Editing Stephen Schneider (scientist)

{{Short description|American climatologist (1945–2010)}}
{{About|the climate scientist|other people with this name|Stephen Schneider (disambiguation)}}
{{Infobox scientist
| name              = Stephen H. Schneider
| image             = Stephen Schneider, 2009 (cropped).jpg
| image_size        = 
| caption           = Schneider in 2009
| birth_name        = Stephen Henry Schneider
| birth_date        = February 11, 1945
| birth_place       = [[New York City]], [[United States|U.S.]]
| death_date        = {{death date and age|2010|7|19|1945|2|11}}
| death_place       = [[London]], [[England]]
| residence         = 
| citizenship       = 
| nationality       = 
| ethnicity         = 
| fields            = [[Climatology]]
| workplaces        = [[Stanford University]]
| alma_mater        = [[Columbia University]] ([[Bachelor of Arts|BS]], [[Doctor of Philosophy|PhD]])
| doctoral_advisor  = 
| academic_advisors = 
| doctoral_students = 
| notable_students  = 
| known_for         = Climate change science, policy and education<br />Founding editor of [[Climatic Change]]
| influences        = 
| influenced        = 
| awards            = [[MacArthur Fellowship]] (1992)<br />Elected to [[United States National Academy of Sciences|National Academy of Sciences]] (2002)
| religion          = 
| signature         = 
| website           = [http://stephenschneider.stanford.edu/ Home page]
| footnotes         = 
}}
'''Stephen Henry Schneider''' (February 11, 1945&nbsp;– July 19, 2010)<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/20/science/earth/20schneider.html | work=[[The New York Times]] | first=Douglas | last=Martin | title=Stephen H. Schneider, Climatologist, Is Dead at 65 | date=July 20, 2010}}</ref> was professor of environmental biology and global change at [[Stanford University]], a co-director at the Center for Environment Science and Policy of the [[Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies]] and a senior fellow in the [[Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment]]. Schneider served as a consultant to federal agencies and White House staff in the [[Richard Nixon]], [[Jimmy Carter]], [[Ronald Reagan]], [[George H. W. Bush]], [[Bill Clinton]], [[George W. Bush]] and [[Barack Obama]] administrations.

Schneider's research included modeling of the [[Earth's atmosphere|atmosphere]], [[climate change]], and the effect of global climate change on biological systems. Schneider was the founder and editor of the journal ''[[Climatic Change]]'' and authored or co-authored over 450 [[scientific paper]]s and other publications. He was a coordinating lead author in Working Group II Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) [[TAR (IPCC)|Third Assessment Report]] and was engaged as a co-anchor of the Key Vulnerabilities Cross-Cutting Theme for the [[Fourth Assessment Report]] (AR4) at the time of his death. During the 1980s, Schneider emerged as a leading public advocate of sharp reductions of [[greenhouse gas emissions]] to combat [[global warming]]. In 2006 Professor Schneider was an [[Adelaide Thinker in Residence]] advising the [[South Australian Government]] of Premier [[Mike Rann]] on climate change and [[renewable energy]] policies.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.thinkers.sa.gov.au/thinkers/schneider/|title=Stephen Schneider – Adelaide Thinkers in Residence|date=2011|website=Government of South Australia|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140205054235/http://www.thinkers.sa.gov.au/thinkers/schneider/|archive-date=2014-02-05|access-date=2019-10-17}}</ref> In ten years [[South Australia]] went from zero to 31% of its electricity generation coming from renewables.

An annual award for outstanding climate science communication was created in Schneider's honor after his death, by the [[Commonwealth Club of California]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.c-span.org/video/?309764-2/james-hansen-climate-change|title=James Hansen on Climate Change|date=December 4, 2012|website=C-SPAN.org|language=en-us|access-date=2019-10-17}}</ref> The Stephen Schneider Memorial Lecture of the [[American Geophysical Union]] honors Schneider's life and work.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.agu.org/Honor-and-Recognize/Honors/Section-Awards/Schneider-Lecture|title=Stephen Schneider Lecture|date=2019|website=American Geophysical Union|access-date=2019-10-16}}</ref>

==Early work==
Schneider grew up on [[Long Island, New York]]. He studied engineering at [[Columbia University]], receiving his bachelor's degree in [[mechanical engineering]] in 1966. In 1971, he earned a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering and [[plasma physics]].<ref name="Nuzzo2005">{{Cite journal | last1 = Nuzzo | first1 = R. | title = Profile of Stephen H. Schneider| doi = 10.1073/pnas.0507327102 | journal = [[Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences]] | volume = 102 | issue = 44 | pages = 15725–15727 | year = 2005 | pmid = 16249332 | pmc =1276082 | bibcode = 2005PNAS..10215725N | doi-access = free }}</ref> Schneider studied the role of greenhouse gases and suspended particulate material on climate as a postdoctoral fellow at NASA's [[Goddard Institute for Space Studies]]. Schneider was awarded the [[Marshall Scholarship]].

In 1971, Schneider was second author on a ''[[Science (journal)|Science]]'' paper with [[S. Ichtiaque Rasool]] titled "Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide and Aerosols: Effects of Large Increases on Global Climate" (''Science'' 173, 138–141). This paper used a one-dimensional [[radiative transfer model]] to examine the competing effects of cooling from aerosols and warming from CO<sub>2</sub>. The paper concluded that:

{{quote|[I]t is projected that man's potential to pollute will increase six- to eightfold in the next 50 years. If this increased rate of injection of particulate matter in the atmosphere should raise the present background opacity by a factor of 4, our calculations suggest a decrease in global temperature by as much as 3.5 K. Such a large decrease in the average temperature of Earth, sustained over a period of few years, is believed to be sufficient to trigger an ice age. However, by that time, nuclear power may have largely replaced fossil fuels as a means of energy production.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Rasool SI, Schneider SH |title=Atmospheric carbon dioxide and aerosols: effects of large increases on global climate |journal=[[Science (journal)|Science]] |volume=173 |issue=3992 |pages=138–41 |date=July 1971 |pmid=17739641 |doi=10.1126/science.173.3992.138 |bibcode=1971Sci...173..138R |s2cid=43228353 }}</ref>}}

Carbon dioxide was predicted to have only a minor role. However, the model was very simple and the calculation of the CO<sub>2</sub> effect was lower than other estimates by a factor of about three, as noted in a footnote to the paper.

The story made headlines in ''[[The New York Times]]''. Shortly afterwards, Schneider became aware that he had overestimated the cooling effect of aerosols, and underestimated the warming effect of CO<sub>2</sub> by a factor of about three. He had mistakenly assumed that measurements of air particles he had taken near the source of pollution applied worldwide. He also found that much of the effect was due to natural aerosols which would not be affected by human activities, so the cooling effect of changes in industrial pollution would be much less than he had calculated. Having found that recalculation showed that global warming was the more likely outcome, he published a retraction of his earlier findings in 1974.<ref>[[Fred Pearce|Pearce, Fred]], ''The Climate Files: The Battle for the Truth about Global Warming'', (2010) [[Guardian Books]], {{ISBN|978-0-85265-229-9}}, pp. 24–27. "When he redid the maths, the balance between warming and cooling now tipped strongly towards warming."</ref>

In a 1976 book ''The Genesis Strategy'' he discusses both long-term warming due to carbon dioxide and short-term cooling due to aerosols,<ref>Stephen H. Schneider and Lynne E. Mesirow, ''The Genesis Strategy: Climate and Global Survival'', Plenum, April 1976. [http://www.wmconnolley.org.uk/sci/iceage/schneider-genesis.html Quotes] (accessed 22 October 2014)</ref> and advocated for adopting policies that are resilient to future changes in climate.<ref>The reference is to the story of Joseph, in ''[[The Book of Genesis|Genesis]]'' 41-42, who advises the Pharaoh to store harvest from years of abundant harvest to prepare for years of famine.</ref>

==Media contributions==
Schneider was a frequent contributor to commercial and noncommercial print and broadcast media on climate and environmental issues, e.g., ''[[Nova (American TV series)|Nova]]'', ''Planet Earth'', ''[[Nightline]]'', ''Today Show'', ''[[The Tonight Show]]'', [[Bill Maher]]'s shows, ''[[Good Morning America]]'', ''[[Dateline]]'', [[The Discovery Channel]], as well as appearances on the [[British Broadcasting Corporation|British]], [[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation|Canadian]] and [[Australian Broadcasting Corporation]]s.<ref>Santer, B. and Ehrlich, P. 2014. [http://www.nasonline.org/publications/biographical-memoirs/memoir-pdfs/schneider-stephen.pdf ''Stephen Schneider: a biographical essay'']. Washington D.C.: National Academy of Sciences.</ref>

Schneider commented about the frustrations and difficulties involved with assessing and communicating scientific ideas. In a January 2002 ''[[Scientific American]]'' article, he wrote:
{{quote|''I readily confess a lingering frustration: uncertainties so infuse the issue of climate change that it is still impossible to rule out either mild or catastrophic outcomes, let alone provide confident probabilities for all the claims and counterclaims made about environmental problems. Even the most credible international assessment body, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), has refused to attempt subjective probabilistic estimates of future temperatures. This has forced politicians to make their own guesses about the likelihood of various degrees of global warming.''<ref>{{cite journal |author=Schneider SH |title=Misleading Math about the Earth: Science defends itself against ''The Skeptical Environmentalist'' |journal=Sci. Am. |date=January 2002 |doi=10.1038/scientificamerican0102-61 |url=http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?articleID=000F3D47-C6D2-1CEB-93F6809EC5880000}}</ref>}}

In 1989, Schneider addressed the challenge scientists face trying to communicate complex, important issues without adequate time during media interviews. This citation sometimes was used by his critics to accuse him of supporting misuse of science for political goals:

{{quote|''On the one hand, as scientists we are ethically bound to the scientific method, in effect promising to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but — which means that we must include all the doubts, the caveats, the ifs, ands, and buts. On the other hand, we are not just scientists but human beings as well. And like most people we'd like to see the world a better place, which in this context translates into our working to reduce the risk of potentially disastrous climatic change. To do that we need to get some broadbased support, to capture the public's imagination. That, of course, entails getting loads of media coverage. So we have to offer up scary scenarios, make simplified, dramatic statements, and make little mention of any doubts we might have. This 'double ethical bind' we frequently find ourselves in cannot be solved by any formula. Each of us has to decide what the right balance is between being effective and being honest. I hope that means being both.'' (Quoted in ''Discover'', pp. 45–48, October 1989.) }}

For the original, together with Schneider's commentary on its misrepresentation, see also [[American Physical Society]], ''APS News'' August/September 1996.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Schneider S. H. |title=Don't Bet All Environmental Changes Will Be Beneficial |journal=APS News |publisher=[[American Physical Society]] |date=August–September 1996 |url= http://www.aps.org/publications/apsnews/199608/environmental.cfm}}</ref>

==Honors==
[[File:Lovejoy, Silva, and Schneider.jpg|thumb|alt=Waist high portrait of three middle aged people in the library of what could be a boat or other confined space.|Schneider (right) with [[Thomas Lovejoy]] and [[Marina Silva]]]]

* 1991 [[American Association for the Advancement of Science|AAAS]] Award for Public Understanding of Science and Technology<ref>{{cite web| url = http://archives.aaas.org/people.php?p_id=346| title = AAAS Award for Public Understanding of Science and Technology, 1991.}}</ref>
* 1992 [[MacArthur Fellowship]]<ref>{{Cite web |title=Stephen H. Schneider |url=https://www.macfound.org/fellows/class-of-1992/stephen-h-schneider |access-date=2024-10-30 |website=www.macfound.org |language=en}}</ref>
* 2002 Elected to the [[United States National Academy of Sciences|National Academy of Sciences]]
* Chair of the American Association for the Advancement of Science's Section on Atmospheric and Hydrospheric Sciences (1999–2001)
* The [[Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change|Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)]], to which Schneider made very significant contributions, shared in the [[2007 Nobel Peace Prize]].

==Personal life==
Schneider was married to the biologist Terry Root.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://news.stanford.edu/news/2010/july/schneider-071910.html| title = Stephen Schneider, a leading climate expert, dead at 65}}</ref> Schneider was a survivor of an aggressive [[cancer]], [[mantle cell lymphoma]]. He documented his struggle to conquer the condition, including applying his own knowledge of science to design his own treatment regime, in a self-published 2005 book, ''The Patient from Hell''.<ref name="Shute2005">{{cite news |last=Shute |first=Nancy |date=2005-10-17 |title=A Hell of a Patient |newspaper=[[U.S. News & World Report]] |volume=139 |issue=14 |page=18 |issn=0041-5537}}</ref> He died unexpectedly on July 19, 2010, after suffering a [[pulmonary embolism]] while returning from a scientific meeting in {{Interlanguage link multi|Käringön|sv}}, Sweden.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://content.usatoday.com/communities/sciencefair/post/2010/07/stanford-climate-scientist-stephen-schneider-dies-obituary/1| title = ''USAToday'' July 19, 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Rogers |first1=Paul |title=Stanford climate scientist Stephen Schneider dies at 65 |url=https://www.mercurynews.com/2010/07/19/stanford-climate-scientist-stephen-schneider-dies-at-65/ |website=The Mercury News |access-date=7 May 2021 |date=19 July 2010}}</ref>

==Selected publications==
*{{cite book|isbn=978-0-262-01488-5|date=October 2010|author=Michael D. Mastrandrea|author2=Stephen H. Schneider|title=Preparing for Climate Change|publisher=[[MIT Press]]|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/preparingforclim00mich}}
*Stephen H. Schneider, [[Tim Flannery]] introduction (2009) ''Science as a Contact Sport: Inside the Battle to Save the Earth's Climate''. [[National Geographic Society]] (November 3, 2009) {{ISBN|978-1-4262-0540-8}}
*Stephen H. Schneider, James R. Miller, Eileen Crist and [[Penelope J. Boston]] (Eds, 2008). ''Scientists debate Gaia: the next century''.  Cambridge: The MIT Press. {{ISBN|978-0-2621-9498-3}}
*Stephen H. Schneider, Janica Lane (2005) ''The Patient from Hell: How I Worked with My Doctors to Get the Best of Modern Medicine and How You Can Too''. Da Capo Lifelong Books.
* Stephen H. Schneider, Armin Rosencranz, John O. Niles (eds., 2002), ''Climate Change Policy: A Survey'', Island Press, 368 pp; June 2002.
* Stephen H. Schneider and Terry L. Root (Editors, 2001), ''Wildlife Responses to Climate Change: North American Case Studies'', Island Press; December 2001.
* Stephen H. Schneider (1997), ''Laboratory Earth: the Planetary Gamble We Can't Afford to Lose'', HarperCollins; January 1997
* Stephen H. Schneider (editor, 1996), ''Encyclopedia of Climate and Weather'', Oxford University Press; May 1996.
* Stephen H. Schneider, [[Penelope J. Boston]] (Eds, 1992), ''Scientists on Gaia'', MIT Press; February 1992
* Stephen H. Schneider (1989), ''Global Warming: Are We Entering the Greenhouse Century?'', [[Sierra Club Books]]; October 1989
* Stephen H. Schneider, Randi Londer (1984), ''Coevolution of Climate and Life'', Sierra Club Books; May 1984
* Stephen H. Schneider, Lynne E. Mesirow (1976), ''The Genesis Strategy: Climate and Global Survival'', Plenum Pub Corp; April 1976.

==See also==
*[[Point Paterson Desalination Plant]]
*[[Politics of global warming]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
*{{cite journal |date=Jul–Aug 2009|title=The Bulletin Interview: Stephen Schneider|journal=[[Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists]] |volume=65 |issue=4 |pages=5–13 |doi=10.2968/065004002|bibcode=2009BuAtS..65d...5.|s2cid=218771807}}
*{{cite journal |last=Johnson |first=Dan |date=Jul–Aug 1997 |title=Earth's Changing Climate|journal=[[World Future Society|The Futurist]]|volume=31 |issue=4 |page=6 |issn=0016-3317}}
* Santer, B. and Ehrlich, P. 2014. [http://www.nasonline.org/publications/biographical-memoirs/memoir-pdfs/schneider-stephen.pdf ''Stephen Schneider: a biographical essay'']. Washington D.C.: National Academy of Sciences.

==External links==
* {{IMDb name|id=2729455|name=Stephen Schneider}}
* [http://stephenschneider.stanford.edu/References/Biography.html Biography of Dr. Schneider] (stanford.edu)
* [https://www.senate.gov/~epw/105th/schn0710.htm Dr. Schneider's 1997 testimony] to the [[United States Senate|U.S. Senate]] is no longer available on the [[United States Senate|U.S. Senate]] web site, but is available on the {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20000829033846/https://www.senate.gov/~epw/105th/schn0710.htm |date=August 29, 2000 }}
* [http://www.cato.org/pubs/regulation/reg15n3-lindzen.html Exchange] between Schneider and [[Richard Lindzen]] is no longer available on the [[Cato Institute]] web site, but is available on the {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010303065036/http://www.cato.org/pubs/regulation/reg15n3-lindzen.html |date=March 3, 2001 }}
* [http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/07/19/the-passing-of-a-climate-warrior/ New York Times announcing his death]
* {{YouTube|mmlHbt5jja4|Climate Change: Is the Science Settled?}} a presentation made at Stanford University in February 2010.
* {{YouTube|gDM3T0-o3r0|Science and Distortion}} by Climate One
* {{YouTube|6hCRafyV0zI|One climate change scientist takes on a roomful of sceptics}} Schneider talked to a sceptical audience, recorded by SBS Australia in June 2010. He died a few weeks later.

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schneider, Stephen}}
[[Category:American atmospheric scientists]]
[[Category:American climatologists]]
[[Category:Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change lead authors]]
[[Category:American sustainability advocates]]
[[Category:Stanford University Department of Biology faculty]]
[[Category:Stanford University School of Engineering faculty]]
[[Category:MacArthur Fellows]]
[[Category:Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences]]
[[Category:Columbia School of Engineering and Applied Science alumni]]
[[Category:People from Long Island]]
[[Category:1945 births]]
[[Category:2010 deaths]]