[Viz] Many thanks

[Barbara Tversky]

Mark,

This is a fascinating question.

To some extent, it depends on how far you want to take the analogy, how 
much of the actual physics you want to map into the example.  It also 
depends on the sophistication of your audience.

To just show that change can be gradual and then abrupt, you don't need
anything as complex as your teeter-totter.  You can just have someone walk
off a cliff.  I'm not sure what your teeter-totter does that the cliff
doesn't do, except that walking off a cliff is more familiar, hence less
surprising.  With the teeter-totter you're forced to think, the ball is 
going up and then all of a sudden down.  But the gravitational processes 
are similar, and neither is closely related to the meterology.

If you want to keep some of the climate phenomena, then you can take 
examples from weather, nearly everyone watches the weather on TV and 
people know about sudden drops in temperature, fronts coming in and the 
like.  Especially mid-westerners.  And who doesn't have family in the vast 
midwest.

Barbara



On Fri, 23 Apr 2004, Mark McCaffrey wrote:

> Viz folks:
> 
> We're putting together a summary of paleoclimate research on abrupt climate change (just
> in time for the upcoming 20th Century Fox extravaganza, The Day After Tomorrow) and I'm
> seeking guidance on figures and/or animations that can provide an analogy to abrupt
> climate change.  Attached is a pdf figure from the NRC book "Abrupt Climate Change-
> Inevitable Surprises"  and we might in fact just use a version of this, perhaps as an
> animated gif.
> 
> If anyone has any thoughts on this approach or alternative ideas that could help convey
> the concept, please let me know.  We're on a fast track with this, so if you do have any
> feedback or suggestions, please let me know ASAP.
> 
> Thanks!
> 
> 
> Mark McCaffrey
> Science Communications Specialist
> Paleoclimatology Branch
> NOAA's National Climatic Data Center
> 325 Broadway, E/CC23
> DSRC Room 1B131
> Boulder, CO 80305-3328
> 
> E-mail: mark.mccaffrey at noaa.gov
> Phone: 303.497.6939
> Fax: 303.497.6513
> 
> 

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