SH

One of the hidden assumptions of proxy reconstructions, as carried out by IPCC authors, is that each “proxy” has a linear relationship to temperature plus relatively low-order red noise. Under such circumstances, the noise will cancel out in a linear combination of proxies (reconstruction) and a “signal” will emerge. However, I’ve never seen any author discuss the validity of this assumption, let alone establish the validity.

Neukom, Gergis and Karoly, accompanied by a phalanx of protective specialists, have served up a plate of cold screened spaghetti in today’s Nature (announced by Gergis here).
Gergis et al 2012 (presently in a sort of zombie withdrawal) had foundered on ex post screening. Neukom, Gergis and Karoly + 2014 take ex post screening to a new and shall-we-say unprecedented level. This will be the topic of today’s post.
Data Availability