# Life on Earth has Just Changed - The North Atlantic Current is Gone **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 21, 2010, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507 "2010-09-21T04:03:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Gary\_T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2010, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507/21 "2010-09-21T14:22:38Z")
> [@Clark\_Cello](#): > > > [@Libre](#): > > > > Just because someone pads his article with this kind of nonsense - does it necessarily mean that the scientific data he quotes is incorrect? > > Most of the time it does, yes. Yep. Experience has shown that those who actually know what they’re talking about and have good scientific data to share are not inclined to proffer the nonsense. They realize that extraneous horsecrap does not bolster their credibility, but rather lessens it – unless one is trying to gain the trust of the ignorant and gullible. In other words, people who have the facts eschew the bullshit, people who don’t embrace it. ---
**Author:** ![Grey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b782af/32.png) [@Grey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grey)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2010, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507/22 "2010-09-21T14:55:32Z")
Look at it this way, the Gulf Stream is 100km wide and 1km deep. Say it moves at 1 m/s (2 mph). That gives a flow rate of 10[sup]8[/sup] cubic meters of water per second (100,000 tons of water per second). The oil spill and dispersants simply aren’t in the same league as the Gulf Stream The Greenland ice sheet, on the other hand, is about 3 million cubic kilometres of water or 3x10[sup]15[/sup] cubic meters. That’s basically an amount of water equal to that moved by the gulf every year. That’s comparable. ---
**Author:** ![MarcusF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/67e7ee/32.png) [@MarcusF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MarcusF)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2010, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507/23 "2010-09-21T15:08:39Z")
Concerning the “Rt Hon. the Earl of Stirling” see this [link](http://www.baronage.co.uk/bphtm-01/scams4.html)to [baronage.co.uk](http://baronage.co.uk). Not the most convincing background for world shattering scientific news! > [@](#): > > Timothy Alexander has made several claims ~ > > 1. To be the Earl of Stirling > > 2. To be Sir Timothy Alexander of Menstrie, Bt > > 3. To be Sir Timothy Alexander of Menstrie and of that Ilk, Bt > > 4. To be the Baron of Greenan and owner of Greenan Castle. > > 5. The earldom of Stirling has been dormant since 1739, although William Alexander, commander-in-chief of the army in North America, bore the title, without having established his right to it, until his death in 1795. In principle, anyone can make a claim to a peerage title by assuming it, but the test to the validity of the claim comes with the task of establishing the right to the title. Timothy Alexander in his assumption of the title of “Earl of Stirling” may hold that he does no wrong ~ but if he claims that thereby he has established his right to the title he does do wrong, and must act circumspectly if he is to avoid charges. > The usual way to establish the right to inherit a title is to apply for a Writ of Summons to attend Parliament (a procedure that will have to be reviewed in the light of new legislation abolishing the hereditary parliamentary rights of peers), and then the Committee for Privileges examines the validity of the documentation supporting the line of descent of the claimant and his relationship to the previous holder of the peerage title. Timothy Alexander appears to have no such documentation and in its absence rests his claim on his having assumed the title with no one objecting to his having done so. He states that this is valid “under Scots law and tradition”. > > He thus seems to believe that the feudal process of prescription that can be applied to property (including feudal titles) can be applied also to titles of dignity in the peerage. He is wrong. Succession to peerage titles is much more closely regulated than that. > > ``` > 2. The baronetcy became dormant at the same time as the earldom and the other junior peerage titles associated with it. The procedure for its revival is overseen by the Home Secretary and not by the House of Lords, but the same rules of evidence apply for the proof of descent. Timothy Alexander appears to have no such proof of descent and implies that he relies on prescription, a procedure that has never been applied to the succession to baronetcies and cannot ever be applied. > > ``` > > 1. Timothy Alexander adds to the territorial designation “of Menstrie” the claim to be “Alexander of that Ilk” (“Alexander of Alexander”), which means he pretends to be the chief of the Name and of the Clan. Again, anyone can assume the title, but without the recognition of the Lord Lyon (through the matriculation of the undifferenced arms) or of the Council of the Scottish Chiefs, or of the Alexander Clan, it is meaningless. ---
**Author:** ![MarcusF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/67e7ee/32.png) [@MarcusF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MarcusF)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2010, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507/24 "2010-09-21T15:20:17Z")
More on the “Earl of Stirling”. [HAITI KILLER QUAKE CAUSED BY SCALAR WEAPON](http://labvirus.wordpress.com/2010/01/27/tim-alexander-earl-of-stirling-haiti-killer-quake-caused-by-scalar-weapon/) :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/i_love_me_vol.i/32/521_2.png) [@I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/I_Love_Me_Vol.I)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2010, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507/25 "2010-09-21T15:38:49Z")
I like this scientific observation about halfway down the webpage: [QUOTE=Dr Bill Deagle MD AAEM] A new Ice Age, could kill 2/3 of the human race in the first year in a rapid onset; a slower onset would likely kill close to this number but simply take a handful of years.! [/QUOTE] I did not know that. That’s some scary stuff! Four billion people DEAD in the FIRST YEAR of a new “rapid onset” Ice Age! How come you don’t hear about this on the nooz? Seems like quite a story! Brrrrrrrr… ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2010, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507/26 "2010-09-21T15:42:14Z")
> [@I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](#): > > I like this scientific observation about halfway down the webpage: > > [QUOTE=Dr Bill Deagle MD AAEM] > A new Ice Age, could kill 2/3 of the human race in the first year in a rapid onset; a slower onset would likely kill close to this number but simply take a handful of years.! [/QUOTE] Yup, 2/3 in the first year, and twice that many in the second. ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2010, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507/27 "2010-09-21T15:49:32Z")
> [@Darth\_Panda](#): > > Yup, 2/3 in the first year, and twice that many in the second. And that’s only possible if we HURRY and produce a LOT of new humans _tout de suite_! Folks, we have a SOLEMN DUTY to procreate as much as possible starting NOW! DON’T DELAY! ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2010, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507/28 "2010-09-21T16:59:51Z")
Jeez, I wish those conservatives would make up their mind. A few months back they were complaining that Obama wasn’t doing anything about the oil spill. So he started an ice age that will kill off four billion people. And now they’re complaining about that. ---
**Author:** ![dracoi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@dracoi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dracoi)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2010, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507/29 "2010-09-21T17:05:48Z")
> [@Darth\_Panda](#): > > > [@I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](#): > > > > I like this scientific observation about halfway down the webpage: > > Yup, 2/3 in the first year, and twice that many in the second. This effect was clearly shown in the scientific documentary [The Day after Tomorrow](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0319262/) ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2010, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507/30 "2010-09-21T17:33:09Z")
“Run! The weather’s coming!” ---
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2010, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507/31 "2010-09-21T17:42:09Z")
> [@Daerlyn](#): > > I would seriously doubt Mr Alexander’s claims to any “scots/canadian feudal titles”, since the Nickel Resolution way back in 1919 made all hereditary titles of Canadian citizens lapse with the death of the incumbent. His claims to being lord high muckety-mucks of various provinces and the dominion itself are simply laughable nonsense. > > Since there’s so much egregious bullshit in his biography, how could any of his ‘research’ be credible? Although Mr Alexander claims, among other titles, to be “Viscount of Canada”, he appears to live in the U.S., and there’s no evidence that he, or any of his direct male-line ancestors, is or were a Canadian citizen. ---
**Author:** ![dzero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/5f9b8f/32.png) [@dzero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dzero)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2010, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507/32 "2010-09-21T17:43:36Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > “Run! The weather’s coming!” Mother Nature is gettin’ out the strap-on :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2010, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507/33 "2010-09-21T17:48:31Z")
I noticed it’s been getting dark earlier. Is this a sign of the new ice age? > [@Libre](#): > > > [@Squink](#): > > > > Corexit, caught in temporal vortices formed by the high shear conditions of a fine [gauge](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gauge_theory) needle in vaccination injection, is also responsible for autism spectrum disorders. > > > > Seriously, doesn’t anyone teach bullshit detection anymore? > > Just because someone pads his article with this kind of nonsense - does it necessarily mean that the scientific data he quotes is incorrect? No, but it makes the odds worse. Peer-reviewed journals, which are the gold standard for sources on scientific matters, don’t generally allow a lot of BS in their articles. (There are exceptions, but they’re few and far between) The fact that this article contains such BS means that it almost certainly doesn’t come from a peer-reviewed journal. Other sources are less reliable in scientific matters. The political screeds reveal that whoever wrote this article had some motive other than revealing the outcome of a scientific study. This isn’t an infallible indicator that someone is wrong, but it makes the chances worse. People who feel strongly about an issue can blind themselves to data that contradicts what they want to believe about the issue. This can be conscious or not, and is something that real scientists have to watch out for. The presence of political screeds in articles about scientific matters isn’t always an indication that the information is unreliable, but it’s a pretty good rule of thumb to assume that it is. “New ice age” should also be a term that sets your BS detector beeping. A huge farrago of nonsense has been written about this possibility. You may remember Richard Noone’s _5/5/2000 Ice: The Ultimate Disaster_. Pseudoscientists, for some reason, tend to return to the same collection of topics, like a dog returning to its vomit. The “face on Mars”, for example, seems to come back into the news about once a decade. Any time you read about a topic that the pseudoscientists have been over and over in the past, the default assumption should be to be skeptical. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. ---
**Author:** ![MonkeyMensch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@MonkeyMensch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MonkeyMensch)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2010, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507/34 "2010-09-21T17:57:03Z")
> [@Gary\_T](#): > > > [@Darth\_Panda](#): > > > > Yup, 2/3 in the first year, and twice that many in the second. > > And that’s only possible if we HURRY and produce a LOT of new humans _tout de suite_! Folks, we have a SOLEMN DUTY to procreate as much as possible starting NOW! DON’T DELAY! I’m not in a situation to procreate immediately. Is it OK to run a quick equipment check? ---
**Author:** ![outlierrn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/outlierrn/32/3005_2.png) [@outlierrn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outlierrn)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2010, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507/35 "2010-09-21T18:26:48Z")
I sorry Dopers, but you forgot to take into account this, from the comments: > [@](#): > > What is not mentioned is that the Gulf Stream passes through the “Bermuda Triangle”, and that is like the power connection to the Earth from the Sun…. Clearly the situation is far more credible and dire than you imagine. ETA, we really need a finger-down-your-throat-vomit smiley, I think. ---
**Author:** ![NurseCarmen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/5daacb/32.png) [@NurseCarmen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NurseCarmen)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2010, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507/36 "2010-09-21T19:00:04Z")
> [@Grey](#): > > Look at it this way, the Gulf Stream is 100km wide and 1km deep. Say it moves at 1 m/s (2 mph). That gives a flow rate of 10[sup]8[/sup] cubic meters of water per second (100,000 tons of water per second). The oil spill and dispersants simply aren’t in the same league as the Gulf Stream > > The Greenland ice sheet, on the other hand, is about 3 million cubic kilometres of water or 3x10[sup]15[/sup] cubic meters. That’s basically an amount of water equal to that moved by the gulf every year. That’s comparable. Interesting, while not completely related aside. One of the scientists I work with pointed out to me a rather simple yet overlooked factoid. The majority of oceanic water level rise is not due to runoff or melt, but merely the expansion of water caused by oceanic temperature rise. ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2010, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507/37 "2010-09-21T19:11:12Z")
> [@NurseCarmen](#): > > One of the scientists I work with pointed out to me a rather simple yet overlooked factoid. The majority of oceanic water level rise is not due to runoff or melt, but merely the expansion of water caused by oceanic temperature rise. Interesting. That assumes no major deglaciation I guess, but then none is predicted. Another surprising factoid is that the sea-line will _recede_ in places like Norway as its ice-pack melts. That’s because the ice is pushing the land down. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2010, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507/38 "2010-09-21T19:41:05Z")
> [@dzero](#): > > > [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > > > “Run! The weather’s coming!” > > Mother Nature is gettin’ out the strap-on :eek: 😃 Dammit, and I can’t even explain to my co-workers why I snortled so loud! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Baron\_Greenback](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baron_greenback/32/48_2.png) [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2010, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507/39 "2010-09-21T20:06:17Z")
> [@septimus](#): > > Another surprising factoid is that the sea-line will _recede_ in places like Norway as its ice-pack melts. That’s because the ice is pushing the land down. That is happening in the UK at the moment, recovering from the last ice age - basically Scotland up and the South of England down. It’s a slow process tbf, and suspect might be a very marginal effect when/if there is significant sea-level rise due to other factors. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2010, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507/40 "2010-09-21T20:43:12Z")
> [@Anne\_Neville](#): > > I noticed it’s been getting dark earlier. Is this a sign of the new ice age? Yes. Depending on where you live, you may, in fact, find yourself surrounded by snow and ice within a few short months! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-on-earth-has-just-changed-the-north-atlantic-current-is-gone/554507.md?page=3)