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In "Science As A Contact Sport" Stephen Schneider, Nobel Prize-winning climatologist and co-author of the "IPCC Commission Reports" that brought the crisis of climate change to the world's attention, reveals the years of battles between scientists and policymakers that have stymied real progress on global warming policy, makes a case for scientific literacy, and lays out a plan for what we need to do to address climate change in years to come. Taking readers behind the scenes and back in time, Schneider unravels an astonishing scientific mystery as one by one, scientists begin to understand the very real threat of massive global climate change. In disciplines as diverse as anthropology and oceanography, a community of passionate scientists quickly grasped that Earth's chemistry was changing at a rapid clip, and that no one really had the tools to predict the outcome of that change. Seizing on that unpredictability, special interest groups and policymakers stymied action. "Science as a Contact Sport" shows how the findings of science have been used and misused to influence government policy. Schneider has witnessed the 'highjacking' of energy policy by every Republican administration since Regan and testified before Congressional committees since 1976 about the possible outcomes of climate change. Looking toward the future of the planet, asking thoughtful questions about how the nations of the world can move forward together to ameliorate an impending disaster.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
2 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Schneider has been at the heart of bridging the gap between the science and the politics of climate change pretty well as long as anybody. He writes with enthusiasm and an obvious passion, but somehow never fully engages the reader. James Hansen's 'Storms of my Grandchildren' by comparison is less about the individual's perspective and more about both the time, politics and hurdles, as well as the author's personal commitment in terms of being able to look his grandchildren in the eye and say "I tried my best".
The books both follow very similar paths, illustrating the author's early professional work; their migration into the science of climate change; the trials and tribulations of pursuing their passion for science research yet being increasingly diverted by personal conviction into more political worlds; and finally their views on possible solutions, the urgency for change and the consequences of failing to act. But, for my money, while Schneider's book is very good, Hansen's is the one that I find myself recalling more regularly.
The books both follow very similar paths, illustrating the author's early professional work; their migration into the science of climate change; the trials and tribulations of pursuing their passion for science research yet being increasingly diverted by personal conviction into more political worlds; and finally their views on possible solutions, the urgency for change and the consequences of failing to act. But, for my money, while Schneider's book is very good, Hansen's is the one that I find myself recalling more regularly.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
55 reviews
35 of 38 people found the following review helpful
Not a science tutorial and not supposed to be
18 Nov 2009
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
1) This is fine, first-hand book on the evolution of climate science over the last 30 years or so with nuanced descriptions of the science arguments and the difficulties in explaining science to policymakers and the public. Thank Stephen especially for the long campaign to regularize the uncertainty descriptions used in the IPCC 3rd and 4th Reviews. Other reviews have covered many of the topics I might have, so I won't repeat, but will offer something different.
2) If you want more history, start with:
Spencer Weart, The Discovery of Global Warming (New Histories of Science, Technology, and Medicine), which also has an equivalent website at the American Institute of Physics.
Then, read two of Stephen's earlier books:
Global Warming: Are We Entering the Greenhouse Century?, 1989. andLaboratory Earth the Planetary Gamble We (Science Masters), 1996.
This sequence offers a good look into what was known or not *at the time, not just by hindsight*, how real science works, and how scientists weigh data and competing hypotheses. Much of real science is trying to bound uncertainty, and good scientists change their minds. Some things that were theoretically very likely in 1989, but had not yet emerged from the noise into statistical significance, have long since done so.
3) If you want tutorials, here are my favorites, for 3 levels of background in ascending order
General audience, easily including high school, and inexpensive.
David Archer,The Long Thaw: How Humans Are Changing the Next 100,000 Years of Earth's Climate (Science Essentials), 2009. 180 easy pages. See my review over there for advice on figuring out whether or not someone might be an expert [like Archer] or not.
College undergrad textbook, for non-science majors, i.e., a little more math and science:
David Archer, Global Warming: Understanding the Forecast, 2008. Not so cheap, but good. 194 (denser) pages.
Serious, but the Real Stuff:
Search: ipcc wg i technical summary
for the ~70-page Technical Summary, what the scientists *really* think. Free. Anyone who has read SaaCS should understand why the Summary for Policy Makers is almost always weakened and uses obscure language compared to the TS. I hear this quite consistently from other IPCC authors, who are often amazed *anything* makes it into the SPM. Consider reading the TS for WG's II and III as well.
4) Bottom line:
So, SaaCS is a good book to read. Even better is to attend live talks by good climate scientists. Stephen is especially adept at giving talks for various backgrounds. There is no real substitute for listening to a real expert, watch them answer questions, and maybe even talk to them. In some places, that may be hard, but many good research universities offer public talks, and speakers may do outreach talks elsewhere.
Here in the SanFrancisco Bay Area, there must be at least 30+ IPCC authors around, and so many talks they sometimes have schedule conflicts. Among Stanford U, SLAC, UC Berkeley, LBNL, LLNL, various government groups, business organizations, and NGOs, anyone should be able to find a few good ones, *if they want to*.
2) If you want more history, start with:
Spencer Weart, The Discovery of Global Warming (New Histories of Science, Technology, and Medicine), which also has an equivalent website at the American Institute of Physics.
Then, read two of Stephen's earlier books:
Global Warming: Are We Entering the Greenhouse Century?, 1989. andLaboratory Earth the Planetary Gamble We (Science Masters), 1996.
This sequence offers a good look into what was known or not *at the time, not just by hindsight*, how real science works, and how scientists weigh data and competing hypotheses. Much of real science is trying to bound uncertainty, and good scientists change their minds. Some things that were theoretically very likely in 1989, but had not yet emerged from the noise into statistical significance, have long since done so.
3) If you want tutorials, here are my favorites, for 3 levels of background in ascending order
General audience, easily including high school, and inexpensive.
David Archer,The Long Thaw: How Humans Are Changing the Next 100,000 Years of Earth's Climate (Science Essentials), 2009. 180 easy pages. See my review over there for advice on figuring out whether or not someone might be an expert [like Archer] or not.
College undergrad textbook, for non-science majors, i.e., a little more math and science:
David Archer, Global Warming: Understanding the Forecast, 2008. Not so cheap, but good. 194 (denser) pages.
Serious, but the Real Stuff:
Search: ipcc wg i technical summary
for the ~70-page Technical Summary, what the scientists *really* think. Free. Anyone who has read SaaCS should understand why the Summary for Policy Makers is almost always weakened and uses obscure language compared to the TS. I hear this quite consistently from other IPCC authors, who are often amazed *anything* makes it into the SPM. Consider reading the TS for WG's II and III as well.
4) Bottom line:
So, SaaCS is a good book to read. Even better is to attend live talks by good climate scientists. Stephen is especially adept at giving talks for various backgrounds. There is no real substitute for listening to a real expert, watch them answer questions, and maybe even talk to them. In some places, that may be hard, but many good research universities offer public talks, and speakers may do outreach talks elsewhere.
Here in the SanFrancisco Bay Area, there must be at least 30+ IPCC authors around, and so many talks they sometimes have schedule conflicts. Among Stanford U, SLAC, UC Berkeley, LBNL, LLNL, various government groups, business organizations, and NGOs, anyone should be able to find a few good ones, *if they want to*.
13 of 14 people found the following review helpful
Turned a skeptic into a believer.
16 Dec 2009
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review
(What's this?)
I must admit to having been a fence-sitter on the whole global warming/climate change controversy, not knowing which side to believe. However, this book has moved me firmly into the believer camp as it very logically lays out what's been discovered, why it's important and what it means to the future of our increasingly fragile planet. Highly recommended for anyone willing to take a serious, open-minded look at what is a very serious issue. It's well-written and makes its point(s) without the rhetoric and emotionalism that's so often present.
12 of 14 people found the following review helpful
Interesting quasi-biography, not a tell-all on the intricacies of global warming
6 Nov 2009
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review
(What's this?)
if one were to trust the marketing of the book, (marketed as answering key questions such as "Why, if we knew of the threats way back in the Carter Administration, can't we act decisively to limit greenhouse gases, deforestation, and catastrophic warming trends? Why are we still addicted to fossil fuels? Have we all just been fiddling for 40 years as the world burns around us?"), it does a remarkably poor job.
Schneider, however, succeeds in providing an engaging account of his own growth and glimpses of various key personalities in this field such as Gore, Crutzen, Broeker, etc. Written mostly in a first-person narrative style, Schneider takes us through his rationale on some of his public statements which helps define a broader viewpoint regarding the initial (heated) public discussions that formed the genesis of the "global warming movement". For a reader curious about the personalities involved in this critical topic, this book will be of great value. For someone who was looking to get a rigorous treatment of the controversies on data, evidence etc will have to be satisfied with mostly a very well-thought-out chapter on "media wars". Overall, a good, rare look at the key personalities, but unfortunately, the book may not advance the debate on potential solutions to global warming significantly.
Schneider, however, succeeds in providing an engaging account of his own growth and glimpses of various key personalities in this field such as Gore, Crutzen, Broeker, etc. Written mostly in a first-person narrative style, Schneider takes us through his rationale on some of his public statements which helps define a broader viewpoint regarding the initial (heated) public discussions that formed the genesis of the "global warming movement". For a reader curious about the personalities involved in this critical topic, this book will be of great value. For someone who was looking to get a rigorous treatment of the controversies on data, evidence etc will have to be satisfied with mostly a very well-thought-out chapter on "media wars". Overall, a good, rare look at the key personalities, but unfortunately, the book may not advance the debate on potential solutions to global warming significantly.
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