Take a look at this BBC article.
Pay particular attention to the graphs.
They look similar to these two, which I reconstructed by reading data off the charts on the BBC site. The first shows the cosmic radiation rate in neutrons per hour. The second is the temperature change since 1975 when it started.
Big scary temperature change, isn’t it.
Now look at the two graphs below. They show THE SAME DATA. From the same columns of the same Excel Spreadhseet.
Virtually constant solar radiation. Virtually constant temperature. You can’t extrapolate anything from this data. Doubly so when the solar radiation is known to be an EIGHTY year cucle, and you only have 25 years of data. All we’re seeing is the last peak of the graph!
And that, ladies and gentlemen is how to lie with statistics.
There are two morals to this story. The first one is don’t believe any charts you look at unless you understand what the data really means and how it’s being presented. And the second is to get some real data before trying to influence political decisions that will cost millions of people thousands of pounds and dollars!
