Not surprisingly, Baughman McLeod’s naming and ranking proposal generated pushback from academics and traditionally minded scientists who did not appreciate her bold ambition and outside-the-box thinking. Forty-two heat researchers signed a letter to Baughman McLeod warning her that naming and ranking heat waves “does not align with published global heat-health priorities and may be distracting, or even counterproductive.” In some sense, the opposition from the science establishment was not surprising. Because naming a heat wave is not science. “It is branding,” Baughman McLeod says
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