Casaubon's Book

Back to Work

Posted by Sharon Astyk on July 9, 2010
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As a lot of you probably knew long before I did (we loaned our computer to our housemate who is frantically prepping for his orals ;-) ), Scienceblogs took down the Pepsi blog. This actually exceeded my requests to management as parameters for me coming back. I had asked that Scienceblogs create a separate area for its advertorial content, mark it explicitly as such, and distinguish it visually from the other blogs. They removed it entirely. So I’m back.

There are other issues at scienceblogs as well, which you’ve probably all heard about now – I think my colleague Martin Rundkvist gets a lot of them really right, but most of them are less relevant to me than others. I came here pretty much for one reason – because I thought the acknowledgement that peak oil and the problem of resource limits was a mainstream issue that deserved a public platform among other major scientific issues affecting our future. I didn’t even care particularly that it be my blog they picked up – in fact, I was surprised they did because I’m not a scientist, I’m a writer, and while I do science writing, I also do other writing – and had no intention of changing my focus. I asked, when recruited, if they wanted to reconsider. They said not, and here I am.

Dealing with our material limits is a basic scientific challenge, and someone should be writing about it among the folks doing other science writing. As long as putting this up on a science blogging platform usefully brings it to people’s attention who might not otherwise know about this stuff, and as long as writing for science blogs raises the profile of peak oil and climate change and sustainable food issues, rather than lowering it, I’ll be here (or at least until they get such a large stable of energy writers that I’m not needed anymore ;-) .)

On the other hand, I’m spending a few days visiting family right now, among other things celebrating my aunt’s 90th birthday. So while the blog is back online, it will be quiet as I, well, live my life.

Sharon

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Comments

  1. #1 Martin R
    July 9, 2010

    Thanks for linking, Sharon!

  2. #2 Mia
    July 9, 2010

    I read the news in an obscure Australian news feed this morning!

    http://www.crikey.com.au/2010/07/09/how-pepsico-met-its-blogosphere-match/

    Glad to see you back, although I do follow your other blog anyway.

  3. #3 DerelictHat
    July 9, 2010

    I’m glad that Scienceblogs listens to their readers and authors, and doubly glad to continue reading you here (for convenience’s sake).

  4. #4 CW
    July 9, 2010

    Wherever you’re posting I’ll be reading, but it is nice to see the whole Pepsi debacle resolved.

  5. #5 Bite Me
    July 9, 2010

    This actually exceeded my requests to management as parameters for me coming back ending my hissy fit.

    I am far more concerned about Science Blogs wanting to provide a platform for your unscientific dreck than I would ever be about Pepsi. Please reconsider your decision to come back. And don’t let the door hit your ass on the way out.

  6. #6 Stephen B.
    July 10, 2010

    Bite Me, frankly, you’re an ass yourself.

  7. #7 Bite Me
    July 10, 2010

    Stevie B:

    You realize that “I know you are, but what am I” is unlikely to impress anyone beyond the third grade, do you not?

    Not that a regular reader of a blog such as this is likely to know anything about probability theory. Or science. Or logic.

  8. #8 Lindsay
    July 10, 2010

    I just wanted to say that I’m so glad you came to Scienceblogs in the first place. I would never have found your writing, or become aware of this peak oil business otherwise. Now I am an active member of our local community garden society and other sustainability efforts in our area. So glad to see that you’re back so that hopefully other people who were unawares like me will see the light.

  9. #9 Stephen B.
    July 10, 2010

    Oh, I see Bite Me. You never went to school. That explains a lot about you.

  10. #10 Bite Me
    July 10, 2010

    Stevie B is still using the “I know you are, but what am I” gambit. Pathetic loser.

  11. #11 dewey
    July 12, 2010

    Don’t feed the troll.