The New Exchange

You are not logged in. Would you like to login or register?



6/05/2017 6:20 pm  #1


Sad and Pathetic

"...the earth moves closer to the sun every year – you know the rotation of the earth. We’re moving closer to the sun."
— Scott Wagner 


PA GOPer’s climate change theory debunked: Nope, not getting closer to the sun

Republican Pa. Sen. Scott Wagner believes that climate change is probably happening. He also says he believes some of that change is "manmade," too.

But Wagner, a state senator from York in the midst of a run for governor, seemed this week to cite a more celestial reason why things are getting a little warmer while he was laying out policy proposals related to natural gas drilling in Pennsylvania. In a talk with natural gas advocates in Harrisburg, Wagner said climate change is probably happening, but the government should nevertheless pare down restrictive regulations on the natural gas drilling industry.

"I haven’t been in a science class in a long time, but the earth moves closer to the sun every year -- you know the rotation of the earth," Wagner said, according to State Impact, an NPR affiliate. "We’re moving closer to the sun."

He added, "We have more people. You know, humans have warm bodies. So is heat coming off? Things are changing, but I think we are, as a society, doing the best we can."

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

We decided to check his claim: Is the Earth really moving closer to the sun? And has body heat contributed to global climate change?

Let’s start with the, er, "manmade" option first: Despite Wagner’s question, there is no evidence to suggest human body heat is causing global climate change. As PolitiFact has pointed out time and time again, the overwhelming majority of experts agree that climate change is happening and humans are causing it largely through producing carbon dioxide that exacerbates the Earth’s greenhouse effect.

Dave Goldberg, an associate department head for undergraduate studies and a professor in Drexel University’s Department of Physics, said the idea that human body heat is changing the temperature is "absurd." He said the regular energy collected from the sun is about a million times larger than the energy humans emit through body heat, so Wagner was "off by literally a factor of a million."

Wagner did say with more confidence though that the Earth "moves closer to the sun every year," but that claim -- and the way he used it -- also has little root in scientific evidence.

Donald Schneider, a distinguished professor and head of Penn State’s Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, said "on average, we aren’t changing our distance and the Earth is not spiraling into the sun continuously."

Technically, the Earth does move closer to the sun every year -- and then it moves back, in that same year. That’s because the Earth doesn’t orbit around the sun in a circular motion. Instead, Schneider explained, it maintains an elliptical orbit, so for half the year, the Earth is moving toward the sun and for the other half it’s moving away. Then the process, which Schneider said wouldn’t have an impact on climate change "on human time scales," repeats every year.

http://www.politifact.com/pennsylvania/statements/2017/mar/31/scott-wagner/pa-gopers-climate-change-theory-debunked-nope-not-/


We live in a time in which decent and otherwise sensible people are surrendering too easily to the hectoring of morons or extremists. 
 

6/05/2017 6:26 pm  #2


Re: Sad and Pathetic

It is easy to see why the GOP hates real science ! 


"Do not confuse motion and progress, A rocking horse keeps moving but does not make any progress"
 
 

6/05/2017 6:32 pm  #3


Re: Sad and Pathetic

You know, a lot of people are starting to use that sirachi sauce.
I bet that warms up the planet quite a bit!


We live in a time in which decent and otherwise sensible people are surrendering too easily to the hectoring of morons or extremists. 
     Thread Starter
 

6/05/2017 6:42 pm  #4


Re: Sad and Pathetic

And here I thought Scott would attribute the human contribution to global warming to gaseous emissions due to stuffing themselves with too many Charlie donuts.

 

6/05/2017 8:06 pm  #5


Re: Sad and Pathetic

Speaking of science classes, did any of these people actually take any?

 

6/06/2017 5:16 am  #6


Re: Sad and Pathetic

I don't think that they have too many science classes at Waste Management.

And the head of the House Science Committee is a climate change denier with absolutely no background in the sciences.


We live in a time in which decent and otherwise sensible people are surrendering too easily to the hectoring of morons or extremists. 
     Thread Starter
 

6/06/2017 7:01 am  #7


Re: Sad and Pathetic

Brings to mind the saying ....

 Better to Remain Silent and Be Thought a Fool than to Speak and Remove All Doubt

Last edited by tennyson (6/06/2017 7:01 am)


"Do not confuse motion and progress, A rocking horse keeps moving but does not make any progress"
 
 

Board footera

 

Powered by Boardhost. Create a Free Forum