...though we still struggle to______(3 words) the large amount of data that infl

Human beings have been puzzled by the weather and have used some strange arguments to explain its unexpected behavior. More than 2, 000 years ago, one Roman citizen was so worried that unusual storms might be due to the disrespect of the nation that he asked the gods for guidance.
   Today we have a better idea of the factors that influence our weather, though we still struggle to make sense of the large amount of data that influence the daily prevailing pattern of rain and the sun, including wind, pressure, sunshine, temperature, and moisture levels.
   Most of these factors are short-term phenomena while others are longer-term influences. The former determine our weather, while the latter affect our climate. This is the essential difference between weather and climate. Weather is determined by conditions of the atmosphere over a short period and climate is determined by the way the atmosphere behaves over relatively long periods of time. Weather can change quickly, but climate alters very slowly.
   However, the rules are changing. We have begun to alter the makeup of our atmosphere by emitting greenhouse gases and this contributes to global warming that is accepted as reality by the vast majority of climate experts.
   Indeed, it was their warnings that led to the recent agreement on climate change, which is intended to help nations to reduce the use of fossil fuel and greenhouse gas emissions. Scientists know changes lie ahead but find that predicting exactly how our weather will change along with climate is complicated and frustrating, for long-term data sets are required to build up an accurate assessment.