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Forum Data on Climate Science Denial
Data Science and Analytics
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About
Captures ten years of public discourse concerning climate science denial and arguments surrounding global warming, scraped from the RCGroups.com hobbyist forum. Originating from a thread started in 2011, the collection includes over 60,000 unique posts. It is a vital resource for studying longitudinal changes in climate discourse, identifying recurring arguments, and analyzing the viewpoints of participants. Data includes information on authors, timestamps, and post content, and it allows for the classification of nearly 500 unique users based on their expressed positions (AGW denier, believer, or unsure).
Columns
- post_number: The sequential order of the post within the discussion thread (ranging from 1 through 60000+).
- post_id: The unique numerical identifier for the post on the RCGroups platform.
- datetime: The date and time stamp (without time zone) of when the post was made; times are recorded in EST.
- user: The username of the individual who authored the post.
- text: The content of the post, excluding quoted material from previous replies.
Distribution
The primary data is provided in a CSV file named
climate_posts.csv, which has a size of approximately 20.66 MB. The file contains over 63,000 valid records detailing individual posts and their metadata. The structure is based on five core columns. This is a static snapshot of the discussion; the expected update frequency is Never.Usage
This dataset is ideally suited for:
- Natural Language Processing (NLP): Developing and testing models for text mining, topic modeling, and sentiment analysis related to contentious scientific topics. Scripts are available to assist in cleaning the text and generating new sentiment columns.
- Social Science Research: Investigating the dynamics of online debate, the longevity of denialist arguments, and how user communities form around specific political or scientific viewpoints.
- User Classification: Analysing the characteristics of users identified as AGW deniers, believers, or "unsure" through linked poll results.
- Temporal Analysis: Tracking the evolution of climate rhetoric over a period spanning more than a decade.
Coverage
The data covers a time range exceeding ten years, specifically from June 8, 2011, up to April 8, 2022. Posts newer than April 2022 are not included. The scope includes arguments and denial pertaining to global warming as debated by almost 500 unique users on the RCGroups forum. All recorded times are in EST.
License
CC0: Public Domain
Who Can Use It
- Data Scientists: For training and validating text analysis models focused on public opinion and polarized debates.
- Academics and Researchers: Specifically those in Atmospheric Science, Politics, and Social Science studying online behaviour and the spread of denialism.
- Journalists and Policy Analysts: Seeking quantitative insight into the persistence and nature of climate discourse over time.
Dataset Name Suggestions
- RCGroups Climate Argument Archive
- Online Climate Discourse 2011-2022
- Forum Data on Climate Science Denial
Attributes
Original Data Source: Forum Data on Climate Science Denial
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