Global warming on trial
Sixth-graders decide that humans aren’t to blame
By Ben Ready
The Daily Times-Call
LONGMONT — Humans don’t cause global warming, a jury of sixth graders at Trail Ridge Middle School concluded Thursday after hearing opposing arguments from their peers.
“They’re pretty young for this kind of thinking. They did great,” paleontology teacher Ken Poppe said after the 40-minute “trial” in his classroom
With Earth’s warming accepted as a tenet, pre-teen “lawyers” and “scientists” debated whether humans have caused it.
Eleven jurors listened intently as prosecutors and defendants flashed contradictory graphs tracking global temperatures, carbon dioxide levels, polar ice cap statistics, volcanic activity and sea surface temperatures — all of which were found Wednesday in the school’s computer lab.
“The earth has warmed and cooled over many years. If it’s caused by CO2, why haven’t the charts shot up?” Poppe’s son and lead prosecutor Caleb argued during a rebuttal.
In a climax that sent half the class to its feet and forced the judge to call for order, opponent Monique Nem slapped a contradictory graph onto the prosecution’s table.
“We’ve proven you wrong! The CO2 levels have shot up,” she said.
The jury responded more warmly, however, to Caleb Poppe’s response: The graphic cited a Hawaiian source; Hawaii has volcanoes; volcanoes emit CO2.
In closing arguments, Alexia Hegy said global temperatures actually decreased in the 1960’s, while the global population rose. Humans cannot be at fault, she concluded.
With the final word, defense attorney Sarah Steed countered: “It all comes back to us, the people — not the sun, not the weather. We need to turn off lights when we don’t need them. Bikes can work. The environment can be richer.”
Seven of 11 jurors decided humans are not to blame, but everyone agreed classroom debates make for fun learning.
“It was a hard decision, because both sides made good points,” said student Samantha Roberts.
Ken Poppe said he let students choose which side of the debate to argue. Poppe personally believes global warming is cyclical and not affected by humans, while his Colorado State University student aide David Richards believes the opposite. Both, however, said they presented both sides equally to the students leading up to Thursday’s debate.
“What I think is not the issue. It’s what the students dig up and how they present the case,” Poppe said.
Only one parent questioned Poppe’s decision to hold a global warming debate. That mother expected him to present Al Gore’s global warming movie “An Inconvenient Truth” as indisputable facts, Poppe said. After he explained his neutrality in the classroom, the mom allowed her child to participate in the debate, he said.
“You don’t understand someone’s position until you can argue it to their satisfaction,” Poppe said, quoting a famous physicist. “I don’t believe in Darwinism either, but I can argue it as well as any Darwinist.”
The first problem with this dumb assignment is that you don't take a legalistic approach to science. Then the kids make dumb kid arguments that don't make any sense. The population is higher during times when temperature was lower...that says nothing, especially since industrialization is more of a factor. The graph from the Hawaiian source is proven because it's from Hawaii? But then all the other sources out there concur with the findings. But I can't blame them, you only really start learning about the scientific method in sixth grade, too bad these kids have a crappy teacher.
The fact that this teacher talks about "not believing in Darwinism" is a testament. He's a science teacher that doesn't like science. And he proves yet again that global warming deniers are the same as creationists. Next thing you he'll say is that the banana was "designed."
I don't know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody.
- Bill Cosby
The guy who takes a chance, who walks the line between the known and unknown, who is unafraid of failure, will succeed.
- Gordon Parks
Edward Teach said this in post #1 : Even 6th graders can figure it out.
Even Exxon Mobil can figure it out. ExxonMobil teaching faulty science to school children in the UK
quote:
This follows a report of the Union of Concerned Scientists published this month, "Smoke, Mirrors & Hot Air", which demonstrated how ExxonMobil has adopted the tobacco industry's disinformation tactics, as well as some of the same organisations and personnel, to cloud the scientific understanding of climate change and delay action on the issue.
quote:
ExxonMobil is once again spreading climate change propaganda by teaching faulty science to school children in the UK, an opposition parliamentarian claimed just a month after US scientists accused the oil giant of paying lobby groups to muddy climate change science.
Liberal Democrat Shadow Environment Secretary, Chris Huhne MP condemned the world's top oil company for misleading young children who are unable to assess scientific evidence.
Mr Huhne [Shadow Environment Secretary] cited the ExxonMobil sponsorship of a website aimed at UK primary school children that is being read by 30,000 people a month which claims that the cause of global warming is uncertain, contrary to the overwhelming scientific consensus that man-made fossil fuel burning is responsible.
I think its cute that a bunch of kids would do this, however, they are being taught that global warming is not man made - no it isn't fully man made but because of man, the CO2 levels ppm are about some 400 times more then what nature would have them be.
I watched that Gore movie - his data is pretty damn accurate and pretty much says the same thing that leading science pros and text books say. So i didn't hear too much that i did not already know. I did find it interesting that he has attempted to get the US to change its policy since the 1980s towards green house gass.
Why Children? Is it because they are vulnerable and tender/trusting? They are taught to ACCEPT everything and adults EQUATE conformity with discipline....?
Well, science is about the scientific method...
Science is no popularity contest since it is not about public opinion. It is not bipartisan and it should not be debatable. We study science to learn from nature and not contest any verifiable observation. There are no elections, issues & promises are not supposed to either win or lose a term in office.
Obviously, the public mind has been CONFUSED and now, we deal with science the same way political scientists scrutinize an international election.
Who is sowing LIES... Who is imposing this systematic deceit? There is a widespread political campaign to cripple industry and blame whole economies for perceived changes in climate. It is making life more expensive by taxing for the environment over and above a person's duty to his society.
03-23-2007 09:45 PM
