text:
A public note for UEA, RC and other advocacy groups
Posted by Jeff Id on November 30, 2011
I felt it was important at this stage of Climategate that I give some opinions and express where I'm at personally in this whole mess. I started blogging on climate with a true interest in the science and numbers. There is no question that I've been critical of the politically leftist nature of the environmental movement in general and I had been skeptical of the IPCC for its intentionally bias-creating structure. It is clear that the IPCC can't exist without extreme, dangerous climate change which requires expensive solutions. Without that the group fails to continuously attract funding for the other groups. Still, that is a completely separate issue from data, statistics and methods. Since my introduction to climate science, I have been exposed to numerous flatly false statistical techniques which are often simply accepted by the science as long as the message is right. Shrinking fish, goofy coral papers, false model comparison papers, ridiculous paleo work on and on…. I do not accept the claim that climate scientists believe that selecting preferred data doesn't automatically bias the results. Most high school students would be able to tell you that. Why the community won't reject them is now crystal clear.
These emails are actually far worse than the previous batch because we can see the bias in operation through the completeness of numerous conversations, funding discussions, blocked peer review, deletion of emails, promotion of the right kind of people and denial that anything is wrong. It shows the ugly underbelly of a single-minded group of people who have the firm belief that they are right and that it does not matter if data needs to be massaged to prove it. Soon and Baliunas could not set-back a healthy scientific field by decades with a single paper. In a healthy science, a paper strong enough to change opinions would be pushing it forward. From the emails and papers, the paleoclimatologists featured are convincingly not scientists and I beleive the same is true for many modelers who don't seem to realize the models are running hot. Throughout these emails the featured advocates continually tweak, massage, adjust, reject and modify anything which takes away from the extremist message of Anthropogenic Global Warming. Real Climate website has made the claim that nothing important is in these emails but it is clear from some of the authors featured position in the emails (and the false claim) that RC authors are not in any way qualified to judge. They are so close to their friends good intentions that they have even taken the position that there is nothing at all wrong with selecting the preferred data or adjusting the curves to show what you want.
This is not science.
Yes there is real scientific discussion in the emails, but all too often the discussion is which data supports the conclusions and how it should be used or conveyed for maximum public impact. We can see the regular rejection of data which show X when the real answer you believe is Y. Of course the public has to be able to read more than 3 words in a row e.g. 'hide the decline' to understand most of it but plenty of it is blatant.
It is clear now that climate science is sick in general. This includes modelers, paleo, impact groups and even the biased handling of issues in basic thermometer data. This does not preclude the real scientists who do exist which can see that there is real science to be done. Because of the contentious and tenuous nature of the climate field, those who find contradictory results live ostracized from the field for saying the wrong things. They are aggressively attacked if they don't say the right Gaia-saving lines in every publication. Ed Cook's suggestion of publication followed by retirement to avoid the retaliation is a perfect example.
At this point I beleive that few if any of those featured prominently in these emails will go down in history as people who have contributed to understanding climate in a meaningful way. They are to a person like-minded politically motivated people and it is disgusting to see their treatment of statistics and the abuse of science in general. I'm a pro-business green company owning conservative who doesn't care where the data leads because we need to know the truth. Most of these featured individuals are extremist liberals who don't care either because they need their funding, political result, and the support of their peers. A condition which they, as scientists, work to hide aggressively. After all, it is for the public own good that "the-all-knowing" slave away at their keyboards.
We also understand from the emails that UEA,IPCC and RC scientists see themselves as good people doing the right thing. This is very clear and the lack of separation of the two, brings their general scientific ability into question. They should have shame. They should realize their errors and the huge uncertainty in the results – but they won't.
Yes I am tired of this bullcrap. I didn't want to spend time reading CRU emails – ever. I am not interested in attacking climate science for good work. I was interested in knowing if dangerous global warming was correct. After seeing how such key features of the science work in the backrooms, I don't think we will find out until it happens (or doesn't) from the caliber of today's number mashers. We certainly won't find out from the UEA. Therefore, I will continue to doggedly read and publish these emails in context despite "scientific" lies to the contrary, in the hopes that the media and public will understand the shenanigans and why the science is broken.
Maybe I'll even do more presentations on the variance loss present in every single paleoreconstruction (hockey stick) ever made – it would obviously be impossible to put through a Mannian review. It sounds worth doing except that nobody in paleoscience would listen. It would be a shame if someone managed to create a paper which set paleoscience back a decade by simply pointing out the idiocy of pre-selecting data or regression of long noisy (and often pre-sorted) data on short temperature curves . The little epsilon at the end of the regression guarantees a variance differential. Oh yeah, I can't publish because I haven't taken climate matlab class yet.
What a waste of my life and talents.
If you are a climate scientist who does care, why haven't you spoken up? How is it that you don't separate yourself from these people or call them out on the trickery? Why so few comments on the fake investigations? I know we are not alone in our opinions here.
Disgusted sincerely,
Jeff Condon
72 Responses to "A public note for UEA, RC and other advocacy groups"
November 30, 2011 at 12:57 pm
Where are your own publications? What examples of "real science" can you present to contrast them with the "shrinking fish, goofy coral papers, false model comparison papers, ridiculous paleo work" etc? They don't even need to be yours, just what would you recommend as the standard/best practice in climate science literature? Or are you actually want anyone to believe that a whole field of science, globally, is currupt and untrustworthy?
The whole article is permeated with the sort of looney, ideological bias that deservedly gives the blogs like yours the name "denialosphere". If you really believe that "Soon and Baliunas […] set-back [the] scientific field by decades with a single paper", then I suppose you'll believe just anything, as long it fits the prejudice. I guess the guys who wanted to disrupt Copenhagen played on your bias two years ago with such a good result that they decided to play you again before Durban. And look how well it went.
I can see that you desperately need the warmed-up leftovers of a scandal that wasn't to inflate your own importance ("I felt it was important at this stage of Climategate that I give some opinions and express where I'm at personally in this whole mess" — indeed, Jeff, the world is holding its breath now). But you should have the decency to refrain from the baseless smear and unjustified judgments that you simply can't argue for. Think what you want about the people, but if you choose to pontificate about the science, your righteous wrath means nothing without arguments. Start with something small. For example, try to argue convincingly that "the models are running hot". I can't wait to see you do that.
November 30, 2011 at 1:04 pm
Come on Climate Scientists – step up to the plate and do the right thing. As the latest email release clearly shows, this will not right itself without you. This is not only impacting climate science in a very negative way, but all science. If scientists continue to allow this kind of behavior and remain silent, then they really aren't scientists to begin with – they are politicians. Listen to Jeff's plea and help stop this train wreck.
November 30, 2011 at 1:04 pm
Jeff Bravo – You honest skeptics Watts, Goddard, Real Climate, etc the list is to long have been the only real scientist in this whole mess. And they call you guys nuts. LOL
I have wondered for sometime, was this scam planned?
Because the trends are obvious and with just a small amount of effort and research it was easy. All you had to do was follow Real Science for a week (I remembered the next ice age scare in the 70's). I love his articles from a hundred and fifty years ago.
The trends have been around for hundreds of century's and Liberal's love to play the time game.
I want to know when the seed was planted, who was around, when and where did the money start from. The very, very,very, beginning.
November 30, 2011 at 1:06 pm
I'm beginning to think that G. Staniak is absolutely marvelous parody.
November 30, 2011 at 1:11 pm
It's terrible that these guys are unable to understand that having a brain and an inkling of training in science is enough qualification to know that the almost-entirety of climate science isn't worth the name. Even a philosopher knows what the scientific method is — it's nothing too difficult really. In the end, I'm left wondering what's missing in them.
November 30, 2011 at 1:23 pm
I agree Jeff, the whole thing is mind-numbing in the scale of the misdemeanours involved. But wow even here Grzegorz is setting out his stall. To my mind, the question is:
1/ Has Troll Central told him to disrupt/divert every thread on this site by whatever means necessary in order to distract from the underlying corruption exposed by the emails
2/ Is he a chronic narcissist who feels a need to be the centre of attention
3/ Some combination of 1 and 2…
November 30, 2011 at 1:25 pm
OMG "Looney (sic), ideological bias…"
You cannot be serious! Read the emails, man. There is a lot of ideological bias around and we (all of use who aren't drinking the Kool-Aid!) know where it's coming from.
Jeff Condon didn't set up a system that gives a hockey stick no matter what data is put in. He didn't hide the decline. He didn't bet the farm on one tree. Oh! I haven't got the time or inclination to continue.
Mr. Staniak, do you often run in circles with fingers in ears chanting "Na na na na na, i can't hear you"?
November 30, 2011 at 1:26 pm
Well said, Jeff.
John (1.04) Christopher Booker, UK journalist has written an excellent book forensically analysing the IPPC. The names Bert Brolin, now deceased, and Maurice Strong feature prominently.
November 30, 2011 at 1:36 pm
Yes, the models are on average running warm: http://rankexploits.com/musings/2011/sensitivity-to-baseline-totos-question/
Not yet consistently at the 95% confidence level, but it doesn't look good for the model average. Wait a year or two. Should climate science cull the models which are way too high in projected warming? (Those are what is making the average look bad.) Sure they should, but I doubt they will.
November 30, 2011 at 1:41 pm
Thanks, Jeff, for having the courage to speak out at this time of great fear, social unrest and uncertainly.
Earth's heat source is radically different from the stable heat source "in equilibrium" that world leaders and their consensus scientists perpetuated for the last four decades by ignoring experimental data and observations:
"Deep roots of the global climate scandal (1971-2011)"
Today there is even concern over implications of the pending vote in the US Senate on the National Defense Authorization Act bill:
With kind regards,
Oliver K. Manuel
Former NASA Principal
Investigator for Apollo
Video Summary (1961-2011)
November 30, 2011 at 1:45 pm
Try looking at the evidence objectively instead of spouting the party line.
He's a left wing political hack; the party line is all that matters to him. And yes, of course a few determined people can impose their agenda on everyone… examples are Prohibition, dictatorships of the left and the right, and officially sponsored atrocities throughout history. It is only by resisting the likes of this particular troll, and many others like him, that their left wing agenda can be thwarted.
November 30, 2011 at 1:46 pm
"Useful idiot" is exactly what he is, which is somewhat ironic given that he seems to be Polish. Maybe this sort of forum has been his home since the collapse of the Soviet Union.
November 30, 2011 at 1:47 pm
I'm sorry, you are not allowed to have a different opinion on this topic. Having a different set of politics renders your data/math/stats/logic invalid.
November 30, 2011 at 1:54 pm
kim said
November 30, 2011 at 1:06 pm
He's working for "THE CAUSE"(tm)!!
November 30, 2011 at 2:03 pm
#1 Grzegorz Staniak
> Start with something small. For example, try to argue convincingly that "the models are running hot". I can't wait to see you do that.
For "are the models running hot?", consider visiting Lucia's Blackboard, e.g. yesterday, today. Many more posts in her archives. Much informed discussion in the comments: if you believe the models aren't running hot, have at it.
Re: "Start with something small," I have to laugh. Again. Last week, you started with something small. You made three assertions about Tiljander-in-Mann08, that Mann08's treatment was somehow okay. "Paleoclimate – Rotten to the Core" #14.
Wrong — it isn't okay at all.
I focused on Tiljander because it's something small and easily understood. I started a Tiljander-themed blog because of fruitless conversations with denialists like you.
I've repeatedly pointed out that you haven't provided any evidence for your assertions, and you haven't retracted them, either. "Paleoclimate – Rotten to the Core" #25, #46, #59. "The Right Kind of People", #20, #42.
With your response, you are following in the footsteps of Prof. Mann, and many supporters of the Mainstream, scientists and advocates both.
I have no desire to provoke a crisis of faith over Tiljander. Believe what you will.
But this isn't science.
November 30, 2011 at 2:03 pm
Climategate 2.0 – "The Cause" Movie Trailer
November 30, 2011 at 2:06 pm
A robust scientific field wouldn't have to have kangaroo courts either:
The Soon/Baliunas/Idso/Idso/Legates paper is another contrived piece of hubris from convicted sceptics.
So according to Mike Hulme being sceptical is a convictable offence (email 2973) although I don't remember reading about any trial
November 30, 2011 at 2:20 pm
Mr. Staniak,
You might find it useful to read the "Readers Background" thread which is one of the choices at the head of Jeff's blog. This a listing of self-written biographies of many of the people who comment here – they are not innocents by any means.
You might also consider the possibility that it might take a couple of years of careful reading to reach an understanding of the issues treated here.
November 30, 2011 at 2:21 pm
What really upsets me about all this is that I missed out.
I took astrophysics at university in the mid 70's, and failed, mainly due to getting lost on the maths (yes, plural in the UK).
Had I known then that there was a fledgling subject called "Climate Studies" where basic sums was all you required, I could have got in on the ground floor, and I too could have been flying around the world to conferences in nice hot countries complaining about how these nice hot countries were too hot.
Instead I mistakenly though computing was the future, and have 40 years of programming experience, unsteady career prospects, regular lay-offs (8 so far) and poor pension prospects.
C'est la vie, as those cheese-eating surrender monkeys say.
November 30, 2011 at 2:42 pm
If you really believe that "Soon and Baliunas […] set-back [the] scientific field by decades with a single paper", then I suppose you'll believe just anything, as long it fits the prejudice.
Finally you begin to see the light!!
This is from an email by Phil Jones (climategate 1.0 file 1047390562.txt) sent to:
Ray Bradley, Malcolm Hughes, Scott Rutherford, Michael Mann, Tom Crowley, Keith Briffa, Keith Alverson and a dendro mailing list at Columbia.
It was responded to by:
Michael Mann, Tim Osborn, Edward Cook, Scott Rutherford and Tom Crowley in an email chain that covers 16 emails.
Not one of the responders disagreed about Phil Jones's assertion that Soon and Baliunas set the field back and their tone indicated that they agreed.
So yes you are absolutely correct in that these people "believe just anything, as long it fits the prejudice."
November 30, 2011 at 2:44 pm
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November 30, 2011 at 2:54 pm
Please take note of the time/effort wasted in multiple people replying to Grzegorz Staniak's comments. I think that is probably his objective… to waste people's time. Better to just ignore someone who does not want to engage the substantive issues. (See AMac's multiple requests for substantive comments, all ignored). He has not demonstrated that he knows anything about any relevant subject; not worth the effort.
November 30, 2011 at 2:58 pm
#23 Correction
I mistakenly thought that drdendro@…. was a mailing list. It is, in fact, Dr Dendro himself – Edward Cook.
I also missed Jonathan Overpeck from the list of recipients.
November 30, 2011 at 3:03 pm
#4 John asked if this was planned. I say yes.
See http://www.21stcenturysciencetech.com/Articles%202007/GWHoaxBorn.pdf from a conference in 1975 Margaret Mead said
"What we need from scientists are
estimates, presented with sufficient
conservatism and plausibility but at
the same time as free as possible from
internal disagreements that can be
exploited by political interests, that
will allow us to start building a system
of artificial but effective warnings,
warnings which will parallel the
instincts of animals who flee before
the hurricane, pile up a larger store of
nuts before a severe winter, or of
caterpillars who respond to impending
climatic changes by growing thicker
coats [sic].
Artifical warnings!!!
November 30, 2011 at 3:27 pm
To the Trolls lurking about…..
A Wish To Live Forever
I met a fairy today that said she would grant me one wish.
"I want to live forever," I said.
"Sorry," said the fairy, "I'm not allowed to grant wishes like that!"
"Fine," I said, "then I want to die after Climate Scientists get their heads out of their
"You crafty ba$tard," said the fairy.
November 30, 2011 at 4:11 pm
Grzegorz Staniak-
The "problem" with environmental science may not be universal but it is certainly endemic and not limited to climate. Nitrogen is being prepared to replace the failing CO2 paradigm. It is following the same route with scientists being told in no uncertain terms to fall in line or else and contrary empirical evidence replaced with models. Any scientist that dares to question to new "right thinking" concerning nitrogen is first smeared in the press.
Here from March 29, 2011article By Kevin Spear Orlando Sentinel Murky Waters: Pollution and snails figure into death of Florida springs
"We found that that story is incomplete — that there are other things going on in these systems that probably, perhaps, are more important predicting algal accumulation."
Because that "nitrogen story" is regarded as something like environmental gospel, and nitrogen pollution is a major concern worldwide, Cohen and several of his students speak cautiously of their finding that nitrates may not be the only, or even the most important, cause of the algae overtaking Florida's springs."
Why do you think scientists need to "speak cautiously" and should science ever be compared to a gospel? Consequences perhaps- tenure, grants or being publicly humiliated with no ability to defend oneself? Perhaps because these scientists had already seen what happened to other researchers that dared to contradict the NGO/EPA script:
Herald-Tribune (Sarasota FL) 1/4/11LYONS: Is secret fertilizer report 'tobacco science'?
Sadly climate science is just another example. Nitrogen (reactive forms) cycles through the environment in complex and poorly understood ways. Nitrogen controls will be CO2 on steroids- and unfortunately EPA has just about all the authority it needs to regulate nitrogen.
November 30, 2011 at 5:22 pm
Dear Jeff,
I am with you from the beginning to the ending of this post, and most of what you have posted on this blog.
I am speechless about the lack of self-criticism of the Hockey-team.
Keep up the good work, it is not wasted;)
November 30, 2011 at 5:25 pm
Gregorsz is a system administrator. He is wasting his entire life responding to sites of which he obviously does not have a quantum of knowledge. He is wasting his life by wasting our time. A silly man.
November 30, 2011 at 11:21 pm
[…] […]
November 30, 2011 at 11:24 pm
An fantastic post Jeff, and hits the bulls eye. It's time this rot is halted and the perpetrators are removed from the field.
November 30, 2011 at 11:31 pm
I had thanked Jeff the the network of others that have shown the light of truth on this scam. There are so many.
But I forgot to thank FOIA2011 for thier part. Also, thanks for some more answers to my questions posed by some nice commentors.
As I read, watch, and followed this unfold on the net and news I have been wondering where and what FOIA is doing now.
He/She certainly has done a great service. Staying so quite and patient. No doubt looking over your shoulder to often.
Anyway on the off chance you look this way thanks you very much.
For the AGW cult – I have paid attention enough to sense a pattern have you?
Like a Captain on a War Ship the first CL1 was a shot accross the bow.
Not satisfied the players were willing to stop, FIOA2011 got serious. He/She has scored a hit but the ship is big.
This shot was deeper more direct and implicated Universities, The CRU think groups, NGO's, Publications, and targeted certain very specific bad players.
It also hit very lightly on some US, UK, and a few other government agencies (even one CC to John Holdren, Obama's Science CZAR).
FOIA2011 has hit you with a cluster time bomb. Is there any doubt that the emails go much much deeper?
Take down government's deeper? Remember that one comment "they'll kill us".
FOIA2011 has proved a very skilled and selected operator or operative.
Now the rest of the key figures that are not in these emails (CG2) that wish to remain annonymus have a huge but simple decision to make.
Retreat or advance!!
I believe FOIA2011 is ready for that next move. He/she may have already sent a select few emails to key players not listed in either CL1 or CL2.
I do not think the motive is to destroy the whole science just clean it up. CL1 and CL2 are very careful releases.
PS – Where are those US deligaes in Durban by the way?
November 30, 2011 at 11:37 pm
AGW_Skeptic said
November 30, 2011 at 2:03 pm
LOL!! Thanks for showing us "THE CAUSE"(TM) movie trailer – by the way, they were reciting actual e-mails from the new batch.
I'm also waiting for the password (unlocking the remaining e-mails) to be revealed at a very INCONVENIENT time for the climate cabal…
November 30, 2011 at 11:52 pm
If you are a climate scientist who does care, why haven't you spoken up? How is it that you don't separate yourself from these people or call them out on the trickery? Why so few comments on the fake investigations? I know we are not alone in our opinions here.
That's pretty easy to answer, sadly. There is no central PR organization on the opposition side as there is on the AGW side. People such as NRDC and WWF and many others have Fenton Communications to coordinate the message and provide additional outlets such as Real Climate. There is no similarly coordinated effort on the side of people who are skeptical of the doomsday message. I am very sincere in saying this. Have a read of this: http://www.scribd.com/doc/54170138/4/Fenton-Communications and please read the entire thing. It is dated and does not focus on the AGW debate so much as it is devoted to past exploits of what amounts to the same players. The game is the same. You make people afraid of something and you use that fear to divert billions of dollars.
There is nobody coordinating the message for the other side. We have to rely on truth. Nobody in the media seems to be interested in truth, they seem to be interested in sensational stories that attract eyeballs to ads. In the UK, you have Futerra that provides the "Fenton" service there.
It is a very carefully orchestrated PR campaign. Real Climate was set up by Fenton Communications. It is part of the PR effort. The mistake people have been making is to attempt to have a scientific debate in a PR campaign. It's like bringing a knife to a gunfight. This isn't about science at all. These people know full well they don't really have any convincing proof of AGW, that isn't the point. The point is a very structured PR campaign that convinces enough people that there is a problem and that causes them to roll over and tolerate billions of dollars going to the "right" people.
Folks, there is nothing in this game about science. The game here is basically larceny on the largest scale ever perpetrated on the people of the world. Read the article I linked above. It will probably be easier to download the pdf and read it locally than attempt to read it in the scribd interface. Read every word if it.
November 30, 2011 at 11:53 pm
#4 – "I want to know when the seed was planted, who was around, when and where did the money start from. The very, very,very, beginning"
This may not be the beginning, but at least you can't say we weren't warned:
From Dwight Eisenhower's farewell address January 17, 1961:
"Akin to, and largely responsible for the sweeping changes in our industrial-military posture, has been the technological revolution during recent decades. In this revolution, research has become central, it also becomes more formalized, complex, and costly. A steadily increasing share is conducted for, by, or at the direction of, the Federal government.
Today, the solitary inventor, tinkering in his shop, has been overshadowed by task forces of scientists in laboratories and testing fields. In the same fashion, the free university, historically the fountainhead of free ideas and scientific discovery, has experienced a revolution in the conduct of research. Partly because of the huge costs involved, a government contract becomes virtually a substitute for intellectual curiosity. For every old blackboard there are now hundreds of new electronic computers. The prospect of domination of the nation's scholars by Federal employment, project allocations, and the power of money is ever present — and is gravely to be regarded.
Yet, in holding scientific research and discovery in respect, as we should, we must also be alert to the equal and opposite danger that public policy could itself become the captive of a scientific-technological elite."
The rest is probably "follow the money".
December 1, 2011 at 12:02 am
Arn, the seeds would have come from Fenton who would have started beating the drums and the funding from Tides foundation who supplies the seed money to get things like this rolling.
December 1, 2011 at 2:28 am
Fenton: Also cited on one news/blog site that the Occupy movement funded by Soros, Strategy by Fenton, Money laundering by Tides, Communication and coordination by AdBusters. Dicking around with Canadian sovereignty as well, messing with pipelines, oilsands, fisheries, forests, albino bears and God only knows what else. Media – wake up!
December 1, 2011 at 10:03 am
if one wanted to show that paleo methods are bs, wouldn't it be best to participate in the Paleoclimate Reconstruction (PR) Challenge? http://hurricane.ncdc.noaa.gov/pls/paleox/f?p=503:1:1482449604800612
and i do not accept something like: one wouldn't be able to publish. even if, the blogosphere would amplify possible results as long as they are not ballyhooed or biased. that is both outcomes should be acceptable: good and no skill.
December 1, 2011 at 10:10 am
Well thought through post Jeff. It does not matter that the msm are not properly covering this at the moment. It took a while the last time. One thing that is puzzling me ie the UK Guardian. almost complete silence and Monbiot nada?
I think one other thing that is digusting is the libelling of their opponents one thing to use the term denier which could be fair comment or open to interpretation but to call other scientists frauds because you diagree with them well?
Of course I am entitled to say that the Fiddlestick Team are frauds because they are.
December 1, 2011 at 10:33 am
Re: ob (Dec 1 10:03),
#41 Ob:
if one wanted to show that paleo methods are bs, wouldn't it be best to participate in the Paleoclimate Reconstruction (PR) Challenge?
Yes and no. The data and temperature series provided are all artificial so that the only things that can be tested are the mathematical properties of the various methods for processing the "proxies" to produce a reconstruction. Even these tests, however, are limited to the specific properties of the data which has been provided.
This exercise cannot possibly evaluate questions such as "are proxies themselves capable of giving good information about the actual temperature record" given the multitude of effects which can influence a proxy throughout the period of time in which that proxy may be in existence and the means by which that proxy came to be observed and selected.
That said, I am personally considering entering using several methods which I have been looking at in the past couple of years for reconstructing a multi-proxy series. However, it would be nice to have a team for the purpose to spread the work and add some fresh ideas.
Craig? Hu? 😉
December 1, 2011 at 10:44 am
That said, I am personally considering entering using several methods which I have been looking at in the past couple of years for reconstructing a multi-proxy series. However, it would be nice to have a team for the purpose to spread the work and add some fresh ideas.
Great to hear. Will we see a post on this sometime?
December 1, 2011 at 11:02 am
#1 Grzegorz,
Are you still reading the comments on this thread?
As Jeff & plenty of other commenters have said, answers to your questions HAVE all been discussed on this blog (& others). But, you seem to be new to his blog & convinced yourself that he's in denial (or something). So, here's a few direct answers to your questions. Let me know if they're unsatisfactory.
1.) Jeff has mostly been just presenting his analysis on this blog, so has not published much in the "peer reviewed literature". But, Greg, do you really need the "peer review" filter in order to assess the validity of an argument? If you do, then I hope you realise that you are trusting in a fairly unreliable system. That's one of the main problems Climategate 2 illustrates, and which prompted this angry post by Jeff.
Nonetheless, Jeff has recently been publishing in the literature, so he's not just blogging his analysis. In response to one particularly poor paper (Steig et al., 2009) which claimed that Antarctica has shown dramatic warming, Jeff co-authored O'Donnell et al., 2010. Here's the link: http://journals.ametsoc.org/doi/abs/10.1175/2010JCLI3656.1
2.) Jeff was NOT saying that Soon & Baliunas set-back the field for decades with a single paper. He was saying the exact opposite, i.e., that the intense viciousness with which a few climate "scientists" attempted to smear the paper was baseless. If it really was that bad a paper, then surely the way to counter it was with science? Do you not agree? Surely, the scientific community is able to tell for itself…
3.) I can understand why you consider Climategate 2 to be "warmed-up leftovers". It is mostly discussion of particular studies and events, so if you're unfamiliar with them, it can seem harmless & innocuous. As a result, maybe it won't make as big a splash in the media. But, to those of us who are (even partially) familiar with the studies & events, there have been some seriously astounding revelations.
Does that make sense? Do you understand where he's coming from?
I know you might feel like you're hitting a brick wall commenting here. But, if you are genuinely interested in understanding why we're here, do persevere. And keep asking questions.
But, please don't assume people here are looney, anti-science ideologues. It's mostly the exact opposite. Many of us have a passionate love for science, which is exactly why we're so alarmed at what has happened to climate science…
December 1, 2011 at 11:59 am
Nothing short of a long period (10 to 30 years) of declining temperatures will derail climate "science" as it now exists. The parasites are too deeply embedded.
December 1, 2011 at 12:16 pm
RomanM #46
> … the remaining earlier portion [of the Tiljander data series could] still used in the reconstruction…
An obvious question that doesn't receive nearly enough attention is: How can you tell if a data series actually has a high likelihood of being a proxy for a particular quality such as temperature, annual precipitation, windiness, or snowfall?
Ojala, Tiljander, and their co-authors thought that Lightsum and Darksum are temperature proxies (the former inversely correlated and the latter directly correlated). But they didn't provide much evidence to support their view.
My own opinion is that Lightsum and Darksum values are orthogonal to temperature, i.e. that they are "proxies" for other things. Perhaps precipitation, or frequency of downpours, or frequency of forest fires.
Underlying this issue is the problem of post hoc analysis — one of the deep flaws of the Mann08 approach, IMO. To perform a multiproxy reconstructions, how does one select which data series to incorporate without widening uncertainty intervals, and without cherry picking?
This is a basic concern for studies in other high-stakes areas, such as clinical trial design and interpretation. Mainstream climate scientists can't seem to grasp that this isn't some peculiarity of the pharmaceutical industry — rather, it's a fundamental statistical issue of great relevance to their own work.
December 1, 2011 at 1:11 pm
"Underlying this issue is the problem of post hoc analysis — one of the deep flaws of the Mann08 approach, IMO. To perform a multiproxy reconstructions, how does one select which data series to incorporate without widening uncertainty intervals, and without cherry picking?
This is a basic concern for studies in other high-stakes areas, such as clinical trial design and interpretation. Mainstream climate scientists can't seem to grasp that this isn't some peculiarity of the pharmaceutical industry — rather, it's a fundamental statistical issue of great relevance to their own work."
Amac, what you state above is my greatest concern. If we only knew what proxy data was not used but had met some unstated or stated a priori selection criteria, we might have a better insight into the validity of
the reconstructions. I suppose if one knew all the data that was sampled and not used one could apply a Bonferroni correction, a method used to counteract the problem of multiple comparisons. I have been told by econometricians the even a correction of this type is difficult to apply because of the number of comparisons that one makes under these undocumented and often unstated conditions is difficult to impossible to track. Much better is to provide, a priori, a reasonable selection criteria and then use all the data that that selection process provides. That I have never been able to find this process spelled out in detail by climate scientists leads me to believe there is little appreciation for the statistics involved in multiple comparisons.
I have seen a dendroclimatologist, like Rob Wilson, talking about obtaining proxy thermometers using a wide range of tuning parameters like months of year in calibration of proxy response with temperature, using various portions of the TRW and MXD measurements and even selection amongst temperature records to use. While the use of a particular parameter value is usually given some discussion it appears that some if not most of the reason for use comes after the fact and little attention is given to the dangers of these processes.
December 1, 2011 at 1:14 pm
Well said, Jeff. Your article are one reason I read your blog. Whatever you think, you say it, even if it is admitting you might have been wrong on an issue.
As far as Mr. Staniak's comment goes, perhaps an old country saying might help. "You don't have to be a farmer to know when you have a rotten egg". You also don't have to be a PhD to understand that AGW model scenarios are not accurate. It gets real simple, real quick.
"69% Say It's Likely Scientists Have Falsified Global Warming Research"
December 1, 2011 at 2:06 pm
#50 RomanM & #51 Kenneth Fritsch
Thanks for the insightful comments. FWIW, I am not aware of any reasonable method by which either of the Tiljander series could (likely) be validated as a temperature proxy. That claim holds for the preferred "predefined selection criteria" strategy outlined by RomanM, and even for the less-rigorous, less-satisfactory post hoc approach.
Bonferroni — yes. When procedures are too qualitative and too ad hoc to allow for such a correction to be calculated — I'm reminded of the old riddle, "What time is it when the clock strikes thirteen?"
(The punch line: "Time to get a new clock.")
December 1, 2011 at 3:21 pm
"What time is it when the clock strikes thirteen?"
Time to switch to GMT.
December 1, 2011 at 3:49 pm
"Underlying this issue is the problem of post hoc analysis — one of the deep flaws of the Mann08 approach, IMO. To perform a multiproxy reconstructions, how does one select which data series to incorporate without widening uncertainty intervals, and without cherry picking?"
AMAC, you raise some issues that have struck me as important from the get go. This field is very frustrating, however, because before you can get practitioners to consider the more interesting questions, one has to get them to recognize problems at far more simple level (i.e. bristlecone pines, tiljander) and they seem unwilling to even do that.
December 1, 2011 at 4:09 pm
AMac #49: "To perform a multiproxy reconstructions, how does one select which data series to incorporate without widening uncertainty intervals, and without cherry picking?"
In a statistically ideal world, I guess you would avoid post hoc completely and use pc/factor analysis or similar exploratory methods (I used both stepwise regression and cluster analysis when doing some work as an assistant for a biologist many years ago) in order to build your model and then go out and collect completely new random samples to run your actual statistic tests on… I've only done very simple statistics since back then, so I know very little of the various modern methods that have been developed to do these things in a sane way, but I still wonder if it's possible at all to get any honest confidence intervals at all when you do it the way the "dendros" do it?
December 2, 2011 at 1:40 am
put me down for testing and documentation.
December 2, 2011 at 2:17 am
Blog Lurker,
"2.) Jeff was NOT saying that Soon & Baliunas set-back the field for decades with a single paper. He was saying the exact opposite, i.e., that the intense viciousness with which a few climate "scientists" attempted to smear the paper was baseless. If it really was that bad a paper, then surely the way to counter it was with science? Do you not agree? Surely, the scientific community is able to tell for itself…"
Actually, it should be pretty obvious by now that the papers being written and supported by the Hockey Team are NOT aimed at the scientists. These papers are mostly of such banal quality that they have to be specifically targeting non-climate scientists. They are propaganda to support their agenda and the IPCC and have nothing to do with advance the very real Science of Climate. Blocking real papers from muddying the waters is just as important in propaganda as putting out your own message.
December 2, 2011 at 2:56 am
Of the many categories of email included (as you noted), plus the communications with media people;
conspicuous by its complete absence is direct communication with politicians.
Clearly, there had to be some direct comm, for example regarding the von Storch (?) resignation surprise at the DC hearings. They just enjoyed that too much for it to have been a big happy accident.
Maybe I missed it, but none so far.
I'm guessing that 'potential scandal' is more powerful motivation for politicians, vs.
having actual scandal against which they can unleash the spin machine.
Not claiming this is original idea (actually from Pointman), but it is resonating with me.
December 2, 2011 at 7:34 am
Ruhroh – I remain unimpressed by Pointmans speculation and particularly for example his incorrect assertion that the BBC were approached prior to Climategate 1 which is based on a misread of what Paul Hudson said at the time.
The people who released the emails are conflicted. They clearly have a strong desire to release content that identifies dubious behaviour but almost certainly do not have the resources to process over 200,000 emails which would take one or two people many years. They have demonstrated that they wish to read content prior to release and redact information they dont think should be released. However if they retain information on their harddrive in unencrypted form to continue searching then if the authorities should visit they would risk them finding incriminating evidence.
There is evidence from the UEA enquiry that the people who released the information had access 2 GB of emails from at least three researchers which represents a lot more than 200.000 emails and there is now a hint from the CG2 release that they also got emails from at least one furtther researcher. We dont know if the 200.000 is a subset of what they actually took or represents all they could manage to take at the time. My speculation is the 2 limited releases so far represent the limit of what they have been able to process and if there was any significant political liason it would have shown up already. The interface with politicians is largely through the NGOs and the IPCC which is what we are already seeing.
December 2, 2011 at 8:11 am
@ Kuhnkat #58,
Before Climategate 1&2, I might have agreed with that. The lack of basic scientific and statistical robustness in the papers is astounding. More shocking is the absence of scepticism.
If I have a preconceived view on a particular theory (& I recognise that we almost always do!), in my scientific analysis I intentionally try to disprove it. If I fail, then I have more confidence in the theory. If I succeed, then I try and disprove my disproof!!! 😉 Then I repeat that process several times before I even consider publishing my analysis…
It doesn't mean I think the theory is right or wrong – it's just a good way of distancing your analysis from your biases. It minimises confirmation bias, and leads to more robust analysis and conclusions.
I always assumed all scientists did this. I now realise it's not that common. 😦
Anyway, I agree with you that the "Hockey Team" papers are in general banal and non-scientific. But, I'm really not sure that it is intentional, particularly in the light of Climategate 1&2. Look at Phil Jones' inability to calculate a linear trend on his CRUTEM dataset. I'm not objecting to him finding Excel difficult, and I actually think linear trends are wholly irrelevant for non-linear datasets such as CRUTEM. But, this was HIS dataset… that he had been developing since the early 1980s! 😮 It is shocking that he had to rely on others for basic analysis of his own data… Although in hindsight, it explains a LOT…
I think Max Beran's comment on CA was insightful: http://climateaudit.org/2011/11/23/phil-stumped-at-calculating-a-trend/#comment-311776.
@Clivere #60,
Yeah, I wasn't impressed with Pointman's analysis. Highly speculative & would make for a great film. But, I think your speculations may be closer to the truth.
December 2, 2011 at 9:29 am
1300 to 2359 is standard technical time and is commonly used by the military because it is less confusing than a twelve hour clock. The system work I did was based on "Normal" 24 hour time rather than abnormal time that split a day at noon.
There are logical explanations for "Lightsum" and "Darksum" in the sediment records and how they would generally relate to overall regional climate. My understanding was that they were testing the concentration of decayed plant mater in the sediment layer as well as the thickness of the layers.
December 2, 2011 at 10:52 am
M. Simon, Mike Davis –
"What time is it when the clock strikes
Mike Davis #62 –
> There are logical explanations for "Lightsum" and "Darksum" in the sediment records and how they would generally relate to overall regional climate.
Yes. The formula by which they are derived is shown here. Meant to represent minerals and organic matter, as you say.
As to these data series serving as proxies for temperature, rainfall, the size of the local kangaroo population, or anything else: how would you know if they were or weren't suitable?
Tiljander03 claims that the series are contaminated by local non-climate doings after 1720, so the old standby of correlation to the instrumental record is out, unless you're an author of Mann08 or Mann09. (Actually, the correlation of the contaminated modern portion to the temp record of the nearest weather station is quite poor. But that's a story for another day.)
It's broadly agreed that Southern Finland experienced the Medieval Warm Period and then the Little Ice Age. How are these reflected in the Tiljander series? How are they reflected in other putative temperature proxies from from Southern Finland?
MWP, I don't have any data for a cross-(putative) proxy comparison. For LIA, see this post. Check out the figure that follows this text:
"I just looked at Fig. 14 of TP Luoto's dissertation on pg. 36; it includes a water temperature graph of Lake Hamptrask, Finland (just northeast of Helsinki) from about 1350 to the present."
December 2, 2011 at 11:20 am
Whoops – Should have said 7.95GB rather than 2 GB in my previous post.
December 2, 2011 at 11:35 am
The only thing you can find in the record is the degree of habitability for flora and fauna in the region. By digging deeper / finer resolution you might look for specific types and concentration of pollen in the in the cores that will give a better clue as to the type of vegetation present, similar to what was used to find the Younger Dryas. In some locations they found changes in the types and concentration of fish scales that showed historic variations in ocean climate conditions. Both pollen and fish scale concentrations can be related to recent historic conditions that resulted in similar deposits. While a range of temperatures can be withdrawn for the observations it would be rather course and you would be able to conclude warmer, similar, or cooler / wetter, similar, or drier.
December 2, 2011 at 11:42 am
On a 24 hour clock there is no 2400. It goes from 2359.59 to 0000 next day. 😉
December 2, 2011 at 11:45 am
Mike Davis #65 –
It's worth noting that scientists at the Geological Survey of Finland and the University of Helsinki have published additional analyses of varved sediments from Lake Korttajarvi, including measurements of stable isotope concentrations. Selected references here.
So there are two separate questions. The first is, "What can be learned from the four data series of Tiljander-in-Mann08 (thickness, XRD, lightsum, darksum)?" This is relevant because these are the series that Mann08 actually used.
A broader issue is "What could be learned about the climate of the past from analyses of the varved sediments of lakes in Southern Finland?" This is likely to be a much more fruitful line of inquiry. At least compared to further defenses of the indefensible.
December 2, 2011 at 12:09 pm
Other than observing problems with work done by the "Team" I tend to ignore their work as it is not based on scientific practices, but those used by political activists.
The entire time period that Mann used was contaminated by human activity.
Those series are valid for periods before human influence for climate conditions in that region.
December 3, 2011 at 2:41 am
#61 Blog Lurker,
I saw that bit about him not being able to compute a trend in excel. Of course, I wonder if he used to be able to do it in some archaic thing like Fortran that isn't available on his modern whizbang workstation?? I have an extremely low opinion of those guys, but, for some reason I think this might be one o' them thar scarlet fish.
Then again maybe he has a secretary, grad students… for the more cerebral work!!
December 3, 2011 at 8:23 am
If he had been able to do it at one stage in Fortran or some other method, I think he would have come up with some software at this stage. I think its more likely he never figured it out, i.e., his limited use of Excel was the extent of his number-crunching abilities. I suspect his former boss, Tom Wigley, may have been more numerate. I know that I found the early CRUTEM data analysis at least to be very sloppy with a number of basic mistakes (haven't looked at CRUTEM3 as much yet, cause they only released the data this summer). I puzzled over some of them for a long while – "surely, they can't be that incompetent?".
I've found the same with the analysis of many of the "top" climate scientists, e.g., Trenberth, Hansen, Peterson, Mann, etc.
I seriously considered the various conspiracy theories, but in the end I think they have about as much substance as the theories that us "sceptics" are all in the pay of Exxon. I don't know about you, but I've yet to get my cheque! 😦 Interestingly, it seems it would be ok if we were in the pay of Exxon's rivals, Shell. Does Shell sell a different type of oil than Exxon, do you know? 😉
In the end, I think a lot of these guys were/are just out of their depth. They're dealing with quite poor quality data – poorly documented weather station records, selections of temperature proxies with debatable signal-to-noise ratios, the results from simplistic computer models, etc,
It is possible that useful information can be extracted from such data. But, you need to be very cautious and careful, and leave ALL your pet theories (e.g., "man-made global warming explains all", or for that matter "solar activity explains all") by the door outside, when doing your analysis. By the way, I suspect RomanM is more capable of that than some of the "Hockey Team" & hope he comes up with some useful approaches and/or results.
I know it's not as intriguing an explanation. But, I think Climategate 1&2 show us that Jones, Mann, etc DO genuinely believe the "IPCC message". Maybe they have uncertainties about their own work, but they assume their colleagues know what they're talking about.
P.S. You reminded me that I never did understand that phrase "red herring", so I looked up Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_herring . It's a bizarre expression to be in such popular usage, don't you think?
December 10, 2011 at 4:29 am
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subset: commoncrawl


text:
This gif.
I coulda gone on forever.
I mean, it's obvious what to give Jeff Samardzija, Ian Stewart, Dan Vogelbach, Anthony Rizzo, Bryan LaHair, and Alfonso Soriano, but...
Who should get a Payday?
Who should have gotten Charlie Brown's rock?
The apple with the razor blade?
Whoppers (my all-time fav)?
Anyway Cub Fans, it's time to waste a little time.
For like, 2 more years.
Lets get started!


text:
Dimona Weather Conditions & Forecasts Map
Here you can check current weather conditions and forecasts for Dimona, Israel and the nearby area using the Google weather layer in the interactive map below. Click and zoom the map out if no weather stations are currently in view. You can also add your Dimona weather station to this display via the link below that.
Sorry, We Are Currently Unable To Load The Current Forecast For This Weather Station


text:
I ate too much this weekend.
Thursday = Thanksgiving Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner
Friday = Lunch at Spotted Pig, Dinner at Blue Ribbon…with donuts as an afternoon snack…and dessert at Pinisi…followed by Thanksgiving dinner leftovers as a midnight snack
Saturday = Lunch at Tiny's, the whole damn cookie at Levain, Dinner at Taim, ice cream at cookies at home
Sunday = Lunch at Yoghurt Place, coffee at tea at Grounded, Fat Witch brownies, Dinner at Tiny's, ice cream, dark chocolate covered pretzels, and ice cream for dessert…
(looks down at tummy)
I can still see my toes!
thank god :)
I'm super excited to put up the Thanksgiving weekend posts, but I'm going do the posts backwards, starting from today (Sunday). All our guests with the exception of Steph left on Saturday, so today was reserved for Shann, Steph, and Kathy bonding! It's great having a large group of friends visit for the holiday, but it does get extremely hectic and somewhat nerve-wracking at times.
I'm more of a small group type of girl, it's less crazy and noisy and you have more opportunities to catch-up on missed time with close friends. Which is why today was a good day. It was a very good day in fact, one of the best I've had in a while :)
We started off the late morning with a snack on Sullivan Street. Shann and Steph enjoyed slices of the pizza zucchini over at Grandaisy while I went next door to Yoghurt Place in search of something cooold, sweet and creamy.
I'm a sucker for greek yogurt, and have a unbashful longstanding affair with Fage yogurt products. But after a taste from the Yoghurt Place this morning, I feel like a complete idiot. I've been missing out! For the last three years I've been eating Fage, regarding it as the gold standard for greek yogurt. But how wrong I've been! Oh dear…
Look here. It's quite pretty you see? But the visual satisfaction is only a bare skim, a brief tease as to how delicious this is. Okay, so think like normal yogurt…only with thick, thick, thick. LIKE THICK to the point of whipped butter! Pure white in colour, the texture of the yogurt bears uncanny resemblance to whipped butter and nothing else. Tangy, with a lovely mouthfeel, rich and just barely sweet. It's deceivingly filling. I choose to have the yoghurt topped with stewed apricots in honey, a dash of sliced almonds and a bit of granola. A swirl of the spoon to bring it all in together, and sheeessshhh, this treat is like drug. The silky smooth cream cut by the crunch of granola and a nutty sliver of almond, an anticipated bite into sweet honey soaked apricots. What better way to start your Sunday?
Looking down at the Met lobby
Satisfied, we walked back along Spring Street to catch the train up to the Met, per Steph's request. Ahhh. Museums. I'm not a big museum person, hehe. My only interest in going to the Met was to check out all the dining options. So that's what I did. It was not very impressive, but then again what did you expect? Nonetheless, all the dining venues in the museum turned over a remarkably high amount of traffic. Crazies. They could have been eating greek yoghurt!
We didn't stay too long at the Met. Funny how I can manage to spend two hours exploring a supermarket, but my attention span can't exceed more than 20 minutes at the museum. Teehee. We hung outside for a bit, the day was bright and had grown considerably warmer from just a few hours before. I love sunny days – we get a ton of sunlight in Hawaii, so it's a real damper when the day falls dark before 6pm in this city. This guy standing next to us at the museum entrance was pretty insistent on offering to take a picture…so here we are! Haha, from left to right: myself, Shann and Steph.
Post-Met, we went down to the West Village for some drinks at Shann's favourite coffee shop in the city, Grounded. Steph went for the mint limeade, while Shann had a ridiculously fantastic hazelnut and caramel coffee. Gah, it was so good, I kept asking her for a sip, and must have ended up drinking nearly half of it! :)
For myself I ordered a green citrus gingko tea, which was just alrighty. Could have been sweetened just a tad with honey, but otherwise strong on the gingko (a plus!), none of that citrusy business I was expecting though…
I liked the vibe in this coffee shop. The city is filled with countless cafes covering every and all tastes, but it's hard to find one that suits you well. It's like finding the perfect hat, or in my case, the perfect bag. But yes, Grounded is good. It's quite the cozy place, but not difficult to find a seat. The people are nice (and they serve Murray's bagels – toasted!), it's warm inside, and even a skylight and lots of plants! It's best expressed in one word: comfy.
from the inside of Ronnybrook Farm's Milk Bar
From Grounded we made a short walk to the Chelsea Market to do some exploring and pick up a few brownies from Fat Witch. The Market was extremely lively around 4pm this Sunday afternoon, it's a delightful place to spend the day and there's definitely something to satisfy any food craving whether it be Thai food, gelato, coffee, pastries, or a velvety serving of clam chowder in a bread bowl.
One of my favourite things to do on a weekend afternoon is sit at Ronnybrook Dairy's milk bar and treat myself to a (large) glass of indulgence with the ginger crème brulee milkshake. If the name alone hasn't already sold you, a frothy rich taste surely will. True to the ginger flavour and just enough sweetness to satiate but not overkill, this creamy thick concoction surprises with bits of candied ginger laced within sips. It's the perfect place to take a break alone, or join a friend for lunch (I'll be back for the mac & cheese and cast iron egg dishes!) Low key and simple fare, you feel good knowing that all the dairy involved in these items come from a local farm!
We made our way around each all the shops in the market, there's always so much to look at..and sigh, I could never bore of watching the bakers in the windows of Amy's Bread! At exactly 4pm, the three of us hopped over to Fat Witch for some triple brownie action, hehe. Fat Witch does not have the best brownies in the city, much less the country, as some have proclaimed. Far from it. These are simply decent and consistent brownies. Nothing I would pay the regular price of $2.75 for, but when I happen to be around during the 'witching hour' special, I'd gladly trade off $1.25 for a square.
Three squares in fact! Hehe, no I am not a glutton. We each got a square of our own and shared them all. Clockwise from the left is the walnut brownie, peanut butter brownie, and caramel brownie. I liked the walnut the most, just cause: 1. who doesn't love walnuts in brownies?! 2. the nuts cut the sweetness of the batter. Shann proclaimed the peanut butter brownie at Baked to be much better, because they swirled actual peanut butter throughout the batter while Fat Witch simply mixed in peanut butter chips.
Here's a closer look at my caramel brownie. Very ordinary, no? It's the plain brownie batter topped with a layer of baked caramel. Too sweet. I like me sweets less sweet, or even better, with a touch of salt. Like fleur de sel caramels! Or Thai desserts! The olive oil gelato at Otto's! Something along that line :) But the sweetness in this brownie was simply one-dimensional.
Brownie crumbs in our lap and tummies just a little bit poofier, we checked the clocked and were bummed to discover that it was nearly 5pm. Seeing as she had already missed the 12:30, 2:30, and 4:30 bus to Cornell (Shann and I were very convincing getting her to stay, "just an hour more!") Steph had to make the 6:30 bus leaving from Penn Station…but not without dinner!
We took the subway back to the LES where we had a quick dinner at Tiny's, my go-to spot for sandwiches, reliable and always very satisfying. Exiting the F train at Delancey, Steph and Shann went to grab at seat at the restaurant while I made a mad dash to Economy Candy for a stash of gigantic dark chocolate dipped pretzels, my sweet-salty addiction of the moment.
These pretzels are crazy delicious. Everything about them is prefect. The pretzel to chocolate proportion is spot on – you know those tiny chocolate covered pretzels? There's always too much chocolate and not enough pretzel. These also have a lot of chocolate, but the pretzel itself is nice and big, so it balances out well. Plus, it's DARK chocolate, so holy hell, you bet it's good! It's hard to restrain yourself at Economy Candy, but you must enter into this treasure trove of sweets and chocolate with a goal in mind and stay focused. Otherwise you'll end up with a ton of treats you never intended to purchase. Which is bad…or good…depends how you view it!
Over at Tiny's Shann ordered a cream soda, of which I had a sip (I seem to be having many sips of Shann's drinks today, hehe). I've never had cream soda before, but I supposed the name explains it all. Cream. Soda. It tastes like fizzy sweet cream! It really does. Like, it tastes like liquid cream, only lighter, with fizzzzzzzzzzzz. Oh boy. That was an awful description!
She also had a crabcake on brioche. Tiny's doesn't bake their own bread, but the brioche here serves as an excellent sandwich bread. Pair it with a seared crabcake perfectly tucked between the buns, a dabble of aioli, and you've got yourself quite the (mini) sandwich!
Steph went with the Cesar salad and a bowl of the vegetable chili soup. Thumbs up for the chilli soup, so comforting for this windy day! It's nice and chunky, generous with the veggies and a crusty semolina roll on the side.
I had the veggie meatballs with pesto on a semolina roll. The first time I had the veggie meatballs (a few months back), it was completely unseasoned. It must have been a fluke (whew!) cause it was pretty darn good today, especially with a healthy smear of pesto tucked between the toasted roll. A great bargain at $3.75. And it comes with chips!
Okey doke. Off to sleep now. Sigh. The weekend is over. Back to real life tomorrow. Hope you have a great Monday! :)
Yoghurt Place
71 Sullivan St
(212) 219-3500
28 Jane St
(212) 647-0943
Ronnybrook Farm Dairy
75 9th Avenue
(212) 741-6455
Fat Witch
75 9th Avenue
(212) 807-1335
Economy Candy
108 Rivington St
(800) 352-4544
Tiny's Giant Sandwich Shop
129 Rivington St
(212) 982-1690


text:
Usually the students are unaware of what they have done until it is pointed out.
Here are some common errors and some resources to help you overcome them.
Run on sentences.
Make sure you use full stops (periods if you are from the US). If your sentences have more than one main idea, then you should think about giving each idea its own sentence. Commas are not subsitutes for full stops (or periods). Learn to use both well. Click here to see how to construct your sentences to avoid this common error.
Consistent use of tense.
Sometimes, tense can move from present to past in student work and this diminishes the quality of the work.
The use of homonyms.
For example 'whether' or 'weather' Relying on a spellchecker just won't do!
Use of the article
Choosing whether to use 'a', 'an' 'the' can sometimes prove tricky, but luckily Purdue and UniSA have a few good resources such as Using articles: 'a' and 'the' or no article and A versus An or How to use articles (a/an/the)
Count or non count nouns
It's important to get these right as it also affects whether you use plural or singular verb form in your sentence and also the article. Look at this excellent explanation from Purdue. These excellent rules will help you decide if a noun is countable or not. However, the rules do not apply in all cases so if you are still unsure be certain to check a good dictionary.
The best way to improve your writing is to practise and practise some more!
All the best from the Grammar Gang!


text:
Win fabulous prizes in The Denver Post's Peeps diorama sculpture contest!
The deadline is fast approaching. The time to act is now.
Last year's winners, sister-brother team Kathy Frantz and Rick Schoenhals, put the PEEPS in IKEA, right down to the meatballs.
Can you do better? Create a sculpture or diorama for The Denver Post's annual Peeps contest. Look for inspiration in the news, politics, movies, music or even in your neighborhood.
How to enter: Take a digital photo of your creation and upload it here: denverpost.com/youpost. Put "Peeps" in the "Gallery Name" field. In "Caption," you must include the title of your piece, your full name, age and mailing address.
Deadline: 11:59 p.m. Sunday, March 3.
Prizes: First and second place for adults, and first and second place for children up to age 12 will be awarded $100 and $50 Peeps & Co. gift baskets. Winners will appear in the March 27 Food section, and all entries will appear online at denverpost.com.
Need inspiration? See our photo gallery of last year's entries for ideas.


text:
Monday, October 11, 2010
14 comments:
- Allison {A Glimpse Inside} said...
Oooo... SO CUTE! Love this wreath!! And you will LOVE Hobby Lobby!! It is SOOOO FABULOUS! :)
- October 11, 2010 at 9:30 PM
- Krystal said...
Thanks for entering my giveaway. I LOVE your wreath! It is so unique and cool looking. Way impressed! I'm going to feature this post this weekend in my inspiration file, so watch for it. :)
- October 12, 2010 at 2:47 PM
- Unknown said...
Kristol try dipping the candy corn in a clear varnish, let them dry and then put them on a wreath. That SHOULD take care of the problems.
- October 13, 2010 at 10:34 AM
- Dorothy said...
That is an amazing wreath. Definitely fits into a spooky category. =)
- October 13, 2010 at 11:22 AM
- Mom in High Heels said...
So cute! What a great idea! I can't believe you've NEVER spray painted before! What have you been waiting for? I loves me some spray paint!
- October 16, 2010 at 5:03 AM
- Ann @ makethebestofthings said...
I am so impressed with the way this turned out! So very clever and creative and the possibilities are mind boggling. I've got to try this with a styrofoam wreath blank. Welcome to the spray paint sisterhood, by the way.
- October 17, 2010 at 12:37 AM
- Cate said...
Very cool! Stop by Random Crafty Georgia Girl and link up to Week in Review.
-Cate from Random Crafty Georgia Girl
- October 17, 2010 at 6:00 PM
- Katherine said...
OMG-this is such a great idea! I love how the toothpicks give it a spiky texture-perfect for Halloween!
- October 17, 2010 at 8:57 PM
- Stephanie Lynn @Under the Table and Dreaming said...
Hi Kristol! Just wanted to let you know I featured this today. Thanks so much for linking up to the Sunday Showcase Party. I greatly appreciate it. Stop by and grab a featured button if you like. Hope you have a wonderful week! ~ Stephanie Lynn
- October 18, 2010 at 9:15 PM
- Judy H. said...
This is INCREDIBLE!!!
- October 24, 2010 at 12:25 PM
- nina@themissadventuresofnina said...
How on earth I didn't see this before?! This is just so amazing and cool. I cannot wait to attempt to do this!
- February 26, 2011 at 6:46 PM
- Rebecca said...
How do you get the balls to stay on the wreath?
- August 7, 2011 at 12:04 AM
- Michelle said...
Awesome Wreath...
- September 8, 2011 at 7:17 PM
- Jaimee @ Havenwood House of Boys said...
WOW! How creative is this?! I'm including your fabulous wreath in a mega Halloween Wreath round-up post on my blog in October : )
Jaimee @ craft-interrupted.blogspot.com
- September 30, 2011 at 3:12 PM


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Ludwig II was a great admirer and supporter of Richard Wagner, the »Bayreuther Festspielhaus« theatre was a donation from the King, for example. He also had a passion for buildings and castles, among others he created the Neuschwanstein, Linderhof and Herrenchiemsee Castles.
August 25: Prince Ludwig is born as the first son of Crown Prince Maximilian and his consort Marie in "Nymphenburg Castle" on the birthday and name day of his grandfather King Ludwig the First.
March 20: Ludwig I abdicates in favour of his son Maximilian. By this Ludwig II becomes crown prince. April 27: Ludwig's brother Otto is born
February 2: For the first time crown prince Ludwig watches Wagners "Lohengrin" in the Royal National Theatre in Munich, and Wagners "Thannhäuser" on December 22.
March 10: Death of King Maximilian II. - Ludwig is proclaimed King and swears the oath on the constitution on March 11.
May 4: First meeting with Wagner in his Munich residence
October 18: Conclusion of a contract between the crown office and Wagner on the completion of the "Ring Of The Nibelung" within three years, and the kings title to this work.
November 26: Ludwig decides the construction of a festival theatre in Munich for the performance of Wagners "Ring Of The Nibelung"
December 29: At an audience the architect Gottfried Semper explains his project of a festival theatre on the "Isar Heights" to the King.
November 11 -18: Wagner visits Ludwig II in Hohenschwangau Castle.
November 21: The arrival of the swan knight "Lohengrin" is represented on lake Alpsee.
December 10: Wagner has to leave Munich
February 28: Austria prepares mobilization
March 29: Prussia mobilizes partly
June 16: The German League is attacked and decides the war against Prussia
July 3: After the defeat of "Königgrätz" the German League dissolved
August 22: The representatives of Bavaria conclude the peace treaty with Prussia and a defence alliance saying that in the case of war the Bavarian army will be under the supreme command of Prussia, all this without the guarantees of sovereignty claimed by the king.
January 22: Ludwigs engagement with Sophie, daughter of Duke Max in Bavaria
May 31 June 3: Journey of the king to the "Wartburg" in Eisenach
June 20 29: Ludwig II travels to the world exhibition in Paris as "Count of Berg". Makes a trip to Compiègne and visits Pierrefonds Castle nearby (July 24).
October 10: The breaking up of Ludwigs engagement with Sophie is publicly announced
April 18: The kings first conception of a reconstruction of the ruin called Vorderhohenschwangau
May 13: Letter of Ludwig to Wagner containing the draft of the "New Castle Hohenschwangau", that is "Neuschwanstein".
December 5: Idea of a new Versailles near Linderhof with the code name of »Meicost-Ettal«, a series of projects for this will be presented by Georg Dollmann up to 1873 ( year of the purchase of the "Herreninsel" in lake Chiemsee).
September 5: Laying of the foundation stone for the "New Castle of Hohenschwangau" - Neuschwanstein - , after the plans of Eduard Riedel.
July 15: The Council of Ministers requests the King to sign the mobilization order against France
July 16: Ludwig orders mobilization, simultaneously with a last attempt of peace negotiations of Bray-Steinburg
July 19: France declares war on Prussia
September 13: Ludwig informs Bismarck of his willingness to conclude a constitutional alliance
January 18: King William II of Prussia is proclaimed the first German emperor in Versailles
May 22: The foundation stone for the Bayreuth festival theatre is laid
September 25: Prussias first payments from the "Welf fund" go to the royal treasury
September 26: Purchase of the "Herreninsel" in lake Chiemsee, where the New Versailles (Herrenchiemsee Castle) planned by Dolman will be created
May 27: The mental disorder of Ludwigs brother Otto becomes evident
July 13: The King gives orders for the plan of a throne room in Neuschwanstein
The ministry official Ludwig von Bürkel is installed in the function of royal secretary instead of councellor Lorenz von Düflipp, who already in 1876 pointed to a threatening insolvency of the treasury in face of the many construction programmes of the King.
December 12: First visit of Ludwig II in Neuschwanstein, the shell of the unfinished castle is being roofed in 1880
May 30 June 6: The actor Josef Kainz visits Linderhof and makes outings together with Ludwig
June 27 July 14: Ludwig and Josef Kainz travel to Switzerland to follow the footsteps of Wilhelm Tell
February 13: Wagner dies in Venice
February 18: Wagners funeral in Bayreuth
March 26 April 13: Performance of the complete works of Richard Wagner at the royal theatre in Munich in the chronological order of their creation
May 16: Purchase of the ruin of Falkenstein Castle
May 27 June 8: Ludwig lives in his apartments now completely furnished in Neuschwanstein Castle
June 1: The serious state of the totally indebted treasury is relieved by a bank loan of 7 mio. Mark negotiated by the minister of finance Emil von Riedel. The king however uses it at once for new building projects (plans for Falkenstein Castle, the Hubertus Pavilion near Linderhof, a new bedroom in Linderhof, a Moorish room in Neuschwanstein and more). The successors of the resigned royal secretary Bürkel will be no longer able to rehabilitate the wrecked treasury.
August 29: Arguments about the treasury of the cabinet which is indebted with 14 mio. Mark. Ludwig who wants to continue his building projects asks the minister of finance, Emil von Riedel, for an appropriate settlement of his finances.
September 7 16: Ludwig II lives for the first and last time in Herrenchiemsee Castle
October 15: Queen Mother Marie asked to visit Neuschwanstein on the occasion of her 60th birthday
January 26: Ludwig II threatens the Minister of the Interior Baron Max von Feilitzsch, to commit suicide or to leave the country if the government "lay hands on royal property". Supposedly there was the risk that the creditors of the cabinet treasury which was threatened by bankruptcy might satisfy their claims by taking hold of the Royal Castles.
June 8: The expert certification of professor Bernhard von Gudden and three more doctors declares Ludwig II "mentally disordered" and mad, "incurable ", and unable to govern for life.
June 9: Legal incapacitation of the King Ludwig II due to the medical bulletin
June 10: The regency is taken over by Prince Luitpold, an uncle of the King. Ludwig II orders the state commission which wants to fetch him to be arrested.
June 11: Bismarck advises Ludwig to show himself to the people in Munich and to represent his interests himself at the Bavarian parliament
June 12: A second state commission brings the King from Neuschwanstein to Berg Castle where he is under the control of Gudden
June 13: Ludwig comes to death with Gudden in lake Starnberger See
June 19: Funeral procession through Munich and burial in the crypt of St Michaels Church
August 1: The Castles Neuschwanstein, Linderhof and Herrenchiemsee are opened to the public
August 16: The urn with Ludwigs heart is taken to the chapel of Grace in Altötting
Biography according to Petzet
Source: Official site of Bavarian Castles, Gardens and Lakes.


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I have a garden, and I absolutely love checking out my roses and herbs and the little pumpkin vine I planted last weekend. Gardening always helps me clear my head, but who knew that dirt has clinically proven health benefits. Check out this news …
Dirt: It may do a body good. At least, that's the news from researchers at The Sage Colleges in New York who say that digging around in the dirt (think: building sand castles, gardening, etc.) may not only reduce anxiety and depression but make you smarter. Huh?
Details: "Mycobacterium vaccae is a natural soil bacterium which people likely ingest or breathe in when they spend time in nature," says Dorothy Matthews, one of the study's researchers.
Mice who were injected with this bacterium had increased serotonin levels and experienced improved learning and less anxiety. The researchers believe people may experience similar benefits from outdoor activities like gardening.
The takeaway here: Clean is good, but obsessive clean is not. There are healthy bacteria out there, as seen above, that you want to come into contact with.
Hmmm, I wonder if a mud-mask at the spa counts. 🙂
How often do you get your hands dirty? Ever?


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Snare Drums Philharmonic Solid Maple
The Philharmonic PHM snare drum is painstakingly hand-formed from a single ply of fully aged prime Maple to achieve the pinnacle of concert snare drum attack response, dynamic capability, and tonal color in one instrument. Truly professional quality - only from Pearl.
At the heart of the World Famous Philharmonic snare drum is the revolutionary SR-500 strainer system. The Triad Silent Strainer System provides three individual tension adjusters allowing you to fine tune the optimum tension for each type of snare material mounted on the drum and a single global adjustment knob on the butt side for quick overall tension adjustments.
A proprietary combination of three unique snare sets(coated cable, stainless cable & snappy wire) using both graduated and even tensioning, offers seamless timbre overlapping and ultra-smooth dynamic transition, plus a greatly extended dynamic and sensitivity range. All snares can be effortlessly changed by simply loosening the adjuster and one drum key rod.
"Love the drum! I have played it in countless concerts with the Rochester Phil - performances in Eastman Theatre, live broadcasts, recordings.... It's just a great, crisp, dynamic drum. Love it! "
- Jim Tiller, Principal Percussion, Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra and Director of Percussion Studies, SUNY Geneseo
|Solid 7.5mm Maple Shell
|SR-500 Triad Strainer
|Graduated Tension Snares
|Vintage Snare Beds
|Tube Lugs
|Stainless Steel Tension Rods
|Die Cast Rims
|Remo Renaissance Head
Solid 1 Ply 7.5mm Maple Shell
Provides the fullest range of frequency response and dynamic capability with a warm and pleasing timbre.
PHM Solid 1 ply 100% Maple wood shells have a smooth even texture that remains durable under a wide range of conditions and accepts a variety of rich lustrous finishes. Full bodied low frequencies, with an even balance of high and mid-tones have made this shell the all around accepted premium material in the acoustic drum industry.
Our exclusive solid Maple shell provides the maximum potential in dynamic range and well balanced overtone response for any playing situation, making it the choice of professionals and ensembles around the world.
Pearl's Superior Shell Technology utilizes a proprietary technique for achieving the ultimate air chamber. It begins with select woods chosen for their unique acoustic attributes, milled to precise thickness with overlapping scarf joint seams, for a perfect air-tight fit. The wood plies are saturated with Pearl's proprietary "AcoustiGlue" that permeates every pore and dries to the exact consistency of the wood for optimum resonance. Finally, the plies are formed in high-temperature molds with 1000 PSI of hydraulic pressure to produce perfect drum shells that exhibit superior tone, optimal resonance and extreme strength.
|Model Number
|Shell Type
|Snare Assembly (Left Middle Right)
|1 ply Maple
|MasterCast Die Cast
|1 ply Maple
|MasterCast Die Cast
Snare Assemblies
S-065Y 14" 5 strand Heavy Yellow coated cable, Graduated Tension for SR-500
|Snare Assembly
|14" 4 strand Snappy lay-on wire w/cord
|14" 7 strand Light Yellow coated cable, Graduated Tension for SR-500
|14" 8 strand Stainless Steel cable, Even Tension for SR-500
#103 Piano Black
#204 High Gloss Walnut Bordeaux
Warranty & Schematics
Warranty Coverage/Warranty Period
General: Pearl drums, stands, pedals, parts and accessories except as noted herein, purchased from an authorized Pearl dealer are warranted to the original retail purchase and shall be valid by item as indicated below and is not transferable.
Drum Hardware (Concert): Drum hardware such as lugs, claws, tension rods, swivel nuts, strainers, and nuts and bolts are guaranteed against material failure and manufacturing defects for a period of three (3) years from the date of the original purchase.
Hoops: Wood hoops are guaranteed against material failure, ply separation, or going out of round for a period of one (1) year from the date of the original purchase. Metal hoops are guaranteed against material failure or going out of round for a period of one (1) year from the date of the original purchase.
Finish: Except for "special finishes" (see below), both the lacquer finish and covered finish on Pearl drums are guaranteed for one (1) year; however, Pearl does not guarantee against deterioration by reason of corrosive atmosphere, extreme temperature or other external causes.
This Warranty Does Not Cover
This warranty shall not apply to the following: sticks, brushes, beaters, springs, straps, slings, heads, wire snares, cable snares, gut snares, snare cords/straps, cymbals, bass drum hoop protectors, or damage resulting from misuse, negligence, and/or alterations or additions to the product after acceptance. Pearl's warranty does not apply to failures caused by the following: a.) Improper maintenance or repair, including the installation of parts or components that do not conform to the quality and specification of the original. b.) Instruments that have been altered, modified or have been damaged through misuse, negligence or improper operation. c.) Instruments whose trademark, name or identification number has been changed or removed. d.) Instruments subjected to abnormal strain, neglect, abuse, modification or exposure to extreme variances in temperature or humidity. e.) Special Finishes - Drum hardware and stands ordered with Black Chrome plated, Gold plated, Satin Chrome plated, Black Nickel plated, and lacquered finishes are highly sensitive to cosmetic damage that can occur during normal handling and use. Therefore, no warranty of any kind, including any implied warranty of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose, is provided against cosmetic defects or appearance damage to these finishes.
The obligation created by this warranty is limited to repair or replacement of the defective item at Pearl's sole discretion.
Owner's Responsibility
It is important that the owner/user be familiar with the proper maintenance and use of their Pearl instrument. Keep this warranty and proof of purchase in a safe place. Be prepared to provide purchase information to avoid undue difficulties in determining eligibility for warranty protection. If any service is not performed by Pearl, it will terminate this warranty.
To Obtain Warranty Service
Warranty service may be obtained by first notifying the Pearl dealer from which the product was originally purchased. Upon notification, the Pearl dealer must obtain Return Authorization from the Pearl Customer Service Department. This number must be written plainly on the outside of the package or the returned shipping carton will be refused. Returned merchandise must be accompanied by a copy of the original sales receipt. All freight and insurance must be prepaid by the original owner. Pearl will stand return freight, provided the defect is adjudged to be covered by warranty. Merchandise found to be not covered by warranty will be returned freight collect.
Warranty Limitations
This Limited Warranty is exclusive and made in lieu of all other warranties, and all implied warranties, including without limitation any warranties of merchantability or of fitness for a particular purpose which are hereby expressly disclaimed. In no event will responsibility be accepted for incidental or consequential damages of any nature whatsoever. Some states do not allow limitation on how long an implied warranty may last. Therefore, the above limitations or exclusions may not apply to you.
This warranty gives you specific legal rights and you may also have other rights which vary from state to state.


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August 7, 2012
memory lane
Outfit Details:
floral blazer – thrifted
white shirt – Lilla P
shorts – h+m
belt – thrifted
leopard beau clutch – c/o Rebecca Minkoff
bracelet – forever 21
silver ring – Liam of York
pink stone ring – c/o SorrelliLollipop pendant necklace – c/o Ippolitahat – h+mAmpersand heel – c/o Seychelleschevron rug – Urban Outfitterslipstick – MAC Unlimited
I bought this floral blazer while I was in Florida; I missed real thrifting. My mom, Tessa, and I spent an entire day driving around South Florida and hitting a bunch of thrift shops, then went through Fort Lauderdale for a trip down memory lane. It's crazy how much things change, over the years – and how a few little things still remain the same. It was a really good day. There have been a lot of those, lately.


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Latest Heart News
THURSDAY, March 14 (HealthDay News) -- There is little risk of dangerous brain bleeds when giving the clot-busting drug tPA to people suffering a stroke who have been taking certain types of blood thinners, a new study says.
Millions of Americans take aspirin or other blood thinners every day to reduce their risk of blood clots, which can lead to heart attack and stroke. If they suffer a stroke, medical emergency teams may be reluctant to give them tPA due to fears that the combination of drugs might cause dangerous brain bleeding.
Researchers at the University of Michigan Stroke Program, however, found that this fear is unfounded in many cases. They looked at data from more than 800 stroke patients who received tPA at 28 Michigan hospitals. Just less than half of them had been taking aspirin or the blood thinner drug Plavix (clopidogrel) before their stroke.
After they adjusted for various patient characteristics, the researchers found no significant difference in the rate of brain bleeding between patients who had been taking aspirin or Plavix and those who weren't taking any blood thinners.
The findings, published in the journal Academic Emergency Medicine, should help reassure medical staff and patients that tPA is safe to use in patients who have been taking aspirin or Plavix, the researchers said.
"This study, from a broad range of hospitals, provides solid evidence based on real-world use of tPA that physicians should not alter their decision-making based on aspirin or [Plavix] use when treating stroke patients with tPA," study author Dr. William Meurer, an assistant professor of emergency medicine at the University of Michigan Medical School, said in a university news release.
The researchers noted, however, that their study did not include patients taking more powerful blood thinners, such as warfarin (Coumadin), heparin, dabigatran (Pradaxa) or rivaroxaban (Xarelto). The use of tPA in patients taking these drugs needs much more study.
-- Robert Preidt
Copyright © 2013 HealthDay. All rights reserved.


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Construction industry gains jobs
Employment in the construction industry rose by 15,000 in March, its first gain since June 2007, according to data released today.
The industry's unemployment rate dropped slightly from 27.1 percent in February to 24.9 percent last month.
"The persistence of depression-like unemployment in construction is ominous for an industry that already faced challenges in retaining and attracting skilled crafts workers and supervisors," said Ken Simonson, chief economist for the Associated General Contractors of America.
The industry continues to outpace the overall economy in wage rates, Simonson said. Hourly earnings for all workers in construction in March averaged $25.27, seasonally adjusted, 12.5 percent higher than the average for all non-farm payroll workers.


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Trade Unions
Joining a trade union
Find out about what trade unions are and what the benefits of being a trade union member could be. For example, trade unions will try to negotiate with your employer about your employment terms and conditions.
What is a trade union?
A trade union is an organization made up of members (a membership-based organization) and its membership must be made up mainly of workers. One of a trade union's main aims is to protect and advance the interests of its members in the workplace.
Most trade unions are independent of any employer. However, trade unions try to develop close working relationships with employers. This can sometimes take the form of a partnership agreement between the employer and the trade union which identifies their common interests and objectives.
Trade unions:
- negotiate agreements with employers on pay and conditions
- discuss major changes to the workplace such as large-scale redundancy
- discuss their members' concerns with employers
- accompany their members in disciplinary and grievance meetings
- provide their members with legal and financial advice
- provide education facilities and certain consumer benefits such as discounted insurance
Your right to join, or not join, a trade union
Employers and employment agencies must not treat you unfairly because you decide to join, decide to leave, refuse to leave or refuse to join a trade union. If they do, you may be able to make a complaint to an Employment Tribunal.
Trade union membership: your right to choose
You have the right to:
- choose to join or not join a trade union
- decide to leave, or remain a member of, a trade union
- belong to a trade union of your choice, even if it is different from the one recognized by your employer
- belong to more than one trade union
You can exercise your right to choose at any time.
Your employer is not allowed to try to make you change your decision by offering you a benefit if you change your mind, or by threatening to penalize you if you do not. Your employer is not allowed to penalize you later for keeping to your decision.
Industrial action and trade unions
Industrial action usually occurs when members of a trade union are involved in a dispute with their employer that cannot be resolved by negotiation. The trade union will ask its members whether they wish to take action over the dispute.
Forms of industrial action
Workers usually take industrial action by refusing to work altogether or refusing to do work in the way their employment contract says they should.
There are two main forms of industrial action:
- strike – where workers refuse to work for the employer
- action short of a strike – where workers take actions such as 'go-slows', or bans on overtime or call-outs
On some, relatively rare, occasions, an employer may 'lock-out' workers during a dispute. A lock-out is where the employer stops workers from working or returning to work.
Calling for industrial action
If a trade union is thinking of calling industrial action over a dispute it must first decide which of its members affected by the dispute it wants to ask to take part in the action. This may be all of the members affected or just some of them. The trade union must then ask the members it wishes to take part whether they want to take industrial action.
The trade union must do this by holding a postal ballot.
When you are balloted on industrial action the voting paper must ask whether you are prepared to take part in either:
- a strike
- industrial action short of a strike
It can ask both of these questions.
The trade union is only allowed to call for a strike if the majority of those voting answer 'yes' to the first question. It may only call for industrial action short of a strike if the majority of those voting answer 'yes' to the second question. If both questions are asked and a majority answers 'yes' to both, the trade union can decide which type of action it calls for.
The trade union must tell all its members who were entitled to vote in the ballot what the voting figures were.
A trade union calls for industrial action by telling the members it wants to take part when and how action is to be taken. The call must be made by a person or committee with proper authority and the voting paper for the ballot must have said who this is.
You should be allowed to vote in secret without interference from a trade union or its officials. However, most trade unions will tell their affected members about the nature of the dispute and the reasons why they think industrial action may be needed to resolve it ahead of a ballot.
Taking industrial action
If you are a trade union member, you can choose whether you wish to take part in the industrial action your trade union has called. Your trade union must not discipline you for choosing not to take part in industrial action.
If you are disciplined by your trade union for not taking part in industrial action or for crossing a picket line, you can complain to an Employment Tribunal.
Trade union representatives
If your employer deals with trade unions, you may be represented in your workplace by colleagues who are trade union representatives. You may even wish to become a representative and talk to your employer on behalf of your colleagues.
What is a trade union representative?
A trade union representative (rep) is a member of a trade union who represents their work colleagues in dealings with an employer. They often provide advice on employment matters directly to colleagues. Trade union reps are also called 'lay representatives' or 'lay officials' to separate them from officials who are employees of the trade union.
Trade union reps are volunteers. They do not receive extra pay for their work as reps, though many are entitled to time off with pay to undertake their role as a rep.
The role of trade union reps
Trade union reps are there to:
- discuss any concerns you have with your employer
- accompany you to disciplinary or grievance hearings
- represent you in collective bargaining over your pay and your terms and conditions of employment
- talk to your employer to try to find agreements to resolve any workplace issues
- engage with your employer to develop best practice in various workplace areas, such as health and safety
Your employer should consult trade union reps if:
- there is a business transfer or takeover
- they are planning to make 20 or more employees redundant within a period of 90 days
Trade union elections
Trade unions must by law hold elections for certain senior positions. Many trade unions also hold elections for other positions. Find out how elections are held, what your trade union's responsibilities are and which positions must be filled by-election.


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The developers of Haskell at Microsoft Research may claim that "Haskell is the world's finest imperative programming language" but the flagship Haskell implementation GHC still suffers from serious long-standing bugs in its garbage collector that make it impossible to solve many important problems efficiently in Haskell.
We previously rediscovered a serious bug in GHC's garbage collector that rendered every write into an array O(n) instead of O(1) because the GC marks the entire array as dirty and traverses every element at the next minor GC. In particular, this makes it impossible to implement hash tables and sorts efficiently in Haskell. Surprisingly, this bug turned out to be many years old and had been reported by many people before us. Failure to fix this bug in GHC has been forcing Haskell programmers to resort to elaborate workarounds such as manual memory management via the FFI as seen in the Haskell implementation of the knucleotide benchmark from the Computer Language Shootout.
Yesterday, Robert van Herk wrote on the GHC users mailing list that attempts to optimize his Haskell code were also culminating in unexpectedly poor performance even though his arrays only had eight elements each. Simon Marlow clarified that their current implementation of GHC's garbage collector does indeed contain another serious performance bug: every mutable array seen by a mutator is inserted into the remembered set and examined at the next minor collection. Thus, Haskell programs that handle large numbers of small mutable arrays will experience a different kind of asymptotic performance degradation in Haskell.
These bugs effectively render Haskell itself inefficient because imperative programming and mutable data structures are the only performant solution to many common problems.


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This is a textured, more rigid leather fabric sheet. Recommended uses: projects that require a more rigid material like our passport case or mini notebook case, or in-the-hoop bookmarks.
See a blog describing different materials used for in-the-hoop projects here.
Physical goods are mailed within two business days of your purchase.
Please allow for subtle color variance due to differences in computer monitors.
Love our embroidery designs? Visit the Facebook group for sneak peeks and chat www.facebook.com/groups/designsbylittlebeegroup
Need a tutorial video? Binge watch the DLB YouTube channel www.youtube.com/c/designsbylittlebee
Visit the blog, too www.designsbylittlebee.com/blog
Give our public Facebook page a "like" www.facebook.com/designsbylittlebee
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senior, high school