Joanne Nova

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Jo Nova (Joanne Codling)
Quote: "Temperatures are not rising." — Jo Nova, Skeptics Handbook

Joanne Nova aka JoNova (real name Joanne Codling), born circa 1967, is an Australian right wing communicator who mainly writes to promote anti-science views of climate in books and a denialist weblog, joannenova.com.au. She has no evident academic background in climate science; her degree (B.Sc.) is in molecular biology.[1] Nova is based in Perth, Western Australia.

Career

Nova runs the Australian company Science Speak,[2] the main aim of which is to promote AGW denialism.

For four years, Nova worked for the Shell Questacon Science Circus, based in Canberra, Australia. The Science Circus is an outreach program run by Questacon, the Australian National Science and Technology Centre. The program is sponsored by Shell Oil, with additional support from Australian National University. She has also worked for Foxtel, a cable television company part owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation.

Books: Skeptic's Handbook I and II

Nova is the author of The Skeptic's Handbook, a publication that purports to give climate skeptics "the tools [they] need to cut through the red-herrings, and avoid the traps."[3] The main contention of The Skeptic's Handbook is the claim that CO2 does not drive global warming. Nova's four arguments from The Skeptic's Handbook are:

  1. Carbon dioxide isn't causing the observed warming;
  2. Carbon dioxide doesn't cause warming;
  3. The observed warming (that carbon dioxide isn't causing) isn't happening;
  4. The carbon dioxide (that doesn't cause warming) is already causing as much of the observed warming (that isn't happening) as it can.

The handbook has been thoroughly debunked by John Cook's Skeptical Science website,[4] and also by DeSmogBlog.[5][6][7]

More recently Codling wrote a "Skeptic's Handbook II", which mainly attacks climate science with political arguments, such as "global bullies want your money".[8] Throughout the Skeptic's Handbook II, Nova adopts positions that are not falsifiable, hence unscientific; an example is "There is no consensus, there never was, and it wouldn’t prove anything even if there had been." The Handbook is a grab-bag of catchphrases and polemic.

Shaky on climate science

Nova has been called out by climate bloggers for her shaky grasp of science, particularly over the Tropospheric Hot Spot. Both Cook and Lambert show that she is wrong on this question, inter alia.[9]

Articles and resources

Related SourceWatch articles

References

  1. Jo Nova’s big claim: hasn’t anyone considered if CO2′s effect is limited? (2010). Retrieved on 2011-05-19.
  2. Science Speak. Retrieved on 2011-05-19.
  3. Joanne Nova, "The Skeptics Handbook", 2008.
  4. "A Scientific Guide to the Skeptic's Handbook[1]"
  5. "More CO2 does worsen climate change[2]"
  6. "Yes, global warming is real and it's still happening[3]"
  7. "The Climate models have it right[4]"
  8. Joanne Nova. The Skeptics Handbook II (pdf). JoanneNova.com.au. Retrieved on 2011-05-19.
  9. How Jo Nova doesn't get the tropospheric hot spot. Retrieved on 2011-05-19.

External resources

External articles