@slyman928: Dude. With all due respect, that tinfoil hat does NOT look good on you.

@CallMeJordy265: Exactly. Totally irresponsible. Assange is playing with fire and he has made it so that it will be others who get burned, not him.

@Evil Tortie's Mom: R.O.A.C.H.: I couldn't agree more.

Yeah, the animation is fantastic, but I can only give it 4 out of 5 stars until someone can put some sort of narration (aural or visual) to explain what it is we're looking at.

@AreWeThereYeti: No, it's also a demonstration of a country's economic power and technological prowess, which makes it both a desirable thing to do for us, but also not politically likely at the moment for the U.S. But we aren't going to like it AT ALL when one day we read about the Chinese orbiting the moon.

@bowei437: Oh, puh-leeeze.

@doodahdoodoo: Wow, is your science education so impoverished that you think it is possible to prove a negative? I think you need to go back to school.

This is a rather misleading piece. Yes, all other things being equal, warmer temperatures may or may not create conditions under which tropical rainforests and their species might thrive (the "may not") part being a function of the possibility of extreme droughts being part of the equation.

Hey Jesus, spare us the college sophmore-level political soapbox. And while we're on the subject, let's stop the stupid failed embargo that no one agrees with except old Cuban exiles living in Florida.

@artiofab: Probably beating a dead horse at this point, but in case anyone still has any doubt left whatsoever that government funding of science is absolutely metaphysically necessary to scientific (and civilizational) progress - as well as economic success, there's an article in the NYT about this very subject:

@wcanyon: Fair question. A good summary of the scientific understanding of this is here: [www.realclimate.org] In summary, this graph is used out of context by those who want to make the case that CO2 cannot be a driver of temperature, but this is a common misinterpretation of the ice core record. Indeed, it's clear…

@SkippyTheMarine: Actually, what businesses are waiting for is customers. It's a demand-side problem, not a supply-side problem. I'm sorry you fail to appreciate the constructive role that good government can play, which is ironic if you are indeed a marine (which I doubt, but will play along with).

@RogueWarrior: Hey man, the funding for Obamacare hasn't even started yet. Get your facts right, or risk losing what little credibility you have left.

@SkippyTheMarine: Wow, hard to know where to start except that I think you need to go buy a history book on the Apollo program. (Yes, like military technology, it is private companies that derive applications from scientific research, but in both cases - and like Apollo - where do you think the money comes from?…

@RogueWarrior: I suggest that you read the Augustine Commission Report. The Constellation program was mis-conceived, underfunded and under-performing for years and deserved to be killed. NASA needed a swift kick in the butt to get out of the boring and uninspiring low earth orbit business and turn that over to…

@jetRink: Fair question. Some past climate changes were caused by known variations in the eccentricity of earth's orbit, tilt, and "wobble". In those instances - the timing of which is somewhat regular and known - those causes are the drivers ("forcings" in the parlance) of climate change, and thus the graph is…

@screemname: Spurious reasoning. Some past climate changes were caused by known variations in the eccentricity of earth's orbit, tilt, and "wobble". In those instances - the timing of which is somewhat regular and known - those causes are the drivers ("forcings" in the parlance) of climate change, and thus the graph…

@darklordofthesith: You provide zero evidence for any of your assertions, which A. isn't very scientific; and B. since it flies in the face of almost every analysis provided in the science media, is highly suspicious indeed.

@WOWJBEOWULF: Wow, congratulations. You win the Most Incoherent Comment of the Day award.

@Daveinva: Dude, with all due respect, you're living in fantasyland. Federal funding is THE major source of funding for scientific research on everything from cancer to climate to basic science (physics, chemistry, etc.) and everything in between. It would be devastating. Corporate funding goes to applied research…