Measurement and Assessment

Eric Ribbens & Barbara Ann Ribbens

MEASUREMENT AND ASSESSMENT issues are central to debates about the nature and impact of global warming. Global warming models require information about the parameters in these models (measurement) and exploration of the meaning of the predicted results (assessment). Inference, lack of replicability, cyclical variables, and parameter attributes all shape these models and their predictions. Models can be attacked or defended, based primarily on their underlying measurements and assessments; thus, it is vital to understand the role measurement and assessment have in building and understanding these models. The essence of science is the development of ideas that produce predictions to explain measurable phenomena. Measurement and assessment are central components of this process. The difference between these two concepts is tied to the modeling concept: measurement refers more to the evaluation of phenomena, and assessment refers more to the evaluation of models. Another link is the quality of the measured data: it ...

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