The first thermometers were called "thermoscopes". The Italian inventor, Santorio Santorio (parents thought it would help him remember his name) was the first inventor to put a numerical scale to the instrument. However, it was Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit, a German physicist who invented the alcohol thermometer in 1714. In 1724, he introduced the temperature scale that now bears his name.
The reason for this short history lesson, a few days ago (3/7/2007) I made a lengthy posting pertaining to the subject of Global Warming. This popular "buzz word" theory is starting to get a little carried away. It is cold out! I don't care what anyone says! In the previous article, it was revealed that our beloved state is gaining altitude, the only reason that the professionals could contribute to the fact that the sea level in Alaska had dropped where as their other monitoring stations had indicated the sea levels were increasing.
Today, I come across a new article pertaining to the same subject, dated 3/15/2007 written by AP Science Writer, Randolph Schmid. The headlines read, "Winter Warmest On Record Worldwide" . Reportedly, the temperatures between December through February were 1.3 degrees Fahrenheit above average for the period since record keeping began in 1880. Global temperatures have increased at about 0.11 degrees per decade. This huge temperature change is contributed to greenhouse gases. If this was the case, then perhaps the Internal Revenue Service should enact a new tax category which will levy a tax on everyone that has a green house! I am sure glad that my house is natural cedar, I am not going to get taxed! For those of you, which includes all of us that has not seen the thermometer past 27.5 degrees in the past ninety days, you will be happy to know that a special notation was written about Alaska in this article . So as to not be accused of misinterpretation, the following quotation is extracted as it was written: "For Alaska, both February and winter were warmer than average but far from the warmth of 2003 and 2001 respectively". Now you have to read this sentence a couple of times to get the full meaning. First, when did February get moved out of the winter month category - I always considered February as the center of winter. Secondly, if were "far from the warmth of 2003 and 2001 respectively" that would indicate to me that we are on a "cooling" trend not the epidemic plague of global warming. Perhaps, Mr. Schmid should come north and spend a little time in our tropical climate, while he is here maybe he will help me jump start my wife's car because it will not start on these warm mornings that we have been enjoying in "February and winter". Give me a break!