My Climate Change News

From this week's government/NGO section, longitudinal data is gold and Leisorowitz, Maibachi et al. continue to mine ore from the US public with Climate Change in the American Mind: Politics & Policy, Fall 2023:

Drawing on a representative sample of the U.S. adult population, the authors describe how registered voters view a variety of domestic climate and energy policies. The survey was fielded from October 20 – 26, 2023. For example, 57% of registered voters would prefer to vote for a candidate for public office who supports action on global warming. This includes 95% of liberal Democrats, 86% of moderate/conservative Democrats, and 46% of liberal/moderate Republicans, but only 13% of conservative Republicans. 56% of registered voters think global warming should be a high or very high priority for the president and Congress. 64% of registered voters think developing sources of clean energy should be a high or very high priority for the President and Congress.

Now that we've fully twigged to wet-bulb temperature vs. human survivability in a warming, moistening climate, we're already seeing refined results against first-pass gross estimations. In Nature Communications Jennifer Varos et al. subdivide populations and arrive at some grim conclusions. From the abstract of A physiological approach for assessing human survivability and liveability to heat in a changing climate:

Most studies projecting human survivability limits to extreme heat with climate change use a 35 °C wet-bulb temperature (Tw) threshold without integrating variations in human physiology. This study applies physiological and biophysical principles for young and older adults, in sun or shade, to improve current estimates of survivability and introduce liveability (maximum safe, sustained activity) under current and future climates. Our physiology-based survival limits show a vast underestimation of risks by the 35 °C Tw model in hot-dry conditions....