cmooney | February 25, 2008I don't have much to add to Sheril's recent post on Ralph Nader--and I certainly don't have anything nearly as clever to put up here as the Forrest Gump picture (although I will add that unlike Nader, Forrest did eventually stop running).
I will say this, though. As someone who was working at a liberal magazine, The American Prospect, at the time of the 2000 election, I observed a peculiar phenomenon. The older folks at the magazine, who remembered Ralph Nader as a hero, seemed more inclined to give him the benefit of the doubt. But the younger people like myself, who really only knew Nader…
sheril | February 24, 2008So. Ralph Nader's running for president... again.
Sure, it wouldn't quite feel like a proper election without him--Nader's been on the ticket ever since I was old enough to participate. But the thing is, he generally appeals to young voters seeking change and this time around, Clinton and Obama fill that already crowded niche. Yes he brings another voice to the campaign trail, but really--in terms of a run for the presidency--seems to me that ship has sailed.
From CNN:
Nader also wrote off any suggestions that his entry into the race could draw enough votes from the Democratic candidate…
sheril | February 22, 2008
Lawrence introduces me to Dr. Shirley Ann Jackson, a wonderful role model for everyone, but particularly women in science.
Down time with some members of the ScienceDebate2008 Steering Committee.
From left: Austin, Matthew, Sheril Shawn, Lawrence [Chris present by phone!]
Watching the reps discuss science and policy in the next administration.
Filming video endorsements of ScienceDebate2008.
More images from the weekend here.
sheril | February 22, 2008John Holdren
Chair, American Association for the Advancement of Science; President and Director, Woods Hole Research Center
Watch more video statements here
sheril | February 22, 2008
Matthew and I chat with Alec Ross after the Clinton-Obama debate on Saturday. Ross represented Obama and Thomas Kalil represented Clinton.
The AAAS annual meeting took place February 14-18 in Boston, Massachusetts. Scientists from around the world gathered to discuss ideas, explore emerging trends, and share exciting new research.
Here I am with friends and SD08 steering committee members Matthew Chapman and Austin Dacey.
More images from last weekend after the jump...
The crowd watches on as Ross and Kalil discuss their candidates' positions on science policy.
We don't learn much.
More…
sheril | February 21, 2008Rosina Bierbaum
Former Associate Director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP); Dean of the School of Natural Resources and Environment, University of Michigan
Watch the newest video statements here
In the last 24 hours, Research!America and The American Museum of Natural History have joined the Call (read the press release). Additionally, Texas Instruments President Richard Templeton and Odyssey Investment Partners Chair Stephen Berger have signed on, along with the presidents of the M.I.T., Iowa, Oklahoma, Coppin State, and Lehigh Universities. We hope readers…
cmooney | February 21, 2008Should Congressional Democrats, led by Barbara Boxer, try to get a global warming bill passed this year, even if it's the relatively moderate (and modest) Lieberman-Warner America's Climate Security Act?
That's the matter currently dividing the environmental community, and the dilemma I address in my latest DeSmogBlog item. The answer, I would say, is that it's complicated--and where you come down really depends on how much you trust this Congress and whether you'd prefer to see a strong bill enacted later, or a weaker bill enacted sooner.
My perspective on all of this is sort of in the…
sheril | February 21, 2008If you watch prime time tv, music videos, or walk past a magazine stand, it would appear that the average adolescent male has sex on the brain. I never gave it much thought, although regular readers know by now I'm not particularly comfortable with any kind of generalization. We humans are a diverse bunch. If we're to assume the guys are most motivated in pursuing a relationship because of sex, there sure are plenty of anomalies. And isn't our reality hugely the result of cultural norms? Family experience? Social expectations? So uh, no, I don't quite buy research that attempts to…
cmooney | February 20, 2008
My latest Science Progress column just went up: It's about the strong rebuke (PDF) that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit just gave the Bush administration on the subject of mercury pollution.
The good news is that the administration's sham regulatory policy for this dangerous metal has now been blasted by the courts. The bad news? Ten years after the Clinton administration first tried to save children from mercury--from brain damage--we still don't have a regulatory policy.
That's pathetic, but it's also typical of this administration. As I conclude the column:
In general...…
sheril | February 20, 2008John Podesta
CEO, the Center for American Progress; former Chief of Staff to U.S. President Bill Clinton
'We built it; will they come?' Watch video statements to the candidates here and check back frequently as more are coming! Expect to recognize some familiar faces...
We invite bloggers to choose their favorite for embedding and encourage everyone to contact the candidates and urge them to attend ScienceDebate2008 on April 18th in Philadelphia!
sheril | February 19, 2008A pause during a busy day at Duke to post this fantastic piece from Nature:
Quit whining and get proactive. That's the message that policy experts gave scientists at the weekend [AAA conference]. They advised them to stop complaining that politicians don't take science seriously and instead prepare for the presidential changeover next January.
Scientists were urged to organize now -- for instance, by coming up with a list of names for high-profile science positions in the new administration, no matter who runs it.
Later the article discusses Saturday's Boston debate and ScienceDebate2008:…
sheril | February 18, 2008Saturday I reported that AAAS had pulled together an unexpected preliminary presidential science debate at the annual meeting. The event was organized by the Association of American Universities and the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges and as promised, here's what went down in Boston...
Representatives of the major Democratic candidates accepted invitations to participate in a discussion of science in the next administration. Senator McCain's campaign sent their regrets that they could not attend on such short notice, while Mike Huckabee and Ron Paul did…
sheril | February 16, 2008Many said it would never happen so call February 16, 2008 'historic' because there's been a science debate here in Boston at AAAS (the largest science conference on the planet) between the presidential campaigns!
With a day's notice, conference organizers invited representatives from all the candidates in both parties to come to a session moderated by Claudia Dreifus of the NYTimes. The Clinton and Obama camps took the invitation very seriously demonstrating they not only care, but indeed, they want to be engaged in discussing the significance of science and technology on the campaign trail…
cmooney | February 15, 2008The Southern Hemisphere cyclone season is starting to pick up. We had a Category 4 (Hondo) in the South Indian ocean last week, and this week, we have twin storms (Ivan and Nicholas) aiming at Madagascar and northwestern Australia, respectively.
I've taken the liberty of blogging on all this over at The Daily Green. More analysis there, but for now I'll leave you with the latest track map for Cyclone Nicholas, which doesn't look good...
P.S.: Why the hell did anyone dare to name another storm Ivan ever again? That's just looking for trouble...
cmooney | February 15, 2008I'm not going to Boston this year for the AAAS meeting--Sheril will be my eyes and ears--but I didn't have to be there to hear about what Nobel laureate David Baltimore said during his president's address yesterday. He began by prominently highlighting ScienceDebate2008. Here is an excerpt from his remarks:
We have a Presidential election coming. Science and technology have played at best minor roles in the primary campaigns. Now that we have a limited candidate pool, it is time for our community to be heard.
A debate on science has been proposed and some 15,000 people and many organisation…
sheril | February 14, 2008Let science calculate, postulate, and hypothesize,
Offer theories for feelings we can't rationalize,
Value a dopamine uptake equation.
Even so, love requires no explanation.
And with that I'm off to Beantown this Valentine's Day for AAAS...
sheril | February 13, 2008It's no secret I'm a big fan of Wayne Gilchrest. The Republican Congressman from Maryland is a great example of someone with whom I often agree, even though many staunch environmentalists mistakenly believe they should always turn left. He's a champion of oceans and leader in science policy. He serves as the Chairman on the Fisheries & Oceans Subcommittee and Co-Chair of the House Oceans Caucus and House Coastal Caucus. Gilchrest had a central role in the passage of the Sustainable Fisheries Act of 1996 and the reauthorization of the Magnuson-Stevens Act in 2006. The nine-term…
sheril | February 13, 2008Well folks, I've converted. Officially. This post comes straight from my new MacBook Air. Now I know all the naysayers had plenty to tell me about the merits of the MacBook Pro over the streamlined Air, but keep in mind what I was looking for. I've been searching for a machine that's small, lightweight, compact, and easily portable--not as a primary computer for data, but rather a writing tool for travel and coffeehouse composition.
My post over at Correlations is now up on the new features I've discovered exploring Appledom and so far, I'm extremely impressed.
And here's the thing--if I…
sheril | February 12, 2008Nicholas D. Kristof has an interesting Op-Ed in The New York Times 'When Women Rule'.
While no woman has been president of the United States -- yet -- the world does have several thousand years' worth of experience with female leaders. And I have to acknowledge it: Their historical record puts men's to shame.
After citing many examples, down the page he describes the 'Goldberg paradigm':
..people are asked to evaluate a particular article or speech, supposedly by a man. Others are asked to evaluate the identical presentation, but from a woman. Typically, in countries all over the world, the…