New findings predict that global temperature increases will be twice as high by the end of the century as previously forecast, unless international policy action is taken. That is the prediction of scientists using the Integrated Global Systems Model (IGSM), a project funded in part by the US Department of Energy.

Two different news stories this week caught my eye, but strictly because of how they reflect on one another. I got several hits on an old post I had written called Senator Inhofe: Please define “Prominent Scientist”. The hits all came from people visiting a digg™ post at Increased Number Think Global Warming Is Exaggerated. This report presupposes that Americans, in general, possess the tools needed to develop a meaningful decision on scientific matters. All men are created equal, but after being created all bets are off. Some people have invested a huge amount of time and energy into studying specific subjects while others have forgotten what they learned in elementary school.

The McCain campaign has finally responded to the Sciencedebate2008 questionnaire. His responses, alongside Obama’s responses from two weeks ago, are now online.

AlterNet is featuring an article from The Huffington Post that describes, at length, the key elements of Obama’s Energy Plan. The plan has been available for some time on the Obama website as a PDF, but this article does a great job of breaking it down and explaining the benefits of various elements of the plan in a way that makes complex issues very clear.

GW Bush seems to think that if other nations do the wrong thing, its OK for the US to do it as well.