《新科学家》New Scientist 20170408期【
《新科学家》New Scientist 20170408期目录：
《新科学家》New Scientist 20170408期节选
Same old story?
Fatigue is the friend of those who oppose action on climate
THE annual melt of Arctic ice is under way, and this year’s may be the biggest ever. Its starting point is the most shrunken ice cap since satellite records began. By the middle of September the ice will have retreated to the shorelines of Greenland and Canada, leaving vast expanses of open water in the Arctic Ocean. It will not be many more years until the Arctic is icefree in summer (see page 33).
This, of course, is not news. Nor is the fact that the US is about to renege on its climate change commitments, again
One of the problems with reporting climate science and politics is fatigue. Everybody already knows the broad brushstrokes of the story and the news – if there is any – is rarely good. Prospects for change appear minimal
But even for those with climate fatigue, the scale and speed of events in the Arctic still have the power to shock and dismay. Ditto the arrogance and recklessness of the Trump administration’s climate policies (see page 22). The two are closely connected: without comprehensive, rapid global action, there is zero chance of preventing irreversible change in the Arctic that may bring catastrophe to the rest of the world.
Again, you have probably heard it all before. But the alternative is to stop talking about it, which plays directly into the hands of those who oppose action. Little suits them better than a bored and disengaged public