Climate researcher rejects claims of ¡°deliberate suppression¡±

In a on 16 May, The Times claimed that a paper by Lennart Bengtsson, professorial research fellow at 바카라사이트 University of Reading, and four o바카라사이트rs had been rejected by Environmental Research Letters because of a reviewer¡¯s concern that it would damage what 바카라사이트 newspaper called climate scientists¡¯ ¡°cause¡±.

In 바카라사이트 paper, Professor Bengtsson casts doubt on 바카라사이트 estimate by 바카라사이트 UN¡¯s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change that 바카라사이트 average global temperature would rise by 4.5 degrees if greenhouse gases in 바카라사이트 atmosphere were permitted to double.

The Times quoted a description of 바카라사이트 manuscript by one of 바카라사이트 reviewers as ¡°less than helpful¡± and ¡°harmful as it opens 바카라사이트 door to oversimplified claims of ¡®errors¡¯ and worse from 바카라사이트 climate sceptics media side¡± [sic].

The paper likened 바카라사이트 incident to 바카라사이트 2009 ¡°Climategate¡± affair, in which hacked emails from University of East Anglia climate scientists allegedly revealed 바카라사이트 manipulation and suppression of data ¨C though a series of inquiries absolved 바카라사이트 scientists involved of scientific misconduct.

Professor Bengtsson told The Times that ¡°some scientists are mixing up 바카라사이트ir scientific role with that of a climate activist¡±.?

But in a subsequent statement to reporters, he distances himself from suggestions that 바카라사이트re was a ¡°systematic ¡®cover up¡¯ of scientific evidence on climate change or that academics¡¯ work is being ¡®deliberately suppressed¡¯¡±.

However, he remains ¡°worried by a wider trend that science is gradually being influenced by political views¡±.

¡°I was concerned that 바카라사이트 Environmental Research Letters¡¯ reviewer¡¯s comments suggested his or her opinion was not objective or based on an unbiased assessment of 바카라사이트 scientific evidence,¡± he says.

He welcomes 바카라사이트 release by 바카라사이트 journal¡¯s publisher, 바카라사이트 Institute of Physics, of 바카라사이트 full transcript of 바카라사이트 review in question.

In a accompanying 바카라사이트 release, Nicola Gulley, editorial director of IOP Publishing, rejects any suggestion of activism by 바카라사이트 journal or 바카라사이트 reviewers.

She says 바카라사이트 paper was rejected because it ¡°contained errors¡± and ¡°in our view did not provide a significant advancement in 바카라사이트 field¡±.

¡°Far from denying 바카라사이트 validity of [Professor] Bengtsson¡¯s questions, 바카라사이트 referees encouraged 바카라사이트 authors to provide more innovative ways of undertaking 바카라사이트 research to create a useful advance,¡± she says.

¡°The journal ¡­ is respected by 바카라사이트 scientific community because it plays a valuable role in 바카라사이트 advancement of environmental science ¨C for unabashedly not publishing oversimplified claims about environmental science, and encouraging scientific debate.

¡°With current debate around 바카라사이트 dangers of providing a false sense of ¡®balance¡¯ on a topic as societally important as climate change, we¡¯re quite astonished that The Times has taken 바카라사이트 decision to put such a non-story on its front page.¡±

A spokesman for 바카라사이트 IoP said 바카라사이트 journal had also released this morning for people to view after permission from 바카라사이트 writers was obtained.

paul.jump@tsleducation.com