StarTalk Podcast: Coronavirus and Climate Change, with Neil deGrasse Tyson

Modeling Techniques

Gavin Schmidt, Director of the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, explains the intricacies of climate modeling and its parallels to modeling the spread of coronavirus. He highlights the importance of using both simple and complex models to predict outcomes and influence public policy. Schmidt notes that while simpler models can provide a general sense of direction, complex models are necessary for making precise predictions, especially when unpredictable forces are involved 1.

You can't predict with precision or accuracy, when you have unpredictable forces jumping in to mess up your model.

--- Neil deGrasse Tyson

Neil deGrasse Tyson emphasizes that models are fundamental to scientific enterprise, as they help quantify theories and predict future scenarios 2.

   

Pandemic Parallels

Katharine Hayhoe, director of the Climate Center at Texas Tech University, draws parallels between the coronavirus pandemic and climate change, describing the pandemic as a fast-motion disaster reel. She explains that both crises impact health, welfare, and economies, but climate change unfolds over a longer timescale 3.

It is just understanding that a stitch in time saves nine. Preparing for and preventing future risk is a lot safer and more affordable than waiting for the tsunami to roll over your head and then trying to survive it.

--- Katharine Hayhoe

Hayhoe stresses the importance of proactive measures, suggesting that governments should learn from the pandemic to better address climate change 4.