Tuesday, March 2, 2010

Show Your Work!

Dr. Phil Jones, the "scientist" at the center of Climategate, testified in front of a government inquiry panel in the UK yesterday. He's accused of violating FOI (Freedom of Information) laws by refusing requests and hiding data when AGW skeptics requested his research data.

During the inquiry, he said this:

Daily Mail
Last month, the Information Commissioner ruled the CRU had broken Freedom of Information rules by refusing to hand over raw data.

But yesterday Professor Jones - in his first public appearance since the scandal broke - denied manipulating the figures.

Looking pale and clasping his shaking hands in front of him, he told MPs: 'I have obviously written some pretty awful emails.'

He admitted withholding data about global temperatures but said the information was publicly available from American websites.

And he claimed it was not 'standard practice' to release data and computer models so other scientists could check and challenge research.

OK, I'm just a lowly ex-engineer but in all my science classes (physics and chemistry), we were always told to show our work. In the various lab classes, we had to record our data and turn it in with our write-ups. I'm pretty sure the TA's never checked our work but it's there if they want to. I thought nothing was accepted as "science" unless other people can validate your work.

If we're going to spend trillions of dollars and cripple our economy to "save the Earth," I would like these scientist/activist, who have received $ millions in public funding, to at least show their work.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

i don't mind you slamming the communist chinese government or my lack of using capitals in my text; but please don't disparage agw. my future and present needs all the boost for climate change it can get. go solar.

there was a delay in my post. was in the prc for a couple of days.