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January 29, 2009
George Bernard Shaw, according to a comment left on a previous post, thought that many people gave up on reading the Origin because, convinced of Darwin's argument, they wearied of him making his points over and over again.
But I disagree. It's not seeing Darwin restate his case that's tiring. It's…
January 28, 2009
By Jerome Paulson
Starting on February 10th, companies won't be able to sell children's products that contain more than 600 parts per million total lead. The Consumer Product Safety Commission recently clarified the requirements under the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, and put to rest…
January 28, 2009
Weâre delighted to learn that The Pump Handleâs own David Michaels has won the John P. McGovern Science and Society Award from Sigma Xi, the international honor society of research scientists and engineers. The award honors people who are highly visible and prominent spokespersons for the public…
January 28, 2009
If you've browsed the redesigned front page of ScienceBlogs, you'll see that our benevolent ScienceBlogs Overlords at Seed Magazine have started a project that they have so humbly termed The Rightful Place Project: Reviving Science in America, which is described thusly:
In his first speech as…
January 28, 2009
If you've been browsing the new, redesigned, fancy-pants ScienceBlogs front page lately, you may have noticed the announcement for The Rightful Place Project. In his inaugural address, President Obama vowed to restore "science to its rightful place." In response, The Seed Media Group, through…
January 28, 2009
by revere, cross-posted at Effect Measure
Even as the the peanut cum salmonella recall spreads (sorry, couldn't resist), we learn that the Peanut Corporation of America plant in Blakely, Georgia thought to be its source has a history of "problems":
The plant in Georgia that produced peanut butter…
January 27, 2009
The influential left-wing blog Daily Kos has been running a series called "Flu and You" by health blogger DemFromCT, and this week's installment features an interview with one of the reveres from Effect Measure, who often cross-post here. The whole thing is worth reading (as are the first and…
January 27, 2009
Last week, President Obama stated in his inaugural address that he would "restore science to its rightful place." ScienceBlogs has been quick to capitalise on his words by launching a new initiative called The Rightful Place Project. As an opening salvo, the Project is asking writers, bloggers and…
January 27, 2009
Our Benevolent Seed Overlords ask "What is science's rightful place?" which refers to a line from Obama's inaugural address where he vowed to "restore science to its rightful place."
Since ScienceBlogling Jake discussed the importance of basing policy on evidence--as well as correctly recognizing…
January 26, 2009
It came as an email. Then it was on the Seed Bloggers Forum. Now it's on my frigging Facebook - they really want me to answer this:
In his first speech as President-elect last November, Barack Obama reminded us of the promise of "a world connected by our own science and imagination." And on Tuesday…
January 26, 2009
What is science's rightful place?
In our heads, of course. All of our heads.
But Seed is asking, so let me elaborate briefly.
As I said before, science is not just active participation in research. Science is a mindset.
We are all born scientists, exploring the world around us and experimenting…
January 26, 2009
In his inaugural address, President Obama pledged to "restore science to its rightful place." Following up on that, the Corporate Masters have launched the Rightful Place Project, asking bloggers, readers, and scientists to define the rightful place of science.
Many of these responses will focus on…
January 26, 2009
Legal scholars with the Center for Progressive Reform issued today "The Choices Facing Cass Sunstein," an assessment of the writings of President Obama's nominee for the head of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA). The authors reviewed Prof. Sunstein's writing and report…
January 26, 2009
by revere, cross-posted at Effect Measure
The peanut butter/peanut paste ingredient based salmonella outbreak has been in the news lately and we've discussed it here (and here, here, here, here, here). There are now about 500 reported cases and six deaths. That's a case fatality ratio of just over…
January 26, 2009
Back in July, a 300-foot crane collapsed at a Houston refinery and killed four workers: Marion âScooterâ Hubert Odom III, 41; John D. Henry, 33; Daniel âDJâ Lee Johnson, 30; and Rocky Dale Strength, 30. Now, federal regulators have reported that the craneâs operator, who was among those killed, had…
January 23, 2009
First, some welcome breaking news from Amie Newman at RH Reality Check: President Obama has rescinded the Global Gag Rule, which banned giving federal funds to internal groups that provide abortions or informations about the procedure.
Jacob Goldstein at WSJ's Health Blog is also on top of the…
January 23, 2009
Obama also talked in the address (and in previous speeches) about the need for an overhaul of our energy policies, transportation systems, and national infrastructure. To my mind, acheiving those goals requires that science be allowed to move to the forefront. We need good engineers and scientists…
January 23, 2009
In a time of economic crisis (or really any crisis), it is difficult to think too far into the future. Still, if America is to be a significant force in the scientific world of the future, we need to invest in our primary education system now, putting a particular emphasis on basic science…
January 23, 2009
In addition to what others have said here, I would like to point out that science education is an essential part of science's rightful place. If a respect for and understanding of science and its methods is not communicated to students throughout their educations, then as citizens, they cannot be…
January 23, 2009
In President Obama's inaugural speech, he announced his intention to "restore science to its rightful place." In response to Seed Magazine has initiated to The Rightful Place Project whose goal is to recruit scientists and engineers to answer the question: What is science's rightful place?…
January 23, 2009
by Ellen SmithÂ
A supervisor was hurt in a roof fall December 10, 2008 at a six-employee anthracite mine that owes more than $100,000 in delinquent civil penalties, MSHA records showed. The foreman at S & M Coal Co.'s Buck Mountain Slope in Dauphin County, Pa., met loose roof while he…
January 23, 2009
"Citizen science" should be a part of science's "rightful place" in society:
http://judson.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/01/13/guest-column-a-new-kind-of-b…
"There is another way to extend our scientific reach, and I believe it can also restore some of what is lost in the process of centralization. It has…
January 23, 2009
More funding for scientific research (which also supports the next generation of scientists through graduate and undergraduate research assistants). More science scholarships. More women-friendly funding policies (maternity leave, daycare support, etc.).
Read more responses from The Rightful Place…
January 23, 2009
Science and applied science (engineering) serves as the primary engine of change and improvement in the human condition, at its best expression; and as the progenitor of man's self-destruction at its worst expression throughout human history. It seems that at the intersection of science and…
January 23, 2009
I am sure many people will disagree about specific aspects of science that should or should not be supported, but I hope that we can all agree that aside from a need for applications of science to solving immediate problems such as global warming and energy problems, I think that the best sign of…
January 23, 2009
"In Science we Trust"
Science and fact should be what we are taught to respect. We need to transform our education system from "Read/Recite, because God is really the one with the plan" to "Question everything and accept nothing that isn't proven". My biggest hope for Obama and his 8 years is for…
January 23, 2009
The rightful place of science should be an important pillar of our democracy. For that reason, it shouldn't as inaccesible and elitist as it is now - it should captivate the hearts and minds of our populace. Yes, I am saying that the politics must change, but so too must science education and the…
January 23, 2009
Science is the fulfillment of the spirit of inquiry, a natural curiosity, about the world around us that leads us to question, to understand, and to invent. The liberty of this pursuit should be right up there in the bill of rights with the freedom of speech and religion not bottled up by…
January 23, 2009
Let's follow dearly beloved Crichton as stated in the author's note of "Next": 1. Stop patenting genes. 2. Establish clear guidelines for the use of human tissues. 3. Pass laws to ensure that data about gene testing is made public. 4. Avoid bans on research. 5. Rescind the Bayh-Dole Act.
Read more…
January 23, 2009
Findings should be presented truthfully and fairly, their outcome being as independent from politics as possible. From those unbiased findings, we should make sound policy decisions. Misrepresenting science does a major disservice to everyone, and we shouldn't stand for it.
Read more responses from…