Snowfall has been normal or above normal across most of the West this winter; however, preexisting dryness in many areas will prevent most flooding in this region. Runoff from snow pack is expected to significantly improve stream flows compared to last year for the West.

That was put in specifically to help certain members who may not understand the difference between weather and climate.

You're confusin' the matter further.

If ya want me to explain the difference again, I can, all ya haveta do is ask.

And I think the Grist staff likes him because he causes cheap controversy and traffic.

My other theory is that he actually IS a member of the Grist staff who is playing a fake fool.

That was put in specifically to help certain members who may not understand the difference between weather and climate.

Climate is a concept, not a reality.

Weather is a summary of various dimensions and states:  temperature, humidity, precipitation, windspeed.

Climate is an average and a projection.  It is an average of past weather for times of year (month, or season).   It is a projection in that when I state a "climate" I am making a prediction based on past behavior.

So, yes, one day's weather does not detract from the overall predictive power of a stated climate -- however, in the same way we start not to listen to stock market forecasters who are forever wrong, if at some point, the "predictions" of the IPCC regarding climate become less and less accurate, then we have a right to ask for better models.

Another thing is, climate is an average over time...and, as any statistician knows, averaging over time is very, very bad thing to do...because time is one of the few variables that one should not make other variables dependent upon (except for the obvious things like the rising and setting of the sun).

That's like sayin' gravity is a concept.

Climate can be measured usin' numbers, mathematics, and projections.  Therefore, it is a reality.  Just like weather can, but over a longer term.

Which brings us to...

Another thing is, climate is an average over time...and, as any statistician knows, averaging over time is very, very bad thing to do...because time is one of the few variables that one should not make other variables dependent upon

I don't know what "good statistician" you've been talkin' to, but people use averages over time for many different applications (production, manufacturing, medicine, population, growth, agriculture, government, taxes, finances, etc).

Why would we not make it a dependent variable in this situation?

Just like weather can, but over a longer term.

You agree that Climate is an average.

But you also seem to not understand that an average is the sum of individual readings divided by the number of readings.

Therefore, every reading "tilts" the average one way or another.   So, yes, of course, one snowy day in March doesn't affect the average that much, but many snowy days that deviate significantly do.

Why would we not make it a dependent variable in this situation?

Look at it this way.   We all agree there was a mini-downturn in temperature in the 1940-1970 years.   I'm not arguing the why of it -- I'm just establishing there was such a thing.

Now imagine a child born in 1945.   By 1970, his "climate" would have been one that was gradually cooling.   Now imagine a child born in 1998 -- at the point where the warming leveled off.   By 2008, his "climate" would be a warm (compared to others) one, which is relatively stable.

So that is why you shouldn't "average over time".  The point of the models should be to show linkages to variables (such as CO2 or sunspots or cosmic rays or the girth of Al Gore's waistline).  

Yes, that makes sense...but your statement that those averages are somehow false or misleading doesn't make sense.

The average now is higher than it was at the start of century.

Yes, every "incident" or reading affects the way it will swing, but the point of climate averages is to develop the average over a long term so that individual or "unusual" incidents won't effect the average or the curve as much as they would over a shorter time period.

It makes more sense for climate averages to be taken over longer periods, rather than shorter ones.

Usually averages for climate are based on 30-year periods, but can be longer or shorter dependin' on context or pattern.