The Long Sleep, 8th Day of Hagwinter, 525 M.E (Aldebaran): Climate scientist Katharine Hayhoe wonders if you've noticed that you aren't sleeping as well.  A Match 2025 study based on 25 million records of nearly a quarter million participants in China indicated that for each 10 °C increase in ambient temperature, the odds of sleep insufficiency increased by 20.1%, while sleep duration decreased by 9.67 minutes. In other words, the warmer it is, the less sleep we get. By the end of the century, climate change could cause sleep insufficiency to rise by 10.5%, with an annual loss of 33 hours of sleep per person, especially for women, the elderly, and the obese. 

Yes, we are literally losing sleep over climate change. 

Perhaps you've noticed that plane turbulence is getting worse, Hayhoe asks. That jellyfish are on the rise at your favorite beach. That your favorite wine and beer taste a bit off. Perhaps you've wondered why poison ivy is itchier. That there's more lightning these days. That your seasonal allergies are worse. Is the cost of your home insurance skyrocketing? Is someone you know suddenly allergic to red meat? If you're really observant, you may have noticed that mountain goats are getting smaller, some bird's bill sizes are increasing, and even that frog calls are getting higher pitched.

It's all due to climate change. 

This morning, the National Hurricane Center upgraded Hurricane Melissa to a category 5 storm with winds of up to 160 mph. The hurricane is moving towards Jamaica, where it will cause catastrophic flooding and landslides, before crossing Cuba and the Bahamas by Wednesday. 

The extraordinary intensification of Melissa is a symptom of the rapid heating of the world’s oceans. Melissa was merely a tropical storm on Saturday, before exploding in strength to a category 4 hurricane on Sunday. The storm’s winds escalated from 70 to 140 mph in just a day, one of the fastest intensifications on record in the Atlantic Ocean. 

With climate change fueling stronger storms with higher rainfall totals, Melissa is a grim example to other countries as to what's in store for us. But the Stable Genius has long dismissed concerns about climate change, as well as the effects of greenhouse-gas emissions and global warming, calling it all a "Chinese hoax."  As part of his broader attempt to undermine international efforts to tackle climate change, he is even pressuring European nations to weaken or completely roll back their regulations aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions.