The Heat Is On: Bjorn Lomborg on the Summer’s Record Heat

I’m beginning to lose confidence wether saving human lives is still the main objective of those in power

15 minutes on Google will show that these highs are not record breakers. Spend 5 minutes looking at the 1930s. It will shock you.

Great conversation. My background is as an environmental scientist (hydrogeologist), and I recently had discussion with a friend who insisted that humanity was going to go extinct in the next few decades due to climate change. I asked him why he thought this, and he cited recent media articles (unspecified). I consider myself an environmentalist that can do math, and it is increasingly clear to me that the primary cause of climate change is anthropogenic. This said, I was pretty sure the claim of pending extinction of humanity wasn't true, but I acknowledged that I may have missed a new projection. So I pulled up the 3 most recent publications by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) that likely addresses this issue and searched headings and did a series of key-word searches. The only discussions of extinction that I found were of isolated species that were unable to migrate or species that suffered habitat loss due to shifting climate patters, which makes sense. There was also discussion of localized ecosystem collapse, which also makes sense especially in marginal areas or locations that have other stresses such as human encroachment. There were thoughtful discussions on how this species loss, ecosystem degradation, and overall climate change will impose significant financial costs and suffering on humans and how climate change will negatively impact our infrastructure. Nowhere in any of the authoritative IPPC reports that I reviewed was human extinction discussed. I expanded the search and found some rather *ahem!* fringe articles on human extinction and climate change, a number of which I read or skimmed. They seems slightly hysterical (my opinion) and were not persuasive. I politely gave a summary of my research to my friend. This summary was not well received, and we agreed to disagree. Bottom line: I enjoy hearing contrarian discussions by folks like Mr. Lomborg. He makes a number of persuasive points and gives a lot to think about.

The key to bringing tempratures down are trees. A mature tree expires 100 gal of water a day , creates shade, retains water in soil, takes in carbon dioxide, gives oxygen. Stores carbon.

Peter, great admirer and fan of Uncommon Knowledge here. I urge you to interview Patrick Moore, co-founder of Green Peace, and now a vocal opponent of the carbon fear mongering leftist "green movement". Patrick, as an emanently serious scientist, needs to have his countervailing and persuasive views on anthropogenic climate change heard in this debate. We are now very much on the verge of self inflicted global economic disaster because of a psychopathically emotional reaction to a moderate phenomenon of gradual natural climate change that has little or nothing to do with human behavior. It has much more to do with the geophysical realities of a lengthy natural warming and cooling rhythm of earth's climate that has demonstrably existed for millions of years before man became a dominant species on this planet. Climate variations are related to periodic solar radiation eruptions and the fact that the earth has a 1/2° wobble in its rotational axis. Interaction between our rotational wobble and our eliptical orbit around the sun rationally explain geologically observable changes in climate over very long periods of time. It's not coincidental that Ice Age cycles have regular 10,000-16,000 year predictability. Patrick Moore lays this out in his rational and manifestly logical arguments against the current global hysteria over alledged man-caused climate anomalies. Mankind desperately needs a gifted interviewer like you to give him equal time in this debate before it is too late. The Chicken Littles of the Green World Movement are luring us down a scary road to irreversible disaster!

Had the coldest winter in Brisbane that I can remember in 25 years.

It was pretty comfortable here on UK south coast. My room fan stayed in its box. Never needed. Someone's on the fiddle somewhere. Cheers Stuart.

As a person with ADHD in their middle to late 50's, 20 minutes on youtube is a stretch for me. 65 minutes of me glued to the screen is unthinkable, yet here I am, right at the end, and still fascinated by this conversation in the same way that I was five minutes in.

Bjorn is always a great guest, Peter is the best interviewer. Guaranteed to be a good episode.

The temperatures in the 1930s were higher. Go to newspaper records to get the truth. The “official” meteorological records have been “adjusted.”

This is what an honest conversation of climate change looks and sounds like.

Well, our energy policy is horrid. 5 farms in my county are going bust because of the energy expenses. This is sickening, and the eco-wackos just don't care. They never will.

Unfortunately, he is fixated on the belief that the sea levels will rise, even as millionaires & billionaires continue to buy up beach front property.

If Bjorn and Jordan Peterson went on a world-wide campaign espousing these ideas in all major capitals including those in the developing world I wonder how many main stream media sources would carry their message.

I'm in Scotland and we have been lucky enough to have had about 7 sunny days this summer. For your information we are part of UK! England gets better weather than Scotland because it is in the south .

We’re also in a 400 year cycle and a grand solar minimum which effects climate. The UK max temperature was taking in the city, widely recognised as not reliable. If you look at history you’ll realise that it’s not cut and dry. Problem is most people dismiss it.

It was relatively cool here in southern Arizona, south of Tucson at 3,000 elevation. Just a few days of 100 though the average temp in June and July is 100. Many days under 90. At Tucson Airport 20 miles away and 1,000 feet lower, where official records are kept, we're told it was one of the hottest summers ever. Weather has so many variables it's difficult to predict today's weather just a few hours out. Weather has always changed and in ways humans cannot predict. Lomborg has a great deal of common sense, much needed.

People are not the main contributors to climate.

Viewing this should be mandatory for every graduating secondary school student worldwide.

Been one of the mildest summers I can remember in my life.