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Fred Singer

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S(iegfried) Frederick Singer
Born (1924-10-27) October 27, 1924 (age 100)
Vienna, Austria
NationalityUnited States
AwardsWhite House Presidential Commendation
Gold Medal, Distinguished Federal Service
Scientific career
FieldsPhysics, Atmospheric Science
Electrical Engineering
InstitutionsPrinceton University, University of Virginia
George Mason University
University of Miami
Ohio State University

Siegfried Frederick Singer (born September 27, 1924 in Vienna) is an American atmospheric physicist. Singer is Professor Emeritus of environmental science at the University of Virginia, [1] specializing in planetary science, global warming, ozone depletion, and other global environmental issues. Singer received a B.E.E from Ohio State University in 1943; an A.M. in physics from Princeton in 1944; and a Ph. D in physics from Princeton in 1948. Singer has received an honorary Doctorate of Science from Ohio State University in 1970.[2]

Singer invented the backscatter photometer ozone-monitoring instrument for early versions of US weather satellites [3][4][5] Singer was Director of the Science and Environmental Policy Project, Washington Institute for Values in Public Policy, Chief Scientist, United States Department of Transportation from 1987 to 1989, Deputy Assistant Administrator for the United States Environmental Protection Agency from 1970 to 1971, and the first Director of the National Weather Bureau's Satellite Service Center, where upon his leave he received a Gold Medal for Distinguished Federal Service.[6][2][7] In 1964, he became the first dean of the School of Environmental and Planetary Sciences at the University of Miami.[6][8]

Singer has also been a consultant to the House Select Committee on Space, NASA, GAO, NSF, AEC, NRC, DOD (Strategic Defense Initiative), US DOE Nuclear Waste Panel, the US Treasury, and the state governments of Virginia, Alaska, and Pennsylvania, and to various industries including GE, Ford, GM, Exxon, Shell, Sun Oil, Lockheed Martin and IBM.[9]

In the 1950s, Singer was Director of the Center for Atmospheric and Space Physics at the University of Maryland.[10]

Singer is skeptical of scientific findings on human-induced global warming[11][12][13], the connection between CFCs and ozone depletion[14], and the link between second hand smoke and lung cancer.[15][16] Singer has also worked with organizations with similar views, such as the Independent Institute,[17] the American Council on Science and Health[18], Frontiers of Freedom[19], the Marshall Institute, the National Center for Policy Analysis,[20] and the Science & Environmental Policy Project, which Singer founded.

Degrees

Singer holds a B.E.E. in Electrical engineering from Ohio State University and an A.M. and PhD in Physics from Princeton University.[1]

Career

In the 1940s and 50s Singer designed the first instruments used in satellites to measure cosmic radiation and ozone.[1]

Previous government and academic positions:[1]

  • Director of the Center for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Maryland (1953-62)
  • Special advisor to President Eisenhower on space developments (1960)
  • First Director of the National Weather Satellite Service (1962-64)
  • Founding Dean of the School of Environmental and Planetary Sciences, University of Miami (1964-67)
  • Deputy Assistant Secretary for Water Quality and Research, U.S. Department of the Interior (1967- 70)
  • Deputy Assistant Administrator for Policy, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (1970-71)
  • Professor of Environmental Sciences, University of Virginia (1971-94)
  • Chief Scientist, U.S. Department of Transportation (1987- 89)

Space and exploration

In 1960, Singer was one of several scientists who speculated that the Martian moon Phobos was artificial in origin. The claim was based on the erroneous conclusion that Phobos was hollow. Later observations demonstrated conclusively that Phobos was not hollow, rendering the artificial origin speculation moot[21][22][23].

In 1981, he proposed a manned mission to the moons. Singer cited the following benefits of a manned mission to Mars' moons over a further delayed direct landing on Mars: [24]

  • Minimal Δv’s needed to reach Phobos’s surface
  • Ability to monitor Mars from a stable platform in low Mars orbit (LMO)
  • Ability to teleoperate robots on Mars without significant time delay
  • Opportunity to advance the scientific investigation of small bodies
  • Potential of finding H2O on Phobos which might be used as a resource

In 1994, Singer contributed to a paper on the results from the Interplanetary Dust Experiment using data from the Long Duration Exposure Facility satellite.[25] Singer also has been a proponent of manned exploration to Mars.[26]

Kuwait oil fires debate

During Operation Desert Storm in 1991, Dr. S. Fred Singer debated Carl Sagan on the impact of the Kuwaiti petroleum fires on the ABC News program Nightline. Sagan said we know from the nuclear winter investigation that the smoke would loft into the upper atmosphere and that he believed the net effects would be very similar to the explosion of the Indonesian volcano Tambora in 1815, which resulted in the year 1816 being known as the year without a summer, in massive agricultural failures, in very serious human suffering and, in some cases, starvation. He predicted the same for south Asia, and perhaps for a significant fraction of the northern hemisphere as well as a result. Singer, on the other hand, said that calculations showed that the smoke would go to an altitude of about 3,000 feet and then be rained out after about three to five days and thus the lifetime of the smoke would be limited.[27] According to a later study, the Kuwaiti oil fires, "had no lasting meteorological impacts at any of the locations examined, and there has been no change to the seasonal synoptic weather patterns throughout the Persian Gulf Region". However, Persian Gulf cities like Dhahran, Riyadh and Bahrain experienced days with smoke filled skies and carbon fallout."[28]

Global warming

In his extensive 2000 PBS interview, Singer noted the urban heat island effect influences surface temperatures.[29] He said surface temperatures showed both heating and cooling. In 2003, Singer stated that the warming from surface thermometer data was contradicted by satellite and radiosonde data etc.[30][31] Singer has emphasized natural factors over anthropogenic causes to explain global warming. Singer wrote:

The Earth currently is experiencing a warming trend, but there is scientific evidence that human activities have little to do with it. Instead, the warming seems to be part of a 1,500-year cycle (plus or minus 500 years) of moderate temperature swings.[32][33]

Singer has critiqued other scientists' research in Eos, December 16, 1997.[34] Singer co-authored two 2004 articles in Geophysics Research Letters.[35] In 2006, he gave an invited paper on Sea Surface Temperatures. [36] In 2007, studies Singer co-authored found tropospheric temperature trends of 'Climate of the 20th Century' models differed from satellite observations by twice the model mean uncertainty. Models of layers near 5 km were 100% to 300% higher than observation, and above 8 km models and observations had opposite signs.[37] [38] He is the co-author of the New York Times Bestseller Unstoppable Global Warming: Every 1,500 Years [39] with Dennis T. Avery of the Hudson Institute.

A 2007 Newsweek cover story on climate change denial reported that: "In April 1998 a dozen people from the denial machine — including the Marshall Institute, Fred Singer's group and Exxon — met at the American Petroleum Institute's Washington headquarters. They proposed a $5 million campaign, according to a leaked eight-page memo, to convince the public that the science of global warming is riddled with controversy and uncertainty." The plan was reportedly aimed at "raising questions about and undercutting the 'prevailing scientific wisdom'" on climate change. According to Newsweek, the plan was leaked to the press and therefore was never implemented.[40]

In 2007, the nonprofit advocacy group Union of Concerned Scientists called Singer a "climate contrarian." [41] ABC News has reported that Singer insists he is not on the payroll of the energy industry, but admits he once received an unsolicited $10,000 from Exxon.[42]

NIPCC

In 2008, Singer's group, the Science and Environmental Policy Project, completed the organization[43] of the Nongovernmental International Panel on Climate Change (NIPCC) as the culmination of a process that began in 2003. "The foundation for NIPCC," stated Singer, "was laid ... when a small group of scientists from the United States and Europe met in Milan during one of the frequent UN climate conferences." It was not until a workshop with many more scientists, from both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres, was held in Vienna in 2007 that the NIPCC organizational effort formally began, however. [44]

According to the abstract of the 2008 Summary for Policymakers of the Report of the Nongovernmental International Panel on Climate Change, the result of The 2008 International Conference on Climate Change held in New York City, the NIPCC is

"an international coalition of scientists convened to provide an independent examination of the evidence available on the causes and consequences of climate change in the published, peer-reviewed literature – examined without bias and selectivity. It includes many research papers ignored by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), plus additional scientific results that became available after the IPCC deadline of May 2006."[45]

The NIPCC document titled "Nature, Not Human Activity Rules the Climate,"[46] published by The Heartland Institute[47] was released in February-March 2008. Singer served as General Editor and is the copyright owner. It is unclear if the report is the "report itself" or the summary of an as-yet unreleased report since the report's second page subtitles it "Summary for Policymakers of the Report of the Nongovernmental International Panel on Climate Change."

Climate scientists from NASA, Stanford University and Princeton who were contacted by ABC News dismissed Singer's most recent report on global warming as "fabricated nonsense."[42]

UV-A, melanoma, and stratospheric ozone

Singer has stated there is a connection between UV-A and melanoma, as well as between the shorter-wavelength UV-B radiation and basal and squamous cell skin cancers. However, he believes that there is "no clear relation" between UV-B and melanoma rates, based on published research in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences regarding UV-B radiation and melanoma[48][49][50][51][52] Singer has variously suggested there is no connection between CFCs and strospheric ozone loss,[53] and that no significant ozone loss is occurring.[54]

Publication on health effects of tobacco

In 1994 Singer was Chief Reviewer of the published report Science, economics, and environmental policy: a critical examination published by the Alexis de Tocqueville Institution (AdTI), a conservative think tank of which he was a Senior Fellow. The report attacked the United States Environmental Protection Agency for their 1993 study about the cancer risks of passive smoking and called it "junk science". Singer also appeared on a tobacco industry list of people who could write op-ed pieces defending the industry’s views, according to a peer-reviewed commentary by Derek Yach and Stella Aguinaga Bialous.[55]

Writing for The Guardian, George Monbiot stated that in 1993 APCO, a public relations firm, sent a memo to Philip Morris vice-president Ellen Merlo stating: "As you know, we have been working with Dr. Fred Singer and Dr. Dwight Lee, who have authored articles on junk science and indoor air quality (IAQ) respectively ..."[56] Monbiot wrote that he did not have direct evidence that Singer had been paid by Philip Morris.

The Great Global Warming Swindle

In March 2007, Singer appeared in the controversial documentary film The Great Global Warming Swindle which asserted that the mainstream view on global warming was "a lie" and "the biggest scam of modern times". On the program, Singer imputed to the Chief Scientist of the United Kingdom, Sir David King the view that "by the end of the century the only habitable place on the earth will be the Antarctic. And humanity may survive thanks to some breeding couples who moved to the Antarctic". Singer then commented "It would be hilarious if it weren't so sad."

The program was the subject of over 200 complaints to the British television regulator Ofcom including one from Sir David King. King complained that he had made no reference to "breeding couples" and that the program had exaggerated his statements by changing his words from "most habitable" to "only habitable". As part of their defense, Channel 4 provided examples of media reports from the time of King's remarks which had imputed to him statements such as "Antarctica is likely to be the world’s only habitable continent by the end of this century ... the rest of the globe could not sustain human life" while noting that those statements had gone unchallenged for nearly 3 years prior to the program being broadcast. Other evidence showed that Singer had apparently conflated King's remarks with similar remarks made by Sir James Lovelock, specifically "Before this century is over, billions of us will die, and the few breeding pairs of people that survive will be in the Arctic where the climate remains tolerable." Ofcom upheld King's claim of unfair treatment in the program since he had not been provided an opportunity to respond as required by broadcast rules.[57]

Notes and references

  1. ^ a b c d S. Fred Singer. "Professional Background S. FRED SINGER, Ph.D." Retrieved 2007-11-07.
  2. ^ a b Lehr, Jay H. (1992). Rational Readings on Environmental Concerns. John Wiley And Sons. p. 393. ISBN 0471284858.
  3. ^ Harris, Paul G. (2001). The Environment, International Relations, and U.S. Foreign Policy. Georgetown University Press. p. 130. ISBN 0878408339.
  4. ^ Hogan, James P. (2005). Catastrophes, Chaos & Convolutions. Baen Books. ISBN 1416509216.
  5. ^ Lal, Deepak (1990). The Limits of International Co-operation. Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA). ISBN 0255362269.
  6. ^ a b Levy, Lillian. Space, Its Impact on Man and Society. Ayer Publishing. pp. xiii. ISBN 0836981642.
  7. ^ Singer, Siegfried Fred (1975). The Changing Global Environment. Springer Publishers. p. 401. ISBN 9027704023.
  8. ^ Lehr, Jay H. (1992). Rational Readings on Environmental Concerns. John Wiley And Sons. p. 393. ISBN 0471284858.
  9. ^ The EPA and the science of environmental tobacco smoke / [1]
  10. ^ [http://tobaccodocuments.org/pm/2040165575.html
  11. ^ Global Warming Unfinished Business ("Climate science is not 'settled;'")
  12. ^ S. Fred Singer (1999-01-10). "Parting green clouds". SEPP. Retrieved 2007-02-26.
  13. ^ S. Fred Singer (2006-11-22). "Public misled". Retrieved 2007-02-26.
  14. ^ "Both theory and measurements suggests that hydrogen-containing molecules, not chlorine, are the main destruction agent for ozone in the lower stratosphere"
  15. ^ Science & Environmental Policy Project - About the Project
  16. ^ S. Fred Singer (2006-07-22). "The Week That Was". SEPP. Retrieved 2007-02-26. Surgeon General...attempts to demonstrate that secondhand smoke is a risk to health. His evidence is not convincing. We think he does not succeed.
  17. ^ S. Fred Singer: The Independent Institute
  18. ^ "Scientific advisors". American Council on Science and Health. Retrieved 2008-05-15.
  19. ^ "Frontiers of Freedom - Staff". archived link from 2003-12-15
  20. ^ Warming Caused by Natural Cycle | Not Humans | News | E-Team
  21. ^ Shklovsky, I. S.; The Universe, Life, and Mind, Academy of Sciences USSR, Moscow, 1962
  22. ^ Öpik, E. J. (September 1964). "Is Phobos Artificial?". Irish Astronomical Journal, Vol. 6. pp. 281–283. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  23. ^ "More on the Moons of Mars". Singer, S. F., Astronautics, February 1960. American Astronautical Society. Page 16. "My conclusion there is, and here I back Shklovsky, that if the satellite is indeed spiraling inward as deduced from astronomical observation, then there is little alternative to the hypothesis that it is hollow and therefore martian made. The big "if" lies in the astronomical observations; they may well be in error. Since they are based on several independent sets of measurements taken decades apart by different observers with different instruments, systematic errors may have influenced them."
  24. ^ [2].
  25. ^ Long duration exposure facility (LDEF) interplanetary dust experiment (IDE) impact detector results
  26. ^ A Manned Mission to the Mysterious Moons of Mars, by S. Fred Singer
  27. ^ "FIRST ISRAELI SCUD FATALITIES OIL FIRES IN KUWAIT". Nightline. 1991-01-22. ABC. yes. {{cite episode}}: Unknown parameter |serieslink= ignored (|series-link= suggested) (help)
  28. ^ Patrick K. Dowling. "The Meteorological Effects of the Kuwait Oil Fires" (PDF).
  29. ^ S. Fred Singer (2000). PBS.org http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/warming/debate/singer.html. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  30. ^ S. Fred Singer (2003). "McLieberman Bill Unsupported By Science: Voted Down by Senate". SEPP. Retrieved 2007-04-23. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  31. ^ S. Fred Singer (2003). "EPA Bias on Global Warming". SEPP. Retrieved 2007-04-23. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  32. ^ S. Fred Singer (2005). "The Physical Evidence of Earth's Unstoppable 1,500-Year Climate Cycle" (PDF). SEPP. Retrieved 2007-02-26. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help); Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  33. ^ However, an article from the Journal Science describes how the Sun's role in climate variation is ambiguous. A more detailed discussion of the lack of evidence of a link between the sun and the earth's climate can be found at RealClimate
  34. ^ Unknowns About Climate Variability Render Treaty Targets Premature, EOS, Transactions, American Geophysical Union, Volume 78, page 584, December 16, 1997
  35. ^ See SEPP, "Further reading"
  36. ^ singer, S. Fred (2006). "Sea Surface Temperatures (SST): Significance and Measurement". Eos Trans. AGU. 87 (36, Jt. Assem. Suppl. Abstract A44A-01).
  37. ^ Douglass, David H. (2007). "A comparison of tropical temperature trends with model predictions" (PDF). International Journal of Climatology. doi:10.1002/joc.1651. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  38. ^ Douglass, David H. (2004). "Altitude Dependence of Atmospheric Temperature Trends: Climate Models vs Observation". Geophysical Research Letters. 31 (L13208). arXiv:physics/0407074v1 [physics.geo-ph]. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  39. ^ Singer, S. Fred (2008). Unstoppable Global Warming: Every 1,500 Years, Updated Expanded edition. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. p. 264. {{cite book}}: Text "ISBN 0742551245" ignored (help); Unknown parameter |Language= ignored (|language= suggested) (help)
  40. ^ The Truth About Denial, by Sharon Begley. Published in Newsweek on August 13 2007; accessed November 8 2007.
  41. ^ Scientist Calls Global Warming Theories 'Bunk,' Cites Errors of Logic
  42. ^ a b Harris, Dan (2008-03-23). "Global Warming Denier: Fraud or 'Realist'?". ABC News. ABCnews.com. Retrieved 2008-03-24. Singer insists he is not on the payroll of the energy industry, but admits he once accepted an unsolicited check from Exxon for $10,000. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  43. ^ Singer, S. Fred (2007-09-01-). "The Week that Was". SEPP. Retrieved 2008-05-09. Because of these omissions, which became evident from the initial drafts of AR4, the SEPP decided to set up a 'Team B' to produce an independent evaluation of the available scientific evidence. While the initial organization took place in 2004, Team B only became activated after the SPM appeared in February 2007; it changed its name to NIPCC and organized an international climate workshop in Vienna in April 2007. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  44. ^ S. Fred Singer, Editor (2008-03-02). "Nature, Not Human Activity, Rules the Climate". Summary for Policymakers of the Report of the Nongovernmental International Panel on Climate Change. Nongovernmental International Panel on Climate Change / The Heartland Institute. Retrieved 2008-05-08. {{cite web}}: |author= has generic name (help)
  45. ^ Harriette Johnson and Joseph L. Bast (2008-05-05). "Climate Change Conference Invigorates Global Warming Debate". Environment News. The Heartland Institute. Retrieved 2008-05-07.
  46. ^ P:\JBast\Books\Singer NIPCC\(02-18-08) Singer NIPCC.wpd
  47. ^ Report notice: Opinions expressed are solely those of the authors. Nothing in this report should be construed as reflecting the views of the Science and Environmental Policy Project or The Heartland Institute, or as an attempt to influence pending legislation.
  48. ^ S. Fred Singer. "Environmental Strategies with Uncertain Science". Cato Institute. Retrieved 2007-02-26.
  49. ^ S. Fred Singer (1995-02-01). "Lecture at St. Vincent College: The Use and Misuse of Science". SEPP. Retrieved 2007-02-26.
  50. ^ S. Fred Singer (1996-08-01). "Testimony in the U.S. House of Representatives, on Ozone Depletion". SEPP. Retrieved 2007-02-26.
  51. ^ S. Fred Singer (1994). "Ozone, Skin Cancer, and the SST". SEPP. Retrieved 2007-02-26. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  52. ^ S. Fred Singer (1994-03-21). "The hole truth about CFCs". SEPP. Retrieved 2007-02-26.
  53. ^ "Both theory and measurements suggests that hydrogen-containing molecules, not chlorine, are the main destruction agent for ozone in the lower stratosphere"
  54. ^ "Anthology of 1995's Environmental Myths"
  55. ^ Yach, Derek (2001). "Junking Science to Promote Tobacco" (PDF). Vol 91, No. 11. American Journal of Public Health. pp. pp. 1745-1748. Retrieved 2008-08-16. {{cite web}}: |pages= has extra text (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help); Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  56. ^ George Monbiot (2006-09-19). "The denial industry". The Guardian. Retrieved 2007-02-26.
  57. ^ "Ofcom Broadcast Bulletin" (PDF). 2008-07-21. Retrieved 2008-07-22.

Publications

  • Nature, Not Human Activity, Rules the Climate[1] a document claiming to be a "Summary for Policymakers of the Report of the Nongovernmental International Panel on Climate Change", although there is no evidence that the report of which it claims to be a summary exists. Edited by S. Fred Singer, copyright SEPP, published for the Nongovernmental International Panel on Climate Change by "The Heartland Institute", March 2008.
  • (with Dennis T Avery) Unstoppable Global Warming Every 1500 Years. Rowman & Littlefield, 2006. 260 pp ISBN 0742551172
  • S.Fred Singer, The Changing Global Environment. Springer, 1975. 431 pp ISBN 978-9027703859
  • S.Fred Singer, ed. Global Effects of Environmental Pollution. Springer, 1970. 232 pp ISBN 978-9027701510 Amazon.com listing PDF preview of book

See also

Further reading

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference autogenerated1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
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