Science and (culture, politics, policy, media)
Kevin Vranes has a phud in Physical Ocean- ography and Cli- matology. He now studies sci- ence policy and politics at the CSTPR. (More in the about.)
email: kevin {/at/} nosenada.org
Comments policy
(listed in semi-random order)
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February 28, 2006
Category: Science money
As if some debates around PlanetBlogO'Science aren't worth having? (Well, maybe, but whatever...) Last October a National Academy of Sciences panel, chaired by an industry titan and big W supporter, put out a report titled Rising Above the Gathering Storm....
Posted by Kevin Vranes at 11:46 AM • 8 Comments
February 27, 2006
Category: Energy
It still baffles me how the big airlines can continue to be so utterly moronic. That they think shenanigans like this are going to somehow help their bottom line instead of just really pissing off their most important customers. What...
Posted by Kevin Vranes at 12:39 PM • 3 Comments
February 26, 2006
Category: Totally random
...worst offender was Selena Roberts and her column after sour-pussed column, written as if she had been ass-grabbed before the games by Bode Miller and so had a strong vendetta against him and everything else American...
Posted by Kevin Vranes at 12:01 PM • 7 Comments
February 25, 2006
Category: Academia
You have to love legislative language. A few peeps in the Colorado legislature are trying to revisit the post-tenure policies of all higher ed institutions in the state. Presumably this is in response to Ward Churchill's rants about WTC victims...
Posted by Kevin Vranes at 1:52 PM • 2 Comments
February 24, 2006
Category: Science coverage
Enough already! I've seen entirely too much mutual agreement amongst the SBers in our first month and a half together. So (read: tounge-in-cheek) I'm going to have to take it upon myself to start some fires and spice things up...
Posted by Kevin Vranes at 10:52 AM • 19 Comments
February 22, 2006
Category: Totally random
Back in summer 2002, I spent a few days in Barrow, Alaska, laying over for this cruise aboard the USCGC Polar Star. Barrow is an amazing place (warning: I recognize that this is highly debatable) and if you're ever in...
Posted by Kevin Vranes at 12:32 AM • 4 Comments
February 21, 2006
Category: Energy
So I have an ongoing column that started as The Mother-In-Law Column but now includes all my in-laws. It starts out with a question from some in-law or another. My sister in law is an investment banking type in NYC,...
Posted by Kevin Vranes at 7:29 PM • 5 Comments
Category: Science+culture
This, I hope, will be my one and only ID/evolution post here. (Depending on your perspective, it's already either adequately covered, well-covered or seriously over-covered by the other SB'ers.) But this is beyond weird, so I have to post it....
Posted by Kevin Vranes at 12:43 PM • 3 Comments • 1 TrackBacks
Category: Academia
Every college professor in the US is going to relate to today's story in the Times ("To: Professor@University.edu Subject: Why It's All About Me"). My list is long and includes the obligatory "why didn't I get an A?" or "why...
Posted by Kevin Vranes at 10:15 AM • 18 Comments • 1 TrackBacks
Category: Landscape
I went to a good talk tonight by Elliott West, hosted by the Center for the American West. Elliott was invited to talk about his book The Contested Plains: Indians, Goldseekers, and the Rush to Colorado, and I think even...
Posted by Kevin Vranes at 2:22 AM • 4 Comments
February 16, 2006
Category: Natural hazards/disasters
The House select committee report on Katrina ("A Failure of Initiative") was released yesterday and it is 362 pages, so it is going to take me a few days to wade through it. As I do so, I'll be posting...
Posted by Kevin Vranes at 11:40 AM • 0 Comments
February 15, 2006
Category: Climate change • Natural hazards/disasters
As is clear to everybody, the events that led to the flooding of New Orleans in August 2005 were entirely natural. This clearly makes the Katrina-caused events a natural disaster. But is it really? Pinning indirect blame for Katrina on...
Posted by Kevin Vranes at 6:35 PM • 2 Comments
February 14, 2006
Category: Climate change
Since the NY Times has gotten science editors and writers to admit what has been obvious all along, namely that they only read four journals when newsing around about science, I suppose it's up to the bloggers to highlight the...
Posted by Kevin Vranes at 5:23 PM • 3 Comments
February 10, 2006
Category: Natural hazards/disasters
As I have pointed out previously, this is exactly why the earthquakes community went to Congress two years ago begging to have the coordinating role of the National Earthquake Hazard Reduction Program (NEHRP) stripped from FEMA and given to NIST.
Posted by Kevin Vranes at 4:19 PM • 4 Comments
February 8, 2006
Category: Science money
Worth a look...click on the image to get the big (readable) one. Original story....
Posted by Kevin Vranes at 5:05 PM • 1 Comments
Category: Climate change
Enough about twerpboy Deutsch already. Let's get to the real stuff. Last three paragraphs from Revkin's article today: Yesterday, Dr. Hansen said that the questions about Mr. Deutsch's credentials were important, but were a distraction from the broader issue of...
Posted by Kevin Vranes at 1:29 PM • 7 Comments • 1 TrackBacks
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