The melting Arctic ice cap recently made headlines with the release of the extensive Catlin Arctic Survey and WWF (World Wildlife Fund) data ahead of the UN’s climate summit, finding that the ice is too thin to survive next summer’s melt season.
Image: Arctic ice photograph by Paul Nicklen
This news was reported differently from one publication to the next, ranging from “Arctic Largely Ice Free in Summer Within Ten Years” to “Arctic ice will be completely gone in 20 years” and several other reports with more vague headlines like “Arctic to be 'ice-free in summer'”
All the stories’ (I looked at) reliability lies in that authoritative (mainly on grounds of their histories) publications like BBC, AFP, National Georgrapic etc reported first hand on them, except for The Tech Herald. Most publications wrote informing pieces explaining the study and its findings in understandable terms to the average reader, while science publications went into greater scientific depth. The Tech Herald reported disappointingly little on the topic. In my opinion National Geographic was by far the best middle way read between a deeply scientific and a general explanation.
A flaw seems to occur with reference to “Wadhams said the results agreed… Recent changes in wind patterns in the Arctic have also contributed...,” as a reader would reason that “wind” itself is influenced by global warming – a possible reporter misunderstanding?
From all the reports it remains clear: Global warming is here and we urgently need solutions!
Reference:
No comments:
Post a Comment