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April 2013
ABSTRACT In this talk, Parker will examine how scientists have used computers to understand weather and climate, and how the computer might be even better used in the future to impact our understanding of meteorology. She discusses this against the backdrop of the study of severe storms and climate change. SPEAKER PROFILE Wendy Parker is [...]
Find out moreOctober 2013
ABSTRACT On vital issues such as genetically-modified foods and climate change, having correct scientific knowledge is vital for making good public policy. How does philosophy help us understand science? How strong is the scientific consensus about climate change, and the effects our species has on it? Naomi Oreskes, co-author of the award-winning book Merchants of [...]
Find out moreApril 2014
ABSTRACT I argue that concerns about double-counting – using the same evidence both to calibrate or tune climate models and also to confirm that the models are adequate – deserve more careful scrutiny in climate modelling circles. It is widely held that double-counting is bad and that separate data must be used for calibration and [...]
Find out moreSeptember 2014
ABSTRACT This three-part lecture series focuses on the natural science aspects of climate change, as well as the methodological and philosophical questions that arise in connection with them. Everybody wishing to understand the basic physics behind climate change and the use of climate models is welcome to attend; no prior knowledge is presupposed. The first [...]
Find out moreOctober 2014
ABSTRACT An editorial in the journal Nature warned climate scientists that they must acknowledge that, like it or not, they are in a street fight. Climate scientists have been the targets of a well-funded, orchestrated campaign to discredit them and their work. In this talk, I will raise the question of what scientists can do [...]
Find out moreABSTRACT A growing group of scientists and activists is calling for a “paradigm shift” in our thinking about the threat of climate change and how best to respond to it—a shift to an ecological approach that emphasizes the role of living systems. What do they mean? Are they right? SPEAKER PROFILE Gillian Barker is a [...]
Find out moreABSTRACT Should we take drastic measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions now, or should we continue our current practices and leave it to future generations to adapt to the effects of climate change? Opinions on this issue are divided. In this lecture I explain the terms of the debate in plain English (no knowledge of [...]
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ABSTRACT A public panel discussion about what can, and what should, be done about climate change, with a focus on interplay between various levels of action – community, national, and international. Also discussed will be how we can cut through the ideological noise around the issue of climate change. SPEAKER PROFILES Gary Brown Gary Brown [...]
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CONFERENCE DESCRIPTION The Rotman Institute of Philosophy second annual conference, Knowledge and Models in Climate Science: Philosophical, Historical, and Scientific Perspectives, took place on Oct. 24-26, 2014. The conference brought together researchers to discuss the use of models in understanding the climate from a variety of disciplinary perspectives. Models and computer simulations are essential not [...]
Find out moreABSTRACT Climate prediction and weather prediction are very different: due to constant refinements and new techniques, the life time of a climate model is much less than the forecast we ask it to make, whereas the same weather model can be used to forecast tomorrow’s weather, day after day, for months if not years — [...]
Find out moreMarch 2015
ABSTRACT Both climate scientists and philosophers have been working hard to understand how the huge multidimensional global climate models can be tested and confirmed. The convergence of multiple climate models on a single outcome or result has provided a key feature in these discussions. Philosophers of science tend to think that such convergence, or “robustness,” [...]
Find out moreFebruary 2016
ABSTRACT Creating food systems capable of sustainably, equitably, and nutritiously feeding 9 billion people while dealing with climate change is one of the 21st century’s “Grand Challenges”. Meeting this challenge is about more than just producing enough - indeed, we already produce enough for everyone, but more than a billion are overweight while almost a [...]
Find out moreSeptember 2016
ABSTRACT Last December, after twenty years of apparent incremental progress, over 190 countries meeting under the auspices of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change managed to create what promises to be a lasting international climate agreement. Debates continue however over whether the greenhouse gas mitigation commitments that parties brought to the table in [...]
Find out moreNovember 2017
ABSTRACT Scientific and technological capacity for understanding and responding to oil spills is currently of great relevance for major infrastructure projects and sustainability goals in the Canadian context (and internationally). Planned expansion of oil and gas development into the Arctic is a case in point, as are pipeline projects linking central and coastal Canada. The [...]
Find out moreOctober 2018
ABSTRACT Concerns about environmental sustainability and fossil-fuel insecurity have motivated countries around the world to transition to clean energy supplies derived from renewables such as solar, hydro, bioenergy, geothermal and wind. Since producing and distributing renewables is more labor-intensive than producing and distributing fossil fuels, this shift is creating new employment opportunities and addressing energy [...]
Find out moreJanuary 2021
Join our philosophy of synthetic biology reading group as they host Christopher Preston for a virtual talk on his 2018 book, The Synthetic Age: Outdesigning Evolution, Resurrecting Species, and Reengineering Our World.
Find out moreSeptember 2021
A cohort of research and knowledge exchange networks are co-hosting a journal club discussion on the proposal that the science of collective human behavior should be considered a "crisis discipline." Read the paper and join us for the conversation. Advance registration is required and can be completed on the CAS Lab event page. Event [...]
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