I recently read the 2018 paperback edition of The Madhouse Effect by Michael E. Mann and Tom Toles. Mann and Toles do an excellent job being true to the science and facts of climate change while writing in a way that is accessible to non-scientists and non-wonks. A number of things worth noting stand out.

There is No Doubt

First, Mann and Toles explain why there is no doubt about the science of human-caused climate change. In a nutshell, the scientific process is built to challenge consensus and rigorously pursue well founded challenges to the status quo. Legitimate science countering mainline thinking on climate science would be elevated, not suppressed, by the scientific community. In understanding the scientific process and the consensus we see among scientists on climate change, it is clear that there are no real questions as to whether climate change is happening, whether it is caused by our consumption of fossil fuels, or whether it is a serious threat to our existence. It is happening; we are causing it; and it is a serious threat.

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