Scientists are frantically copying U.S. climate data, fearing it might vanish under Trump

[Arkansas Granny]

Alarmed that decades of crucial climate measurements could vanish under a hostile Trump administration, scientists have begun a feverish attempt to copy reams of government data onto independent servers in hopes of safeguarding it from any political interference.

The efforts include a “guerrilla archiving event” in Toronto where experts will copy irreplaceable public data, meetings at the University of Pennsylvania focused on how to download as much federal data as possible in the coming weeks, and a collaboration of scientists and database experts who are compiling an online site to harbor scientific information.

“Something that seemed a little paranoid to me before all of a sudden seems potentially realistic, or at least something you’d want to hedge against,” said Nick Santos, an environmental researcher at the University of California at Davis, who over the weekend began copying government climate data onto a nongovernment server, where it will remain available to the public. “Doing this can only be a good thing. Hopefully they leave everything in place. But if not, we’re planning for that.”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2016/12/13/scientists-are-frantically-copying-u-s-climate-data-fearing-it-might-vanish-under-trump/?postshare=3751481645413207&tid=ss_tw&utm_term=.1c4ceeb9da3b

I hadn't considered that data might be destroyed, but I suppose it is a possibility. I have a feeling we're going back to the dark ages.

[spanone]

1. an enemy of the state.

[niyad]

2. what a commentary on the greatest, bestest, most wonderfulest nation in the whole world.

[Hortensis]

8. Inspiring, heroic--unbelievable that it might be necessary

here in the U.S. I was just blown away reading this this morning. I am just so grateful to these people for not being naive when the whole world really needed them to be wise.

[niyad]

9. thank you--"heroic" is indeed the word.

[suffragette]

22. "...not being naive when the whole world really needed them to be wise."

Very well said.

I am grateful, too.

[mopinko]

3. put in a few back doors where you can, too, guys.

it will be interesting to track any changes or edits, to see what they use and what they ignore.

this is war, people. an information war.

[niyad]

6. a most excellent idea!!

[Missn-Hitch]

21. Great. They have InfoWars. How, pray tell, is this accomplished?

Russians interfered with our election.

They: "It happened on Obama's watch."

Climate change is real.

They: "No it's not."

Information is only as good as those hearing the information are able to think. Dark days ahead. Sorry, a bit gloomy today.

[jabbothedog]

23. Why? Trump voters don't give a damn about climate change,

so why would Trump? If the average Trump voter had to choose between his $25/hour carbon-producing job and a poverty-stricken coastal community, what do you think they would pick? If was even "maybe" lose his job to reduce climate change, the job wins. Most voters just don't care about the environment, especially someone else's environment, when there's even the possibility it will affect their wallet.

[Missn-Hitch]

24. Indeed.

[mopinko]

26. so we should just get happy and get over it?

we need evidence. we need to know what they are doing and what affect it is having.
they will just stop capturing a lot of data. but some is needed by business, so it will stay up. whether that data is reported honestly is of utmost importance.

[Baitball Blogger]

4. Omigod. Fahrenheit 451!

The future is here! We are so fooked!

[niyad]

7. I was just thinking about that book and movie the other day.

[Calculating]

10. We've evolved into a post truth society.

Where fake news about Hillary being a satanist/running a pedophile ring is openly spread around the internet, and where basic scientific truths such as climate change will get you into trouble with a large amount of society.

[eppur_se_muova]

5. Don't forget Harper's (right-wing PM) attack on Canadian science ...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/112759431

There's no question right-wingers will always try to destroy evidence of inconvenient facts, given the chance.

For a more worrisome precedent, consider that Chinese emperors, Egyptian pharaohs, and probably quite a few others, attempted to destroy all records of previous rulers, so that history would begin with their reign. Scholars who resisted the destruction of their libraries were put to the sword. Many ancient records survive only because dedicated monks hid copies of their most valuable works and refused to reveal their whereabouts even on pain of death.

[Ford_Prefect]

15. Not to mention ISIS destroying burning libraries and historical sites.

Ashcroft and the naked statues now seems like a bad joke in comparison.

[FarCenter]

11. Just copying isn't enough -- they need to use blockchain to secure the copies against modification

And to allow independent proof that the copy is unaltered and valid.

Otherwise, uncurated copies are essentially useless.

[Buzz Clik]

12. This wasn't done before?

I doubt it.

[Ford_Prefect]

13. Wait till they get around to the Public Libraries and the Schools: Fahrenheit 451 redux.

[dawnie51]

14. This is the stuff.....

we heard about when governments fell, conquered places, during war, overseas. Never here, in this magical country of ours. I have lived to see the unthinkable. And I fear for my grandchildren.

[LanternWaste]

16. My guess is Trump will bring government-sponsored Lysenkoism back into high fashion.

My guess is Trump will bring government-sponsored Lysenkoism back into high fashion.

[Martin Eden]

17. Trumpsters will want to flush a lot of things down the Memory Hole

We are heading into a potential Orwellian nightmare.

[Hekate]

18. KnR for the heroes

[lame54]

19. They can memorize it...

Like in Fahrenheit 451

[bdamomma]

20. this is a sick ass man

Trump says ‘nobody really knows’ if climate change is real]

what an ignorant stupid man. I wish he would just go somewhere else like under a rock.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

25. Totalitarian tRump Politburo bringing in thought crime clampdown. . . nt