A new scientific study of ocean-floor sediment from the Arctic regions is shedding new light on a period of Earth’s history when there was a massive peak of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere – no prizes for guessing that the evidence indicates that the North Pole was unusually warm and wet during this time. The results of this study should promote greater understanding of the Earth’s climate as a system – and not a moment too soon, as another study shows the Greenland ice-cap may be melting at three times the speed previously estimated. Time to sell off that beach-front property and invest in renewable energy, perhaps?