Thread by @RogerPielkeJr

A massive haul of new RCP8.5 studies today
And the beat goes on ...

What do such studies mean for the real world?

RCP8.5 as BAU and RCP4.5 as mitigation (both improper) continues to be common, example

Such studies based on fictional worlds are used as the basis for providing reliable guidance to decision makers

RCP8.5 in 2100 is even used as the basis for climate event attribution studies in 2018

Twice a week Google Scholar emails me dozens and dozens of new RCP8.5 studies
Unwinding this mess may never be done, but if it is, it won't be an easy task
/END

PS. I'm not linking papers or naming authors here, because these issues are systemic and structural, and not simply based on choices of individual researchers. The IPCC is responsible for this community-wide failure and probably needs to take charge in helping to fix it.