sheril | October 28, 2007Last Tuesday, the Federal Emergency Management Agency faked a news briefing about their response to the California wildfires. Really. There was a script and questions came from FEMA employees. Turns out no actual reporters were present. So sure, it was the week before Halloween, but I just don't think this is the right venue for make believe.
I'd prefer our government stick with reality TV, but maybe readers have your own answer to this question from the 'conference'...
'Are you happy with FEMA's response so far?'
cmooney | October 27, 2007As usual, the president's science adviser has been trotted out to explain away the administration's latest misbehavior with respect to climate science. Marburger just put out a statement (PDF), defending White House changes to CDC director Julie Gerberding's testimony. Because I've been on the road, I have not yet been able to do an in depth analysis of the before and after versions of the testimony. But I don't even need to do that to challenge the following from Marburger:
2) Extreme Weather Events. The draft testimony says "Climate change is
anticipated to alter the frequency, timing,…
sheril | October 26, 2007This weekend I'm returning to my old stomping grounds to brief Hill folks on oceans, climate, and their interface in the policy realm. I'm looking forward to catching up with friends and Autumn is a wonderful time to be back because the humidity has finally subsided. While my heart is always with New York, I appreciate that DC is deliciously unique. Everyone bustles about making their way in the world, and for the most part, residents don't settle in for more than a few years. A land of nomads from everywhere with big dreams on a million different trajectories. The District is seductive…
sheril | October 26, 2007I can't deny my co-blogger here is a sexy geek. Heck, even if I tried, I'd have no case--it's been documented. Well, the west coast is starting to seem like a parallel universe because now I have this other co-blogger named Chris who's also a sexy geek with WIRED and they even live in the same town!
Remember MTV's Singled Out? That Chris - host of PBS's WIRED Science - is the newest member of our family over at the Correlations Compound and let me be the first to say welcome! Make yourself at home...
Okay, admittedly I never imagined I'd be blogging. Back in 2005, I promised some…
sheril | October 25, 2007
It was with great interest I read last weekend's Executive Order to protect America's striped bass and red drum fish populations, but I'm left wondering whether the President should have the power to make important decisions in fisheries management and conservation? A few excerpts from his speech:
The Vice President tells me there's a lot of fine fishing here, and I'm looking forward to going out and trying to catch some. I love to fish. And the good news is there's a lot of good fishing here is because the Secret Service won't let me go hunting with him. (Laughter.)
I'm going to sign an…
cmooney | October 25, 2007A few days ago I mentioned that I had been in College Park, Maryland, sitting on a panel to discuss the work of Mike Tidwell, author of The Ravaging Tide: Strange Weather, Future Katrinas, and the Coming Death of America's Coastal Cities. Tidwell's book has been assigned as the "first year book" for some 4,000 University of Maryland freshmen.
Over at DeSmogBlog, I've now posted the first installment of a two-part discussion about why I find this book so problematic, and why I felt that I had to speak out about the matter--especially after my visit to the UMD. I begin by posing the following…
cmooney | October 24, 2007Well, the region in which I've made my new home is on fire...though I'm not there right now...and inevitably, global warming issues are starting to be raised. I myself haven't had time yet to dig into the science--which I know exists--on the relationship between global warming and an increased risk of wildfires. But assuming that others may have done so, here's an open question for you all to contemplate and, hopefully, answer:
Assuming you're an environmentalist who wants to be scientifically accurate, how would you couch your message right now about the climate-wildfire relationship?
Fire…
sheril | October 24, 2007Fossils always have interesting stories to tell, and two studies by prominent scientists in the field suggest this one may not have a happy ending...
Today's Seattle Times reports that in Earth's 520+ million year history, four of the five major extinctions are linked to warmer tropical seas. Warmer seas, by the way, are indicative of a warmer planet. Now the trouble is, research suggests our home terra may reach the same level of extinction-connected warming in about a century if we don't curb greenhouse gas emissions.
In the British study, Mayhew and his colleagues looked at temperatures…
cmooney | October 24, 2007Um...wasn't the Bush administration supposed to be taking global warming seriously now?
If that's the case, then why was the Office of Management and Budget involved in bowdlerizing the testimony of CDC director Julie Gerberding on the public health risks associated with a climate change? From AP:
Her testimony before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee had much less information on health risks than a much longer draft version Gerberding submitted to the White House Office of Management and Budget for review in advance of her appearance.
"It was eviscerated," said a CDC official…
sheril | October 23, 2007Can the federal government actually penalize universities that are not actively working to overcome subtle and unconscious gender bias by invoking Title IX of the Civil Rights Act?
Step back and first consider these stats from Harvard on women in the life sciences:
undergraduates: 57%
doctoral students: 45%
postdoctoral fellows: 37%
assistant and associate professors: 31%
full professors:13%
Women in academia make less than our male counterparts, are promoted more slowly, and hold fewer leadership positions. So what's the big deal about examining gender bias? Cathy Young's Boston Globe…
cmooney | October 23, 2007Along with Nisbet, I continue to give various versions of the Speaking Science 2.0 talk frequently--even though we are not always so good about updating the Speaking Science 2.0 webpage. Um, intern, anybody? Oh wait, that was my little sister, and now she's back at college...
...anyways, we're doing two more presentations together this week. The first will be in New York, sponsored by the Center for Inquiry--that's Wednesday night. Details here. If you missed us at the New York Academy of Sciences in June, this is the next Big Apple trip.
The next talk, Thursday, will be at Bucknell…
sheril | October 23, 2007Emmy Rossum's first album Inside Out drops today. You may remember her from Phantom of the Opera. And what, you may be wondering, does this possibly have to do with The Intersection? We live in a world where girls are hugely influenced everyday by media images of who and what we are expected to be. We're bombarded so many poor examples of pop icons to emulate making front page news. Therefore, it's worth pointing out a role model of substance. As a young woman trying to keep up while the world seems to be spinning so quickly around me, I relate to this particular song and video more…
sheril | October 22, 2007As someone who's spent a heck of a lot of time studying sea cucumbers, I'm the first to know when these critters make the news. It's not because I follow the literature, but rather that everyone who does feels the desire to forward me related articles. Despite that this is an extremely charismatic animal, I'm not sure I'm completely comfortable with the association. I've definitely waded into many other (arguably as interesting) areas since my early days with echinoderms. Still, I'm beginning to recognize the reputation will follow me regardless.
Well, every species needs a hero and I'…
cmooney | October 22, 2007I don't know how many readers of "the Intersection" remember the blog's very earliest days. So let us reminisce: It was mid 2003, and I was living in California at the time, in Berkeley and later in Palo Alto. I'm not sure exactly when "The Intersection" launched, but I remember posting constantly during 2003 about a decidedly non-scientific subject--the California recall. Back then I opposed Schwarzenegger, unaware that he would later become a leader on climate change.
Heck, back then I didn't even really write about climate change.
In any event, the move to California didn't work out and…
sheril | October 22, 2007Their unusual style made an impression on me in Vegas. Readers can decide if the Blue fellas are as memorable here.
cmooney | October 19, 2007As I mentioned earlier, I spent the beginning of this week in Hays, Kansas, where I had a number of successful events at Fort Hays State University. And now, they're available to be seen online.
First, I did what the folks at FHSU call a "Times talk"--in essence, I gave an entirely improvisational faculty presentation that was grouped around three New York Times stories about global warming, politics, and science. The three stories (two by Andy Revkin) are here, here, and here (links in chronological order, as that was how I tackled the material). My riffing upon these articles, followed by…
sheril | October 19, 2007Well, you might have noticed I tend to keep things light on Fridays and this one's no exception. I won't be posting again today because I'm holding a roundtable on (you guessed it) Science Communication. I'm in good company with Dietram, Matt, Abel, and a few other leading experts on how messages resonate with the public and policymakers. So I'll be tied up all day, wishing Chris were able to be here with all of us too. For really, what is 'Framing Science' without my favorite SciBling and coblogger?
And now without further ado, (with special thanks to Kraig for allowing us to post this…
sheril | October 18, 2007
'Every individual matters. Every individual has a role to play. Every individual makes a difference.'
- Jane Goodall
On Tuesday, I finally got to listen to one of my heroes, Jane Goodall, speak to all of us about why there is reason for hope. Now I was told by a dear friend beforehand that the audience would be sprinkled with young women who all 'wanted to be like Jane when they were young', so to that I replied I'd be in good company! Indeed, what she discussed was not new... but there is something very special about hearing words that long ago inspired a younger incarnation of myself…
cmooney | October 18, 2007I've been running around crazy busy again, so I haven't had time until now to comment on Gore's Nobel, which I believe was richly deserved. However, there is what I would call a "paradox" about Gore and his recent achievements, the nature of which I try to outline in my latest DeSmogBlog weekly item:
Gore is our top mass media communicator on climate change, and yet Gore turns off many audiences that we definitely need to reach.
As I then elaborate at DeSmogBlog:
This fact puts anyone who cares about the climate issue in an awkward position: On the one hand, we must applaud Gore for drawing…
sheril | October 18, 2007Stephen Colbert - comedian, anchorman, and bestselling author of the 'I Am America (And So Can You!)', - penned an Op-Ed for NYTimes columnist Maureen Dowd this week. He does a pretty ummm... 'comprehensive' job of discussing politics and the upcoming presidential election. Since we expect to be covering some of the same topics here as November 2008 approaches, I thought it best to point readers to his column for a, well, 'fresh' perspective. Or better yet... perhaps start your Thursday with a smile.