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NUMBERS, numbers, everywhere but what are we to think? Numbers matter, but they can leave us bewildered rather than better informed.
Take the greatest challenge facing our civilisation: climate change. Two of the vital questions are: what is a safe limit for global warming, and what do we have to do to ensure we don’t pass it? The available answers vary greatly.
This is partly to do with us. We are the biggest uncertainty in climate projections. However, the baffling array of numbers also has much to do with the often hidden assumptions and definitions underlying the figures. For instance,…
