--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The first thing that is not obvious to…" description: "\"The first thing that is not obvious to people is global warming is a less-than-1% effect. It's like being shortchanged at the bank by a penny every dol..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8e9/nathan-myhrvold-3298_climate_the-first-thing-that-is-not-obvious-to-p_349815.png" --- # The first thing that is not obvious to people is global… ![“The first thing that is not obvious to people is global warming is a less-than-1% effect. It's like being shortchanged at the bank by a penny every dollar. Over a long period of time with lots of transactions, that piles up.” quote by Nathan Myhrvold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8e9/nathan-myhrvold-3298_climate_the-first-thing-that-is-not-obvious-to-p_349815.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8e9/nathan-myhrvold-3298_climate_the-first-thing-that-is-not-obvious-to-p_349815.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8e9/nathan-myhrvold-3298_climate_the-first-thing-that-is-not-obvious-to-p_349815.png) > “The first thing that is not obvious to people is global warming is a less-than-1% effect. It's like being shortchanged at the bank by a penny every dollar. Over a long period of time with lots of transactions, that piles up.” [Nathan Myhrvold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-myhrvold/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Small percentage impacts accumulate over many transactions, leading to significant long‑term climate damage. **In simple terms:** Tiny effects add up over time. Key Takeaway Consider cumulative impacts. Themes climate change economics long‑term risk Mood concerned analytical Type informational analytical When to use this quote - policy analysis - financial modeling - environmental forecasting Key Concepts compound effect externalities systemic risk Questions to Reflect On - How do you account for tiny but persistent impacts? - What policies address cumulative climate risk? A Different Perspective Neglecting small factors can mislead risk assessments. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Climate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/climate/) [Dollars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dollars/) [Effect](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/effect/) [Firsts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firsts/) [Global warming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/global-warming/) [Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long/) [Obvious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obvious/) [Pennies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pennies/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Periods](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/periods/) [Shortchanged Bank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shortchanged-bank-3234035/) [Transactions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/transactions/) [Warming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/warming/) [Warming Effect](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/warming-effect-1818155/) ## Related quotes > [It seems incontrovertible to me that there is a global warming effect and that it is going to be serious, probably not in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjorn-lomborg/it-seems-incontrovertible-to-me-that-there-is-a-global-warming-effect/) [Bjorn Lomborg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bjorn-lomborg/) > [“The warming effect of carbon dioxide is strongest where the air is cold and dry; mainly in the arctic rather than in the tropics;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/physicist-freeman-dyson/the-warming-effect-of-carbon-dioxide-is-strongest-where-the-air-is/) [Physicist Freeman Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/physicist-freeman-dyson/) > [It's likely that CO2 has some warming effect, but real proof of that hypothesis is tricky. You have to confirm by observation exactly how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-calder/it-s-likely-that-co2-has-some-warming-effect-but-real-proof-of-that/) [Nigel Calder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-calder/) > [Regardless of how it's done, transaction costs will continue to plummet as computers get more powerful. Low transaction costs are a wonderful thing if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-myhrvold/regardless-of-how-it-s-done-transaction-costs-will-continue-to/) [Nathan Myhrvold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-myhrvold/) > [A firm, therefore, consists of the system of relationships which comes into existence when the direction of resources is dependent on an entrepreneur... As…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-coase/a-firm-therefore-consists-of-the-system-of-relationships-which-comes/) [Ronald Coase](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-coase/) > [Loyalty is dead, the experts proclaim, and the statistics seem to bear them out. 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Sadly, the right sort of man never seems interested in the job.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-myhrvold/an-efficient-government-is-dangerous-in-the-hands-of-the-wrong-man/) [Nathan Myhrvold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-myhrvold/) > [When we first did 'Modernist Cuisine,' I think most people in cookbook publishing would have said, 'This is insane.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-myhrvold/when-we-first-did-modernist-cuisine-i-think-most-people-in-cookbook/) [Nathan Myhrvold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-myhrvold/) > [One of the greatest things that Apple and Jobs were very good at doing was daring to do the very different thing. 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