: a synthesis of consensus estimates on human-caused global warming"
(C) Elaborate in sub article Surveys of scientists' views on climate change
I could live with Rick's suggestion, unlesss someone proposes we use a different source altogether.
NewsAndEventsGuy (talk) 14:52, 16 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Prefer NAEG's proposal, with the minor quibble that "..are causing recent global warming" seems like an odd mix of tenses. Shock Brigade Harvester Boris (talk) 15:18, 16 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Most of the statements in the reply article are far more probabilistic than "causing recent warming", using phrases like "contributing" and "likely". If cause is used it should at best be "a cause". Researchers studying the consensus tend to use phrases and standards which exclude only deniers and not luke warmers. More of the past work can be retained, just by citing and representing the source actually used, Doran and Zimemerman (2009), it is cited in the synthesis article. This text would be an accurate representation of that source: While up to 18% of scientists surveyed might disagree with the consensus view, when restricted to scientists publishing in the field of climate, 97 to 100% agreed human activity is a significant contributing factor to the current warming.Poodleboy (talk) 18:05, 16 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Poodleboy, Doran is a SINGLE taking of scientists' pulse, and its already seven years old. In contrast this new paper reports on MULTIPLE takings of scientists' pulse and is from this year (2016). The rest I ignore for reasons others have already pointed out to you, e.g., WP:FORUM and WP:Original research.NewsAndEventsGuy (talk) 20:28, 16 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Boris, I agree its awkward and if we can agree I'd be pleased to alter the wording, which I borrowed from the abstact of the paper. NewsAndEventsGuy (talk) 20:28, 16 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
NewsAndEventsGuy, most of the studies reviewed in the 2016 rely on their work from before the 2013 publication of IPCC AR5, and the considerable hiatus literature since. Poodleboy (talk) 00:05, 17 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
you are implying hiatus research has altered scientific opinion, but you are not implying the RS on which your theory is predicated. Implied OR is still something I ignore.NewsAndEventsGuy (talk) 03:15, 17 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Actually, you implied that time alone made Doran less relevant, I merely pointed out that the 2016 article merely rehashed the authors similarly old results, and that it was more than just time that had passed, a lot of developments in the science had also occurred and the pause had raised questions about the significance of the human contribution in the minds of scientists who are part of the consensus.Poodleboy (talk) 07:09, 17 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Actually that survey of surveys said 'We have shown that the scientific consensus on AGW is robust'. Anyway how about just scientists or climate change scientists rather than scientists who are part of the consensus thanks. The scientific consensus is not an affiliation like a trade union or political parties. Dmcq (talk) 08:52, 17 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
"pointing out" things which, accordivng to you, should be taken into accountl is impermissible WP:OR unless you have an RS . Since it is merely your conjecture that scientists opinions have changed I decline to debate the matter further, except to say that at some point repeated OR based argumentation becomes disruptiveNewsAndEventsGuy (talk) 10:24, 17 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
I think I can agree with your B text, if you take the 100% down to 97%. The 100% was abstracts not scientists. Agreed? Poodleboy (talk) 11:33, 17 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
B gives a range that does not imply high accuracy. Your suggestion would imply accuracy and at that accuracy would contradict the source. Also you are doing OR again. Dmcq (talk) 17:08, 17 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
The text says scientists and the only result higher that 97% is abstracts, that seems a legitimate distinction, there were numbers lower than 90% also that at least involved scientists. The abstracts methodology was always questionable anyway. Is this such a terrible price to pay for consensus? Poodleboy (talk) 20:53, 17 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
We don't second guess and reinterpret papers. The very first line says "The consensus that humans are causing recent global warming is shared by 90%–100% of publishing climate scientists according to six independent studies by co-authors of this paper". If you want to get your ideas into Wikipedia go and write a paper and get it peer reviewed. Do not go about analysing papers and coming up with your own conclusions. It does not say 90%-97%. Go and read WP:OR. Internalize what it says. Stop wasting other peoples' time. Look at the second pillar of WP:5P. It says "Editors' personal experiences, interpretations, or opinions do not belong." Editors doing what you keep trying to do would destroy Wikipedia. Dmcq (talk) 21:19, 17 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Well you know I'm glad to hear that, because my argument is that we shouldn't reinterpret abstracts as scientists. The 100% figure is clearly identified as abstracts. I vote for no reinterpretation. Thou doth protest too much, methinks. Poodleboy (talk) 21:54, 17 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
We do not get to reinterpret the data. You are engaging in disruptive behaviour. It is no excuse that you think you know better than the author what they should have said. Dmcq (talk) 23:57, 17 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Instead of basing new text on the ABSTRACT (my original suggestion) I now think it would be better to base it on the text of the paper's body. The relevant parts might include

From pdf pg1 - Climate scientists overwhelmingly agree that humans are causing recent global warming. The consensus position is articulated by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) statement that ‘human in fluence has been the dominant cause of the observed warming since the mid-20th century.‘

(cite omitted)

From pdf pg 6 - We have shown that the scientific consensus on AGW is robust, with a range of 90%-100% depending on the exact question, timing and sampling methodology. This is supported by multiple independent studies despite variations in the study timing, definition of consensus, or differences in methodology including surveys of scientists, analyses of literature or of citation networks.

NewsAndEventsGuy (talk) 23:09, 17 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Basing it on the starts of the introduction and conclusion seems reasonable. Dmcq (talk) 00:02, 18 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
I didn't know you were just in the abstract. I was already pointing out that the dependence on the exact question and methodology. But you should keep in mind that the introduction is not a peer review result, the opinion of the authors that the IPCC statement articulates the consensus, is not the conclusion they were able to draw from the methodology they used.Poodleboy (talk) 03:16, 18 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
You must realize by now that you are just not able to work in a way that is acceptable to you within the constraints of Wikipedia. You just seem unable to accept that we have to follow the authors rather than doing our own research from their data. They drew the conclusion from the data. The paper was peer reviewed. That is really the end of it. You are just pissing on Wikipedia with your opinions. Your opinion is worthless against a peer reviewed paper. Dmcq (talk) 10:52, 18 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Quit talking about me and talking about the substance. It is not original research to understand the paper, you should try it. "abstracts" are not "scientists" Poodleboy (talk) 11:04, 18 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Reading the papers and understanding them is fine. Putting forth on your own ideas here is not. This is a talk page for improving the article and original thought is not allowed in the article. Please desist from forum type discussions. Talk about your own ideas elsewhere where I'm sure there are lots of people eager to engage with you. Dmcq (talk) 11:27, 18 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Whose idea was it to put "scientists" together with "100%"? Where were you with your WP:OR accusations then? Are you sure you are not WP:POV editing? Do you have the patience required to reach a consensus, you keep mentioning waste of time? Poodleboy (talk) 11:55, 18 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
The abstract says 'we'. At the start of the abstract they say 'The consensus that humans are causing recent global warming is shared by 90%–100% of publishing climate scientists according to six independent studies by co-authors of this paper.' I do not accuse the authors of OR. I accuse you of OR. Whether they are wrong or right is immaterial to WP:OR, we are not qualified to assess that. If you have a problem with the WP:OR policy go and try changing it but until then just stop wasting peoples time. Dmcq (talk) 12:12, 18 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Well, if the authors of the paper itself, get it wrong. I can't argue with that.Poodleboy (talk) 12:23, 18 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Thanks. If you think there is a problem WP:WEIGHT might be the best thing to look at. But WP:OR is simply verboten. Dmcq (talk) 13:08, 18 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Agree, but note weight is due to the majority published expert view, and a minority view promoted by contrarians or deniers need not be shown at all. . . dave souza, talk 18:03, 18 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Any arguments based on WEIGHT also need to predicated on articulated RSs, not just your opinion. Discussions of appropriate weight inherently involve a comparison to other RSs, else they are just another form of OR.NewsAndEventsGuy (talk) 17:51, 18 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Should This Be Renamed "Global Static Temperature"? or "Slight Warming?"

No

I have just begun looking at the data concerning the global warming theory (including pro- and con-) & confess that I don't know the truth of this. But in looking at the data, as on the chart on the article page, I note that the shape of the graph is greatly influenced by the vertical scale. What would the graph look like if the vertical scale were laid out in 1 degree units -- relatively flat? What scale would be on an NPOV chart? And the chart shows about a 1 degree C increase in temperature in the last 1/2 century. Now if the increase had been .0001 degree, would we call that "warming" or "status quo," given that 0 change is unlikely, but that there are approximations of 0? So if the temp has gone up 1 degree in half a century, is not that relatively stable, that is, essentially static? And are there really reliable secondary sources on world wide temperature history based on thermometers say at the corners of every cubic mile of ocean, from the sea floor to the surface just to measure the temperature of the ocean? -- likewise for the temperature of the entire volume of the globe -- are there references to the temperature at the corners of every cubic mile of the earth, that sort of thing. Can we really know how many thermometers and where they have to be placed in order to generalize? And have the secondary sources covered such epistemological concerns?

The article launches forth with: "Global warming and climate change are terms for the observed century-scale rise in the average temperature of the Earth's climate system . . . ." Should that statement be revised to say "Slight Global warming . . . the observed slight century-scale rise . . ."? (PeacePeace (talk) 22:22, 17 July 2016 (UTC))[reply]
No. --McSly (talk) 22:41, 17 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Everything is relative, including both our knowledge and the temperature record. But we are very certain that the temperature increase over the last half century or so is indeed significant and probably unprecedented in speed. You can try arguing with a judge that being 50 kph over the speed limit is not even visible on a diagram that plots all speeds as factions of c, but that's unlikely to convince him or her. If you are interested in learning more, I suggest that you start by browsing our set of articles first, to get an overview of what we know and how we know what we know. --Stephan Schulz (talk) 22:45, 17 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Some things are absolute, too many climate models are "matching" anomalies and trends, but are running as much as a degree C cooler in absolute temperature. That is 7% less water vapor and explains how they are under representing the increased precipitation and acceleration of the water cycle that is associated with the warming in the observations. Poodleboy (talk) 03:24, 18 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
From a physical point of view we should be measuring in degrees Kelvin and a 1°C rise is about 0.3% relative to that scale. So yes from a physical point of view it is only a slight warming, it is only a second order effect as a difference between warming and cooling, and that is part of what makes the science difficult. However for us human beings living on this planet it is extremely important as we can only live well in a fairly narrow band of temperatures and most of the species on earth can only survive in an even smaller range than us. Go up to 4°C and we're talking about severe difficulties around the world. So no 'slight' isn't reasonable when one considers it as affecting us. Plus on Wikipedia there is a policy that we name articles if at all possible according to how the topics are normally referred to. How did you find this article? I bet you didn't type 'global static temperature' or 'slight warming'. Dmcq (talk) 11:14, 18 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Curious point of view. Some of the "but it's okay" crowd point out that global temperatures have been higher in the past, and life went on. I think the real problem with the on-going warming is not how much (however "slight"), nor the absolute temperature reached, but how fast it is coming. Although the article has one "main" link to Abrupt climate change, it is kind of buried. I wonder if the significance of being rapid ought to be given more prominence. ~ J. Johnson (JJ) (talk) 22:49, 25 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
The Celsius scale is in the right range for us, since we are in the regime where 1C increase results in about 7% water vapor increase. We don't have good information on whether the increase is rapid, since most paleo temperature proxies have resolutions of 20 to 100 years or worse and accuracies too small to rule out changes of comparable magnitude unless sustained for longer periods than ours so far.Poodleboy (talk) 18:28, 26 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
I don't get that argument. If an increase by 1 °C increases water vapour by about 7%, so will an increase by 1 K, or by 1.8 °F. Why prefer one scale over the other based on that? --Stephan Schulz (talk) 12:01, 31 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Of course the Kelvin and Celcius degrees are the same size, but Celcius is defined on a range that is more relevant to the water cycle in our climate. Water freezes at zero C for instance. Approximations to the Clausius–Clapeyron relation are specified in terms of Celcius. Modern temperature records are in Celcius as are mostly relationships published in the proxy climate temperature literature. [1] Poodleboy (talk) 15:39, 14 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Yes, I acknowledge the fact. I still don't understand the argument. And both Anders Celsius and the unit are spelled in English as in German, with only one 'c' for the whole term ;-). --Stephan Schulz (talk) 15:52, 14 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Well, it isn't much of an argument, it boils down to tradition and the water cycle. Poodleboy (talk) 17:05, 14 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]
The current rise is pretty fast but I think without all the borders and fences most animals would be able to move to where it suited them rather than having to evolve to suit the new conditions. It is us that are liable to turn it into a major extinction event rather than a minor one. Not that that isn't happening already anyway Holocene extinction. Dmcq (talk) 11:32, 31 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
"most animals would be able to move"....except for animals that already live on the extreme end of a naturally delimited range, or in a mountain habitat that simply keeps shrinking as climate zones move up-mountain, or depend on other ecosystem components that can't move as quickly (like, say, long-lived plants), or.... --Stephan Schulz (talk) 11:53, 31 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Those changes need to be kept in perspective of what they experience seasonally, and over multidecade ocean modes. The Holocene optimum was warmer and the MWP also may well have been warmer. To often we underestimate their robustness and adaptability. Poodleboy (talk) 19:17, 14 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Robustness and adaptability already in evidence in Louisiana, despite flooding which has "never happened before,” said the governor. Time to put this to bed; collapse of stout party. . . dave souza, talk 20:35, 14 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]
The flooding probably has never happened before, given land use changes and attempts to channel the rivers, prior flooding would probably have been quite different. But the governor has no idea whether the rains have ever happened before. Even 60 years of experience is only about 1 sample of the climate, given multi-decade ocean modes. Poodleboy (talk) 06:57, 15 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Can we update 2000_year_temperature_comparison?

I don't understand why no one in 12 years has bothered to update the marker for "2004". 2015 was more than 0.3 C warmer than 2004, which would be literally off the chart by the scale used in this graph. If a graphic artist is unwilling to modify the chart, can we at least point this out in the caption? Dawei20 (talk) 17:37, 30 July 2016 (UTC)[reply]

2016

Is http://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/thumbnails/image/2016temperature.png accurate? https://www.scientificamerican.com/sciam/assets/Image/2016Jan-MarTempAnomalies_720_492_s_c1_c_c.jpg appears somewhat more substantial. EllenCT (talk) 04:25, 2 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]

I'm not quite sure what you're asking. The two graphs show somewhat different data. The first one shows the temperature trend when averaged over the first six months of each year, while the second shows monthly temperature over the about past two and a half years. Both are from competent, trustworthy sources (NASA and Climate Central respectively). Shock Brigade Harvester Boris (talk) 13:00, 2 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]
That second graph doesn't explain what the baseline is and there is no zero value on the y axis. And shouldn't the beginning of one year start at the same place as the end of the previous year? Was there that much of a jump between December 2015 and January 2016? It's not a good candidate for this article, IMHO. — Gorthian (talk) 17:50, 2 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]
The image shows "Year to date" averages, so December 2015 is the average over all of 2015, during which the anomaly increased significantly. January 2016 is only January 2016, so it starts off immediately at the record value reached in December. So the image probably is technically ok, but I agree that it is easy to misunderstand and not very suitable for the article. --Stephan Schulz (talk) 18:11, 2 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Ah. So it's basically a record of the running average anomaly, and restarts entirely at each new year. Thanks for the explanation. — Gorthian (talk) 18:57, 2 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]

I can see the point of the first graph, but the second one is an odd way to present data for multiple years. It would be helpful to show it in context. Shock Brigade Harvester Boris (talk) 00:34, 3 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Lead section: policy responses

I've been thinking of revising the paragraph of the lead that deals with policy responses to global warming. Here's my suggested revision:

Policy responses to global warming include mitigation by emissions reduction, adaptation to its effects, building systems resilient to its effects, and possible climate engineering. Most countries are parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), whose ultimate objective is to prevent dangerous anthropogenic climate change. Parties to the UNFCCC have agreed that deep cuts in emissions are required and that global warming should be limited to well below 2 °C relative to pre-industrial levels, with efforts made to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 °C.

References: As cited in current revision and Paris agreement, Article 2, paragraph 1(a), p.3.

Enescot (talk) 18:39, 6 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]

I've a bit of a problem with that because it is a primary source, and because it is written by politicians it needs some interpretation to say what should be taken from it. Dmcq (talk) 19:02, 6 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]
It has the advantage of conciseness relative to the current version. The WP:PRIMARY concern could easily be addressed by citing a secondary source; COP21 had plenty of coverage. Shock Brigade Harvester Boris (talk) 20:55, 6 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]
I'm ok with this in general. Here are three comments
First, is part of the proposed first sentence redundant? Here is a breakdown of that text-
Policy responses to global warming include
(A) mitigation by emissions reduction,
(B) adaptation to its effects,
(C) building systems resilient to its effects, and
(D) possible climate engineering.
As I understand the lingo, part C is redundant with part B and could be trimmed out.
Second, could we change "responses" to "Possible policy responses..." In our various sub articles we are describing these concepts in general, and we end up with articles about what they could do, as well as what they have actually done.
Third, when I was a newbie I was put off by "mitgation", and there's way too much 50 cent words when 25 cents would do. Could we write it ::Possible policy responses to global warming include [[Climate change mitigation|prevention]], [[Adaptation to global warming|adaptation]], and [[climate engineering]].
NewsAndEventsGuy (talk) 17:38, 7 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Yes, add "possible". Climate engineering is a possible policy response but can't really be considered as current policy response. TimOsborn (talk) 20:59, 7 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]
PS In addition to my earlier remark, Dmcq objected due to WP:PRIMARY. I don't wsee the problem here. The proposed text would say what the UNFCC's position is regarding dangerous climate change. Primary sources are fine when we report what the source says/thinks, etc., which is all we would be doing here.NewsAndEventsGuy (talk) 02:36, 8 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]
I thought I had explained myself but seemingly even that short statement was not properly understood. The document was quite a bit longer and was written by politicians and this is supposed to summarize a part of it. Interpreting, getting the important parts and summarizing requires a secondary source. I have no objection to primary source in the body of the article to back things up but I really would prefer to see secondary sources used in the lead for the overview. Otherwise it is verging into original research grabbing bits of primary sources one thinks are important. Dmcq (talk) 08:28, 8 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]
In this proposed POLICY paragraph we are trying to present a top-level summary of POLICY position of the planet's most encompassing group of POLICY MAKERS, i.e. the UNFCCC. Are you saying their own words are not RS for their own views?NewsAndEventsGuy (talk) 12:09, 8 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Also, do we really have to have a cite here? (see WP:LEADCITE) NewsAndEventsGuy (talk) 12:09, 8 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]
It is okay to have a bit of the lead summarize a section of the article. I'm not certain if that is what you mean though. As to the POLICY in capital letters etc business, what they wrote is a reliable source but it is not a secondary source and I believe for the summary or an overview we really do need a secondary source to give context and assess weight and interpret what they mean in accordance with WP:OR. Surely we have some secondary source for this?, or do you have some problem with us trying to follow Wikipedia's policies and guidelines? Dmcq (talk) 12:39, 8 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]
You're ignoring the substance of my comment. I have stated an opinion that the proposed cite does in fact comply with "Wikipedia's policies and guidelines". If you can connect the dots in a rebuttal or if you have a different cite to propose, I am listening. NewsAndEventsGuy (talk) 15:55, 8 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Complying with RS does not mean complying with the policies and guidelines. I was pointing at OR not RS. As to LEADCITE I agree with that. However we are talking here about something based on a primary source rather than summarizing a part of the article. I was not proposing a change, if I was I would have looked for a good source. Please do not talk about connecting the dots as if I am stupid. Dmcq (talk) 16:16, 8 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]
I don't think you're stupid, just think your rhetorical baiting "or do you have some problem with us trying to follow Wikipedia's policies and guidelines?" doesn't connect any dots, and so does not lead to article improvements. Since your concern is policy WP:OR, note that the section of that policy regarding WP:PRIMARY sources says in part "A primary source may only be used on Wikipedia to make straightforward, descriptive statements of facts that can be verified by any educated person with access to the primary source but without further, specialized knowledge." The proposed cite supports the proposed text within the meaning of this sentence, does it not? NewsAndEventsGuy (talk) 16:43, 8 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Wikipedia's policies and guidelines ask us to produce secondary sources for weight and interpretation. And I gave reasons why we can't just summarize what they said directly. We can either use LEADCITE or else do the job properly with a secondary source but summarizing a primary source is not covered by either of those and LEADCITE does not help with summarizing a primary source. You seem to want to put in that summary without a secondary source and seem to think it is other people's problem to find some secondary source to back up an editor's summary of a primary source. Dmcq (talk) 18:41, 8 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]
@Enescot: could you please repost the proposed text, and include the sources in the current version you suggested we also include? That might help move things forward NewsAndEventsGuy (talk) 17:18, 8 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]
How about posting a secondary source to give it weight in the lead of the article? Or else just summarize what is in the article per LEADCITE? I really would like it to follow how things are done in Wikipedia. rather than just grabbing a primary source and taking bits out of it to put into the lead according to some editors interpretation of weight. Why do you want to stick an unsupported primary source into the lead? Dmcq (talk) 18:22, 8 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]
I see the very last citation in the paragraph [2] is a secondary source so that can be used for weight but it doesn't cover many points but there's a number at Paris Agreement which do for other bits. Dmcq (talk) 18:54, 8 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Thanks for the comments. I'll respond to Dmcq first. With respect, I have spend some time reading about this subject so I think I have some idea of what issues are important. I do not think I am placing undue emphasis on the 1.5 degrees C limit. For example, the importance of the earlier 2 C limit is discussed in the authoritative IPCC report and the IEA's World Energy Outlook. Reliable sources also show that the new 1.5 C limit is important [3] [4] [5]. Enescot (talk) 18:57, 8 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]
The first sentence in the paragraph is a straightforward summary of the section 'Possible responses to global warming' and basically lists the headings in that so there's no problem with no cites on that. The bit you are talking about corresponds best I think with the section 'Political discussion' which doesn't seem to be fully up to date with the Paris Agreement but is near to it. I wasn't complaining about the scholarship at all or what was there, I was just wanting a secondary source for weight of the bit put in. Newspapers aren't great for detail but the do provide weight for instance the Guardian [6] 'Governments have agreed to “pursue efforts” to limit warming to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels: something that would have seemed unthinkable just a few months ago.' Dmcq (talk) 19:50, 8 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]
Thanks for the response. I'm happy to add a secondary source as you suggest. Enescot (talk) 17:58, 15 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Coping vs Adapting

Until now, I had been using these words interchangeably. Oops. See "Coping Versus Adapting" at IRIN. This is likely an area where our articles need work to bring them up to date. NewsAndEventsGuy (talk) 17:05, 9 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]

section heading neutrality

FYI, this is a small thing, but if eds are interested, I have started a discussion of neutrality in section headings in the climate pages, and the thread is here. Although I used the recent example being played out above, there is a general principle that has often been an issue in these pages and at least in my view is worth taking a gnomish look at. NewsAndEventsGuy (talk) 14:03, 15 August 2016 (UTC)[reply]