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The Instrumental Temperature Record

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Abstract

Crude devices to measure temperature were developed in the latter part of the 16th century. In the middle of the 17th century Ferdinando II de Medici invented a sealed glass tube partially filled with a liquid which would expand or contract with temperature changes.

For humans, the Arctic is a harshly inhospitable place, but the conditions there are precisely what polar bears require to survive—and thrive. ‘Harsh’ to us is ‘home’ for them. Take away the ice and snow, increase the temperature by even a little, and the realm that makes their lives possible literally melts away.

Sylvia Earle

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Correspondence to William W. Hay .

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© 2016 Springer International Publishing Switzerland

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Hay, W.W. (2016). The Instrumental Temperature Record . In: Experimenting on a Small Planet. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-27404-1_30

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