Should You Trust Climate Science? Maybe the Eclipse Is a Clue

Eclipse mania will peak on Monday, when millions of Americans will upend their lives in response to a scientific prediction. Considering this most basic test of a scientific theory, the test of prediction, climate science has established its validity. That does not mean it is perfect, nor that every single prediction is correct. While climate scientists have forecast the long-term rise of global temperatures pretty accurately, they have not been as good — yet — about predicting the short-term jitters. The changes we need to make are hard, and they demand large-scale, collective action: to rebuild our energy system, to save our forests, to change our cars, to create radically better buildings.