mikethemadbiologist

A while ago, I snarked that ten percent U3 unemployment was the new normal. Well, Jamison Foser puts the new normal in historical context: From 1948 through 2008, there were a total of 40 months in which the unemployment rate was 8 percent or higher. Forty months, total, in sixty years. The…

It's Friday Saturday. Celebrate with some links. Science: Alarm over "pig MRSA" -- but not in the US Heritability - what you get from your folks What Do We Want? Other: Boston schools at a crossroads (Harmon is right, but he needs to convince parents) How the Banks Put the Economy Underwater…

I received a email and got a link to this Daily Kos campaign to support Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi's campaign to be House Minority Leader next term: As you read this, Pelosi is mulling over whether to run for House Minority Leader. The basic process involves counting her supporters. If she…

John Aravosis, in responding to Roger Simon's silly claim that liberals--all three of them--are unwilling to compromise, makes a very good point about the difference between negotiation and being steamrolled: No one, and I mean no one, is saying that compromise is unnecessary, evil, or unacceptable…

Deep thought: Tom Brady changed his hair to look like Justin Bieber because he's going bald. Anyway, these links can't be any worse than that lead in. Science: Evolution: The Curious Case of Dogs Herding Firesheep in New York City Other: Parents' effort key to child's educational performance…

Paul Krugman, in a recent column, asks the following regarding the bogus claim by former Blue Dog Democrat and current corporate lobbyist (nice retirement plan) Evan Bayh that Democrats were too focused on healthcare: After all, are people who say that Mr. Obama should have focused on the economy…

I realize most people probably don't care very much about science funding, but I'll go out on a limb and assume that many readers here do care about science funding (I think many, in the public as a whole, don't even realize how science is paid for). The Republican platform, Pledge to America,…

Too many scientific meetings, not enough Mad Biologist. Still enough though for some links. Science: The Devolution of Evolution: Why evolution and biosystematics courses must be included in all biomedical curricula. "Gene-whiz" science strikes again: Researchers discover a liberal gene Raising…

We read that a conservative Texas faith tank has convinced the Texas Legislature to force universities to release a "profit-and-loss" statement for every professor: A 265-page spreadsheet, released last month by the chancellor of the Texas A&M University system, amounted to a profit-and-loss…

Hopefully, I'm somewhere in the vicinity of National Airport. Here are some links for you. Science: Wonder of wonders Your PowerPoint and You 9 September 1945 : The "Bug" is Born Biodiversity: More complicated than you think--A new, giant virus is confounding old certainties Other: Caucasian…

There will be a lot of discussion of what the Democrats could have done to forestall or mitigate the collapse in the House. Most of will focus on messaging or tactical considerations. But, ultimately, I think it stems from the Democrats have forgotten (or never cosnidering in the first place) the…

By way of Yves Smith, we come across Eddie Braverman's (a blogging pseudonym) advice on how to take out a major bank (Warning: the link is to an article in Playboy (really); half-naked women in the sidebar are probably not work safe): Step one: Give the plan a recognizable name. Like many ex-…

Links for you. Science: Lessons from a Recovering Postdoc A Caterpillar to Avoid Stories vs. Statistics Other: Municipal bans on smoking in restaurants and bars are highly controversial, but history shows they can also be highly effective. But are all smoking bans equally successful? Fascist…

Even if you're disgusted, there's probably something on the ballot that's worth voting for or against: a bond issue, or a referendum. So please find the time to vote. If you care what I think, and you live in Massachusetts, my endorsements are here.

Last week, the U.S. Department of Justice filed an amicus brief which argued that naturally-occurring DNA sequences can't be patented: Reversing a longstanding policy, the federal government said on Friday that human and other genes should not be eligible for patents because they are part of nature…

I'm on the road, but that's no reason to give you some links. Science: The worst idea this side of "Youre Not Helping". An unpersuasive approach The Neanderthal Romeo and Human Juliet hypothesis Other: Main Street America and getting to be middle class (one more way income inequality destroys the…

Some good voting advice:

Yes, I'm travelling today, but that doesn't mean I can't harangue you (and, yes, I sent in my absentee ballot). If you're a member of the Coalition of the Sane, tomorrow's election, at the national level, is unappealing. The Congressional Democrats' unofficial motto of "Vote for us because we won'…

Happy Halloween! Links for you. Science: The Rare Mountain Mammoth Domesticating the Fennec: Dog Domestication 2.0? The Allais Paradox Other: The Myth of the Bad Teacher Hard questions loom for patronage 'king': Investigations are swirling around Representative Thomas Petrolati, a legislative…

Yes, we have left no sense of decency. From Indiana, we find this story about parents of disabled children who can't receive state aid for their disabled children: Indiana's budget crunch has become so severe that some state workers have suggested leaving severely disabled people at homeless…

Thank goodness it's...Saturday. Crap. Well, I've got some links, anyway. Science: Disease Experts: Antibiotics Are a Natural Resource that Needs Protection Will Gulf science be compromised by politics? Census of the Science Blogosphere 2000 to 2010: If you blog about science, you should fill…

There's been a lot of chortling about Republican Senate candidate and Tea Buggerer Christine O'Donnell's recent misunderstanding of the First Amendment. But it actually reveals a lot about the mindset of movement conservatives (and, remember, everything you need to know about how they operate can…

It's Friday. Links for you. Science Why don't we just leave it to antimicrobials? Influenza Vaccine Mandates Few health benefits from genomic discovery Other: On "looking forward, not back" How to fix our schools Ultimate $uperpower: Supersized dollars drive "Waiting for Superman" agenda Backdoor…

I've often wondered why college tuitions are rising so rapidly ever year. While in the ultimate sense, they rise because they can--there are enough wealthy people who can pay full freight, it's not clear what internal cost require such massive, regular price increases. Well, Robert B. Archibald…

Regarding their op-ed page, The New York Times seems eager to provide misinformation via Thomas Friedman columns. It's a fascinating business model. Besides, being lectured by Tom "Suck on This" Friedman completely blows up the irony meter. His latest inane--and factually incorrect--burbling:…

Maryn McKenna has a good article about a new strain of methicillin resistant of Staphylococcus aureus, ST239, aka The Brazilian Clone (as far as I know, no bikini wax is involved...). ST239 is troubling since it's not only resistant to methicillin, but also resistant to other antibiotics,…

They're almost there. The NY Times' Joe Nocera on Foreclosuregate: The lawsuit uncovered a raft of similar examples -- case after case where the loan officers not only knew that fraud was being committed, but were actively engaged in committing it. "By about 2006," says the lawsuit, "Countrywide's…

...Who coulda thunk it? A while ago, I asked if parents choose schools or student bodies: But what if parents aren't choosing better schools, but better student bodies? What if parents are paying exorbitant housing costs, not because the schools perform better, but because those high housing…

What a difference a good night's sleep makes. I feel like I could conquer the world. I expect to hit Asia Minor sometime tomorrow. Meanwhile, here are some links for you. Science: Cracking the Mystery of How Sloths Got Long Necks Smoking bans are good for barkeeps How Handwriting Trains the…

But she's probably not a real American, so this is ok: This is kind of like freedom, except for the physical violence Real American values apparently involve stomping on women's heads: As the candidates arrived, a group of [Republican congressional candidate Rand] Paul supporters pulled a female…