GLOBAL WARMING: As climate change climbs up the political agenda, researchers have pooled much of the most recent research into what many believe is a compelling case for the immediacy of global warming. Based on a meeting convened last year at the request of U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair, this report warns of catastrophic consequences if steps are not taken now. It says a range of measures, from emissions trading to nuclear power, are needed to both minimize future impacts and cope with those that cannot be avoided. "It is clear from the work presented that the risks of climate change may well be greater than we thought," says Blair in a foreword to the report. "The U.K. government is taking this issue very seriously," says glaciologist David Vaughan of the British Antarctic Survey, "and it's nice to see the government consulting scientific opinion." According to the meeting report, "compared to the [IPCC's 2001 assessment], there is greater clarity and reduced uncertainty about the impacts of climate change." The report contains models showing how the acidity of the oceans will increase as a result of more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. It also forecasts a 1000-year rise in sea levels as a result of thermal expansion of the oceans and melting of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets, even if greenhouse gas emissions are stabilized. The report, "Avoiding Dangerous Climate Change," may be found at www.defra.gov.uk/environment/climatechange/internat/dangerous-cc.htm. Science, Vol. No. 57612, 3 February 2006, p. 592; Chemical & Engineering News, 02/06/06, p. 19.