Living in northern Vermont, I’ve noticed a significant change in Lake Champlain’s freeze patterns over the past century. Until the 1940s, the lake froze every year between October and April. However, in recent years, it has only frozen once or twice a decade. This shift is a small but telling sign of climate change.
One reason why we fail to notice these subtle changes is that our brains are wired to recognize patterns better when they’re presented in black and white – i.e., binary data. For instance, showing people whether the lake froze or not in a given year is more effective than presenting continuous temperature increases over time. This finding was confirmed by machine learning expert Grace Liu and her colleagues at Carnegie Mellon University.
Noticing the signs of climate change is just the first step towards taking action. The real challenge lies in translating this awareness into meaningful changes. New England, including Burlington, Vermont, is one of the fastest-warming regions globally. As a result, Lake Champlain has transitioned from freezing almost every year to freezing only occasionally. This trend might seem minor, but it underscores the urgent need for us to address climate change.
The rise in average temperature over time can be misleading, hiding the actual changes happening on our planet. We must learn to recognize and respond to these subtle signs of climate change if we hope to mitigate its effects.