Chapter 23 Exercises: Weather Surveillance and Climate Monitoring

Exercise 23.1 — The Surveillance Properties of Weather Monitoring

Type: Individual / Analytical Difficulty: Introductory to Intermediate Estimated time: 30–45 minutes

Instructions:

The chapter argues that the weather observation system shares fundamental structural features with surveillance systems that are far more controversial, but is not perceived as surveillance because of its historical normalization, non-human subjects, universal benefits, and open data.

Complete the following comparison matrix, then write a reflection based on it:

Reflection (300 words): Based on your matrix, what are the most important similarities and differences between NEXRAD and an urban CCTV network? Which differences do you think are ethically relevant (i.e., they justify the difference in controversy level)? Which are merely descriptive (they explain but don't justify the difference)?

Exercise 23.2 — The Keeling Curve as Surveillance Data

Type: Individual / Research and Analysis Difficulty: Intermediate Estimated time: 45–60 minutes

Instructions:

Go to scripps.ucsd.edu/programs/keelingcurve/ or the NOAA Global Monitoring Laboratory (gml.noaa.gov) and access the Keeling Curve data — the continuous record of atmospheric CO2 since 1958.

Part A: Describe what you see in the data. Identify: 1. The overall trend (direction and approximate rate of change) 2. The seasonal oscillation (amplitude and pattern) 3. Any notable changes in the rate of change over the record period 4. The current CO2 concentration and how it compares to pre-industrial levels (~280 ppm)

Part B: Apply the TICS evidence evaluation framework to the Keeling Curve as evidence for the claim that atmospheric CO2 has increased substantially since the mid-twentieth century: - Type: What kind of data is this? - Independence: How does it relate to other CO2 records? - Convergence: What other evidence converges on the same conclusion? - Scale: What temporal and spatial scales does this record cover?

Part C (150 words): The Keeling Curve is often cited as one of the most important datasets in the history of science. Using your analysis above, explain why a single continuous measurement record from a single location has such scientific weight. What would you need to see to increase your confidence further?

Exercise 23.3 — Weather Data as Public Good: A Policy Analysis

Type: Small group / Policy Exercise Difficulty: Intermediate to Advanced Estimated time: 60 minutes

Instructions:

Your group has been asked to advise a newly independent island nation (population 2 million, tropical climate, significant hurricane risk) on establishing a national weather observation system. You have limited resources and must make choices about:

1. Data sharing: Should your nation join the WMO and share data internationally under Resolution 40? What are the benefits and costs of participation versus going it alone?

2. Public vs. private operation: Should the observation network be operated by a government agency, contracted to a private company, or a public-private partnership? What are the tradeoffs?

3. Data access: Should weather data collected with public funds be freely available to all, including commercial companies that might profit from it? Or should there be a licensing regime?

4. Carbon monitoring: Your nation is considering participating in a global carbon monitoring network. Is this the same kind of decision as joining the WMO weather network? What additional considerations apply?

Deliverable: A 500-word policy brief with specific recommendations on each of the four questions, and justifications that engage with both technical necessity and the public/private values dimensions.

Exercise 23.4 — Carbon Footprint Surveillance: Critical Analysis

Type: Individual / Written Analysis Difficulty: Intermediate Estimated time: 45–60 minutes

Instructions:

Several companies offer credit cards or banking apps that track your carbon footprint by analyzing your spending patterns. Research one such product (e.g., Aspiration, Doconomy, Mastercard's Priceless Planet Coalition partners, or similar). Answer the following questions:

1. What data does the product collect to estimate carbon footprint? (transactions, categories, amounts?)
2. What other purposes could that data serve beyond carbon tracking?
3. Who has access to the data — the user only, the company, third parties, law enforcement?
4. What are the privacy policy terms? Is the data sold or shared?
5. The chapter argues that individual carbon footprint tracking diverts attention from corporate and systemic emissions. Does the product you examined acknowledge this critique? How does its marketing address (or avoid) the question of systemic vs. individual responsibility?

Written analysis (400 words): Is this product a useful environmental tool, a privacy-invasive surveillance product dressed in environmental branding, or something more complicated? Make an argument, support it with evidence from your research, and acknowledge the strongest counterargument to your position.

Exercise 23.5 — Historical Normalization of Surveillance

Type: Essay Difficulty: Advanced Estimated time: 60–75 minutes

Instructions:

The chapter argues that weather monitoring is accepted as natural and inevitable because it has been normalized over centuries. Write a 700-word essay responding to the following prompt:

"The acceptance of weather surveillance tells us nothing useful about the acceptance of other surveillance technologies. Weather monitoring targets atmospheric phenomena, not people — and this categorical difference in subject matter, not historical normalization, is what makes it ethically acceptable."

Your essay should: - Take the argument in the prompt seriously and present the strongest possible version of it - Evaluate the argument: Is the categorical difference between non-human and human subjects sufficient to explain all of the ethical difference between weather monitoring and, say, CCTV surveillance? - Address the chapter's claim about normalization as a process: if normalization explains part of weather monitoring's acceptance, what does that imply about current surveillance technologies that are still contested? - Consider: Are there forms of weather-adjacent surveillance (carbon footprint tracking, insurance risk monitoring) that do target human behavior and that do generate ethical concern? What does this suggest about the "subject matter" argument? - Reach a specific conclusion about the role of normalization in surveillance acceptance — is it primary, secondary, or irrelevant?

Use specific examples from the chapter and from your own analysis.