Buoyed perhaps by the brilliance of its recent National Intelligence Estimates -  including a recent one which suggested Iran had given up its nuclear weapon efforts, the CIA is adding global warmng to its portfolio: The nation's top scientists and spies are collaborating on an effort to use the federal government's intelligence assets - including spy satellites and other classified sensors - to assess the hidden complexities of environmental change. They seek insights from natural phenomena like clouds and glaciers, deserts and tropical forests. The collaboration restarts an effort the Bush administration shut down and has the strong backing of the director of the Central Intelligence Agency. The effort is not without its critics:Controversy has often dogged the use of federal intelligence gear for environmental monitoring. In October, days after the C.I.A. opened a small unit to assess the security implications of climate change, Senator John Barrasso, Republican of Wyoming,...(Read Full Post)