Geophysicist Pollack to Address Global Warning in Feb. 19 Talk
Released on 02/05/2004, at 12:00 AM
Office of University Communications
University of Nebraska–Lincoln
WHEN: Thursday, Feb. 19, 2004
Lincoln, Neb., Feb. 5, 2003 -- Geophysicist Henry N. Pollack, professor of geological sciences at the University of Michigan and a University of Nebraska-Lincoln alumnus, will speak on global warming and how uncertainty affects science in a Feb. 19 talk at UNL.
The talk begins at 4 p.m. in 117 Bessey Hall, 12th and U streets on City Campus. It will be geared toward a general audience and is free and open to the public.
Pollack will address questions which puzzle scientists, such as the effects of global warming on Earth, what caused the space shuttle Columbia to disintegrate, and where the next major earthquake will occur. The public is often puzzled, Pollack said, about why these questions can't be solved when scientists can control robots on other planets and predict the next solar eclipse with great accuracy.
He will explore the nature of uncertainty itself and will contend that it is impossible to fully eliminate uncertainty from our lives, either individually or as a society. Nevertheless, Pollack said, uncertainty, rather than being a barrier to progress, actually promotes it. To demonstrate his points, Pollack will focus on global warming and show how his own analysis of temperature data from shallow boreholes compares with the record of temperature changes assembled by atmospheric scientists.
Pollack obtained his master's degree in geology from Nebraska in 1960 and a doctorate in geophysics from Michigan in 1963. He has been on the Michigan faculty since 1964.
His research focuses on geothermal studies of the Earth and its relation to global climate change. An award-winning teacher with a gift for explaining science to non-scientists, Pollack has taken a special interest in helping leaders in government, business, and the general public understand the scientific evidence for climate change and its probable causes.
Pollack's visit is sponsored by the UNL Chapter of Sigma Xi, the Scientific Research Society, and the UNL Department of Geosciences.
CONTACT: Norman Smith, Professor & Chair, Geosciences, (402) 472-2663