They were in a narrow corridor, with a locked door at the far end. Evans realized it was a security lock-two doors to get inside.

"What was that all about?" he said, indicating the guards.

"We've had a little trouble."

"What kind of trouble?"

"People want to know what's going on here."

"Uh-huh..."

"We've learned to be careful."

She held her card against the door, and it buzzed open.

They entered an old warehouse-a vast, high-ceilinged space, separated into large rooms by glass partitions. Immediately to his left, behind glass, Evans saw a room filled with computer terminals, each manned by a young person with a stack of documents beside their keyboard. In big lettering on the glass it said, "data-raw."

To his right, there was a matching conference room labeled "satellites/radiosonde." Evans saw four people inside that room, busily discussing huge blowups of a graph on the wall, jagged lines on a grid.

Farther along there was another room marked "general circulation models (gcms)." Here the walls were plastered with large maps of the world, graphical representations in many colors.

"Wow," Evans said. "Big operation."

"Big lawsuit," Jennifer Haynes replied. "These are all our issue teams. They're mostly graduate students in climate science, not attorneys. Each team is researching a different issue for us." She pointed around the warehouse. "The first group does raw data, meaning processed data from the Goddard Institute for Space Studies at Columbia University, in New York, from the USHCN at Oak Ridge, Tennessee, and from Hadley Center in East Anglia, England. Those are the major sources of temperature data from around the world."

"I see," Evans said.

"Then the group over there works on satellite data. Orbiting satellites have recorded temperatures of the upper atmosphere since 1979, so there is more than a twenty-year record. We're trying to figure out what to do about it."

"What to do about it?"

"The satellite data's a problem," she said.

"Why?"

As though she hadn't heard him, she pointed to the next room. "The team there is doing comparative analyses of GCMs-meaning the computer-generated climate models-from the 1970s to the present. As you know, these models are immensely complex, manipulating a million variables or more at once. They are by far the most complex computer models ever created by man. We're dealing with American, British, and German models, primarily."

"I see..." Evans was starting to feel overwhelmed.

"And the team down there is doing sea-level issues. Around the corner is paleoclimate. Those're proxy studies, of course. And the final team is dealing with solar irradiance and aerosols. Then we have an off-site team at UCLA that is doing atmospheric feedback mechanisms, primarily focusing on cloud cover as it varies with temperature change. And that's about all of it." She paused, seeing the confusion on Evans's face. "I'm sorry. Since you work with George Morton, I assumed you were familiar with all this stuff."

"Who said I work with George Morton?"

She smiled. "We know our job, Mr. Evans."

They passed a final glass-walled room that had no label. It was filled with charts and huge photographs, and three-dimensional models of the earth set inside plastic cubes. "What's this?" he said.

"Our AV team. They prepare visuals for the jury. Some of the data is extremely complex, and we're trying to find the simplest and most forceful way to present it."

They walked on. Evans said, "Is it really that complicated?"

"That's correct," she said. "The island nation of Vanutu is actually four coral atolls in the southern Pacific, which have a maximum elevation of twenty feet above sea level. The eight thousand inhabitants of those islands are at risk of being flooded out by rising sea levels caused by global warming."

"Yes," Evans said. "I understand that. But why do you have so many people working on the science?"

She looked at him oddly. "Because we're trying to win the case."

"Yes..."

"And it's not an easy case to win."

"What do you mean?" Evans said. "This is global warming. Everybody knows that global warming is-"

A voice boomed from the other end of the warehouse. "Is what? what?"

A bald, bespectacled man came toward them. He had an ungainly gait, and looked like his nickname: the Bald Eagle. As always, John Balder was dressed all in blue: a blue suit, a blue shirt, and a blue tie. His manner was intense, his eyes narrowed as he looked at Evans. In spite of himself, Evans was intimidated to meet the famous litigator.

Evans extended his hand. "Peter Evans, Hassle and Black."

"And you work with George Morton?"

"Yes sir, I do."

"We are indebted to Mr. Morton's generosity. We strive to be worthy of his support."

"I'll tell him that, sir."

"I'm sure you will. You were speaking of global warming, Mr. Evans. Is it a subject that interests you?"

"Yes, sir, it does. And every concerned citizen of the planet."

"I certainly agree. But tell me. What is is global warming, as you understand it?" global warming, as you understand it?"

Evans tried to conceal his surprise. He hadn't expected to be quizzed. "Why do you ask?"

"We ask everybody who comes here. We're trying to get a feel for the general state of knowledge. What's global warming?"

"Global warming is the heating up of the earth from burning fossil fuels."

"Actually, that is not correct."

"It's not?"

"Not even close. Perhaps you'd try again."

Evans paused. It was obvious he was being interrogated by a fussy and precise legal mind. He knew the type only too well, from law school. He thought for a moment, choosing his words carefully. "Global warming is, uh, the heating up of the surface of the earth from the excess of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere that is produced by burning fossil fuels."

"Again, not correct."

"Why not?"

"Several reasons. At a minimum, I count four errors in the statement you just made."

"I don't understand," Evans said. "My statement-that's what global warming is."

"In fact, it is not." Balder's tone was crisp, authoritative. "Global warming is the theory theory-"

"-hardly a theory, anymore-"

"No, it is a theory, theory," Balder said. "Believe me, I wish it were otherwise. But in fact, global warming is the theory theory that increased levels of carbon dioxide and certain other gases that increased levels of carbon dioxide and certain other gases are causing are causing an increase in the an increase in the average temperature average temperature of the earth's of the earth's atmosphere atmosphere because of the so-called 'greenhouse effect.'" because of the so-called 'greenhouse effect.'"

"Well, okay," Evans said. "That's a more exact definition, but..."

"Mr. Evans, you yourself believe in global warming, I take it?"

"Of course."

"Believe in it strongly?"

"Sure. Everybody does."

"When you have a strongly held belief, don't you think it's important to express that belief accurately?"

Evans was starting to sweat. He really felt like he was back in law school. "Well, sir, I guess...not really, in this case. Because when you refer to global warming, everybody knows what you are talking about."

"Do they? I suspect that even you don't know what you are talking about."

Evans felt a burst of hot anger. Before he could check himself, he had blurted, "Look, just because I may not be expressing the fine details of the science-"

"I'm not concerned about details, details, Mr. Evans. I'm concerned about the Mr. Evans. I'm concerned about the core core of your strongly held beliefs. I suspect you have no basis for those beliefs." of your strongly held beliefs. I suspect you have no basis for those beliefs."

"With all due respect, that's ridiculous." He caught his breath. "Sir."

"You mean you do have such a basis?"

"Of course I do."

Balder looked at him thoughtfully. He seemed pleased with himself. "In that case, you can be a great help to this lawsuit. Would you mind giving us an hour of your time?"

"Uh...I guess so."

"Would you mind if we videotaped you?"

"No, but...why?"

Balder turned to Jennifer Haynes, who said, "We're trying to establish a baseline for what a well-informed person such as yourself knows about global warming. To help us refine our jury presentation."

"Sort of a mock jury of one?"

"Exactly. We've interviewed several people already."

"Okay," Evans said. "I guess I could schedule that at some point."

"Now is a good time," Balder said. He turned to Jennifer. "Get your team together in room four." is a good time," Balder said. He turned to Jennifer. "Get your team together in room four."

"Of course I'd like to help," Evans said, "but I came here to get an overview-"

"Because you've heard there are problems with the lawsuit? There aren't. But there are significant challenges," Balder said. He glanced at his watch. "I'm about to go into a meeting," he said. "You spend some time with Ms. Haynes, and when you're done, we'll talk about the litigation as I see it. Is that all right with you?"

There was nothing Evans could do but agree.

VANUTU TEAM.

TUESDAY, AUGUST 24.

11:00 A.M.

They put him in a conference room at the end of a long table, and aimed the video camera at him from the far end. Just like a deposition, he thought.

Five young people drifted into the room and took seats at the table. All were casually dressed, in jeans and T-shirts. Jennifer Haynes introduced them so quickly that Evans didn't catch their names. She explained that they were all graduate students in different scientific disciplines.

While they were setting up, Jennifer slipped into a chair beside his and said, "I'm sorry John was so rough on you. He's frustrated and under a lot of pressure."

"From the case?"

"Yes."

"What kind of pressure?"

"This session may give you some idea what we're dealing with." She turned to the others. "Are we ready?"

Heads nodded, notebooks flipped open. The camera light came on. Jennifer said, "Interview with Peter Evans, of Hassle and Black, on Tuesday, August twenty-fourth. Mr. Evans, we'd like to go over your views about the evidence that supports global warming. This isn't a test; we'd just like to clarify how you think about the issue."

"Okay," Evans said.

"Let's begin informally. Tell us what you know about the evidence for global warming."

"Well," Evans said, "I know that temperatures around the globe have risen dramatically in the last twenty or thirty years as a result of increases in carbon dioxide that is released by industry when fossil fuels are burned."

"Okay. And by a dramatic rise in temperature, you mean how much?"

"I think about a degree."

"Fahrenheit or Celsius?"

"Fahrenheit."