sheril | January 18, 2008More evidence the Research Triangle in North Carolina is where the sciblings are...
Right now, Chris is on his way across the country to meet me in the NC for this weekend's Science Blogging Conference. Expect to read coverage throughout the blogosphere as we have over 200 bloggers, scientists, journalists, blogger-scientists and blogger-journalists registered for a day of discussions, lab tours, panels, and live blogging. And among them Chris, Jennifer, and I are sharing a panel called 'Changing Minds through Science Communication'. I've somehow got a feeling ScienceDebate2008 will be on…
cmooney | January 18, 2008So...there is talk that Lieberman-Warner will be coming up again soon in the Senate, which kinda baffles me.
There are a whole host of reasons why it would be far better to have a climate change bill pass Congress in 2009, rather than during this election year. In my latest Daily Green column, I rattle off a few of them:
The politics of this issue are changing rapidly and dramatically, expanding the sphere of what's possible - and you can bet that by 2009, an even stronger bill will be able to pass. Between now and then, after all, we are probably going to just get worse and worse news from…
cmooney | January 17, 2008There have been a number of interesting reads about ScienceDebate2008 lately--including this one from Columbia Journalism Review's Curtis Brainard, and another one from Greenwire/Environment & Energy Daily's Lauren Morello (which you can't read unless you're special and have a password).
Let's take 'em in order:
Not surprisingly, Brainard takes a media angle--namely, observing that the mainstream press isn't covering science or the environment enough in the context of the campaign. Neither is it covering ScienceDebate2008 very much, although that's changing (and we don't need 'em anyway…
cmooney | January 17, 2008In the latest Columbia Journalism Review, I have an essay that builds upon some blogging I've done here over the past few months--which, in turn, was inspired by the writer's strike out here in LA.
In essence, in thinking about the strike, I have been inspired more and more to make the argument for unionizing bloggers, to help ensure payment and fair treatment. Now, Columbia Journalism Review has published the case--and this may be the most prominent articulation of it yet.
Let me quote a few passages:
...blog traffic is growing. According to Technorati, which compares blogs with mainstream…
sheril | January 16, 2008
"The COMPETES legislation was a great step forward for U.S. efforts in science, technology, innovation and education - and it will yield results. But the debate on science and technology in this country must grow to be part of a national discussion on our future - and a presidential debate on the subject would put it front and center," concluded Gordon.
Read the full press release here.
cmooney | January 16, 2008We're proud to note the following additions to the cause:
Kurt Gottfried, Chair & cofounder, Union of Concerned Scientists; Professor Emeritus of Physics, Cornell University
Amy Gutmann, President, University Of Pennsylvania
Albert Karnig, President, California State University, San Bernardino
Maria Klawe, President, Harvey Mudd College
Eve Marder, President, Society For Neuroscience
Marcia McNutt, President and CEO, Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute
Jim Plummer, Dean, Stanford University School Of Engineering
Michael Seiden, President and CEO, Fox Chase Cancer Center…
sheril | January 16, 2008A dragonfly at Bako National Park, Borneo where there are 275 named species recorded and many more yet to be discovered. Forty percent are endemic to the region.
~ Nicolas Devos, Biologist and Wildlife Photographer
In the latest issue of Seed magazine, our scibling Jonah Lehrer postulates 'The Future of Science...Is Art?'
In order to answer our most fundamental questions, science needs to find a place for the arts within the experimental process.
But maybe science already is art. The two have always been so intricately connected, they are fundamentally aspects of the same entity. Culture…
cmooney | January 16, 2008Well, so Romney won Michigan. Sigh.
I was a McCainiac in 2000, and I was just starting to feel a little bit of the buzz again.
But that's not what I wanted to say.
What's fascinating about Michigan, to me, is that the particular nature of the race in this state led to a focus on climate and energy policy--subjects that, until now, have gone largely neglected by the mass media on the campaign trail.
Indeed, even science came up some in relation to battle in Michigan between Romney and McCain. Hard to believe, I know, but it did.
But in my latest DeSmogBlog item, I argue that we science and…
sheril | January 15, 2008Remember when I questioned my faith...
Well MacBook Air has arrived and I'm 'Saved'.
Hallelujah!
Cool, eh? What do readers think?
sheril | January 15, 2008Readers may have noticed that we've gotten a bit of a slow start to blogging in 2008. Sure, Sheril's been traveling and Chris has been, well...slacking, but we weren't actually being lazy. We've been plotting and scheming and setting an agenda for this blog in the new year and beyond! One that connects closely to the ScienceDebate2008 project, and we're finally ready to share our plans...
Introducing our new project called (gasp) "The Intersection." But it's a different beast than what you might expect. You see, when Chris originally created a blog with that name in 2003, he was…
cmooney | January 14, 2008Watch this (unfortunately, not embeddable). The equation seems hard to refute:
Worse and worse news from climate system + ongoing political inertia = more and more serious consideration of geoengineering schemes
I don't think there's anything wrong with my math here--unfortunately.
P.S.: Speaking of bad news from the climate system...um, here comes the Antarctic ice sheet bearing the latest tidings of woe.
sheril | January 14, 2008
Snow: A type of precipitation consisting of agglomerates of snow crystals. Most snowflakes are less than one-half inch across with an open, soft structure although certain conditions can result in unusual formations. It reflects sunlight and even changes the way sound travels. It's fun to eat, pack, throw, shovel, and watch. We humans are so fascinated with snow, we've even come up with little paper weights that imitate the falling phenomenon so we can take it with us. We tend to do funny things like that. After the Correlations meet up in LA, my sentiments on the white stuff were to change…
sheril | January 14, 2008Dive into Carnival of the Blue 8 live at I'm a chordata, urochordata:
'For the inaugural edition of 2008 we've got a number of great articles for your consumption on food, sex, death, and more!'
sheril | January 11, 2008At 2pm, listen in to NPR's Science Friday with Ira Flatow on the Call for a Science Debate:
Friday, January 11th, 2008
Hour One- 2pm EDT
The Call for A Science Debate
Should the presidential candidates participate in a debate focusing on science, technology, and the environment? A group of voters has started a petition movement calling for a science debate.
Call in and share your perspective or suggest what kind of questions you would ask at 1-800-989-8255. Details on today's show here.
cmooney | January 10, 2008Big news, eh?
No power in the 'verse can stop us...
P.S.: We also added Rep. Jay Inslee today and Kevin Knobloch, President of the Union of Concerned Scientists. And there is more big news coming, of that I can assure you...
cmooney | January 10, 2008In my latest DeSmogBlog item, I try to explain the gap between what science says we need to do to stabilize the climate system, and what U.S. politics is currently capable of:
On the one hand, we've now got people like Bill McKibben and James Hansen talking as if 350 parts per million of atmospheric CO2 was the actual tipping climatic point. Which means we've already passed it, and completely radical changes will be necessary if we're to save the planet.
But over in the U.S. Congress, right now we can't even pass Lieberman-Warner, a cap-and-trade bill that would reduce atmospheric carbon…
sheril | January 10, 2008I told you It's Gettin HOT In Herre!
2008's already burning up with the primaries making headlines everywhere... These are exciting times as the candidates are taking a stand on arguably the most important issues in our planetary adolescence. We've reached a boiling point, quite literally, and anything is possible come November 4th.
An unprecedented election--the likes of which I certainly don't remember-- with the opportunity to set a trajectory toward a better future by defining our priorities and agenda. That's the great thing about this US of A...we choose our own leaders. And I'm…
sheril | January 10, 2008The Bush administration's final budget rollout will be paper-free and expects to save nearly 20 tons of paper and about $1 million over five years. Paper copies are no longer free, even for the Appropriations committees.
After nearly 50 years in office, West Virginia Senate Appropriations Chairman Robert Byrd has obviously maintained a good sense of humor:
'Since when did the Bush White House get e-fiscal discipline? Let us hope that they send us a budget that is worth the paper it would have been printed on.'
cmooney | January 9, 2008
When I set out to write my latest Science Progress column about the current status of efforts to restore the congressional Office of Technology Assessment, I have to say I was naive.
I simply thought that with Democrats back in control of Congress, restoring the Republican-killed office would be a cinch.
Think again. It's much more complicated than that--and a lot of elected Democrats don't seem to grasp the importance of good science advice either, sadly. They seem to think that science advice is for scientists, rather than for them.
For more detail, read the piece, entitled "Science,…