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Another Week of GW News, July 19, 2009

Sipping from the internet firehose... This weekly posting is brought to you courtesy of H. E. Taylor. Happy reading, I hope you enjoy this week's Global Warming news roundup skip to bottom Another week of Climate Disruption News Sipping from the internet firehose... July 19, 2009 Chuckle, Post G8-MEF, UK Low Carbon Transition Plan, Exxon Algae, Desertec, PETM, THC Melting Arctic, Geopolitics, Carbon Tariffs, Solar Cycle, State of the Future Food Crisis, Food Production Hurricanes, Monsoon, GHGs, Temperatures, Paleoclimate, ENSO, Glaciers, Sea Levels, Satellites Impacts, Forests,…

This Is Why I Left Long Island

By way of Amanda, I came across this bit of political 'humor' from a Long Island weekly. I'm not reprinting it, because I don't put racist sewage on this site ("someday I hope people will call me Doctor YoMama" in reference to Obama is just a taste). I've lived in several parts of the country, and there were enclaves in Long Island that were more overtly racist than anywhere else--and that includes Virginia, where I grew up. Once you get to much of white middle class Nassau and Long Island, it's like (or worse than) the South, but without any of the manners.

Ninety Percent of Americans Are Evil Sluts

The Guttmacher Institute has released a report showing that 90% of Americans have engaged in premarital sex. This isn't really an increase either: premarital sex was nearly as common among women in their sixties. Hopefully, that will dispel the notion that slutiness [/snark] is on the rise. I wonder what the right-wing nutjobs will make of this. I doubt anything other than abstinence-only education will be on their agenda. Oh wait, one other thing will probably be discussed: BILL CLINTON'S PENIS!!!!! Maybe this will move things away from faith-based public health, and towards the realm…

Reality is a liberal conspiracy

By way of the endless thread, I have discovered this marvelous quote from Andy Schlafly. There's a broader point here. Why the big push for black holes by liberals, and big protests against any objection to them? If it turned out empirically that promoting black holes tends to cause people to read the Bible less, would you still push this so much? Forget that math and physics stuff; the universe is actually a giant propaganda piece for liberalism, and the only reason scientists huff and puff about what's actually out there is to get you to stop reading your Bibles.

The Pork! It Burns! It Burns!

We Jews have a secret: if you wave pork in front of us, we running away screeching. Contact with our skin causes anaphylactic shock. In fact, pork works better on us than silver does on vampires. Of course, I'm kidding when I say this. But I'm not kidding when I say that Sen. George "Macaca" Allen (R-VA) is still an asshole. From Salon: "I still had a ham sandwich for lunch. And my mother made great pork chops." -- Virginia Sen. George Allen, explaining how news that his grandfather was Jewish is "just an interesting nuance to my background." What a putz.

Hello from YearlyKos!

I'm here in sunny Las Vegas, hanging out in the lobby with the free wireless and watching all the funny blogger nerds with the orange badges walking by. Heh. Oh, hang on…I'm wearing an orange badge and blogging in a corner. Yeah, I'm such a nerd. I don't know how much time I'll have for actually posting things here this weekend, but I've queued up a series of reruns to appear automagically at various times, so the site won't be totally drying up. Half the liberal blogosphere seems to be here, so I've got to do something to keep a void from appearing.

Harlan Ellison on God

I'm a big fan of the gloriously cranky Harlan Ellison, and here he gives his opinion of that whole god business in his characteristic way…which means that if you are at work you should not turn the volume up on this one. I found this on a SF site, and the first couple of comments are from offended Christians, which always makes my day. It's the usual stuff: atheists are contradicting themselves, god is all-powerful and can do whatever he wants, yadda yadda yadda. I felt like posting rebuttals, but a fellow named Alan Baxter has done an excellent job of swatting them down already.

Electric sympatry

There has been a long standing debate in evolution of the possibility of sympatric speciation, that is, speciation between two coterminous populations. Well, here is evidence from some fish of it happening, at least in the first stages, so that genetic differentiation is minimal to non-existent. I don't know how common sympatry is, but I've been to other talks pointing to similar phenomena in other taxa, so I think there has been a detection bias toward allopatry. But anyway, species concepts are a bugger. The main point is that population differentiation need not always be…

English is my first language

Results below (via Grrlscientist). Other science bloggers results: Kevin Vranes Grrlscientist You scored as English. You should be an English major! Your passion lies in writing and expressing yourself creatively, and you hate it when you are inhibited from doing so. Pursue that interest of yours! English 100% Biology 100% Mathematics 100% Philosophy 100% Engineering 100% Psychology 92% Anthropology 92% Chemistry 83% Sociology 83% Theater 67% Art 67% Journalism…

A moral instinct?

Steven Pinker has a new essay in The New York Times Magazine, The Moral Instinct. Chris of Mixing Memory is critical of Pinker when he goes outside of his specialization in the psychology of language...but I did enjoy the ending: Far from debunking morality, then, the science of the moral sense can advance it, by allowing us to see through the illusions that evolution and culture have saddled us with and to focus on goals we can share and defend. As Anton Chekhov wrote, "Man will become better when you show him what he is like." Knowledge is power.

So, um, Dembski is a mathematician?

He must be one of those very abstract types who never looks at data, doesn't understand statistics, and has never heard of the word "normalized." In a post that is a microcosmic analog of the whole Intelligent Design paradigm, Dembski completely bungles an analysis of Google searches to conclude that "international interest in ID is growing." Andrea Bottaro shows that he screwed up thoroughly, and the conclusion is actually the reverse. I wonder if Dembski will acknowledge the correction, and admit that international interest in ID is negligible or declining? Or will his mistake mysteriously…

New blog and interesting post

Along with Dave I would like to bring to your attention AlphaPsy, a blog devoted to the naturalistical paradigm in cultural anthropology, drawing deeply from the well of cognitive science. Posts like this, exploring the cognitive grounding of our understanding of biology, are typical. Also, I want to point to you this post over at alt.muslim titled The Evolution of Monotheism. I am generally skeptical of the existence of a "religious Left" in Islam, but only because I believe they are thin on the ground, not because they are non-existent. This post is witness to the existence of such a…

Palin Slashed Funding for Food Banks

Because nothing says compassionate conservatism like not helping hungry people. While many people have noted the incongruency of Palin's slashing funds for assistance to unwed mothers, her halving of a budget item to help the Fairbanks food bank has gone unnoticed. The specific item: Fairbanks Community Food Bank-Computer Upgrade, Utility Assistance, and Refrigeration Improvement Here's the image: This was cut from $50,000 to $25,000. It's a goddamn food bank. Asking for help in keeping food refrigerated and for paying the utility bills isn't 'pork.' Good thing the economy's tanking--it's…

Links 3/5/11

Links for you. Science: So you think you knew Templeton? A new report. (Not really shocking: The Templeton Foundation: Lie Down with Templetons and End Up with Lawsuits Against 'Climate Hawk' Politicians) Psych-Out Sexism: The innocent, unconscious bias that discourages girls from math and science. The fight over teaching evolution, climate change Other: Stopgap Spending Bill Severs Array of Education Programs The economics profession is a disgrace Air Travel, Train Travel, and Republican "Freedom" Ezra Klein buys Rhee What the People Want A fetus will "testify" about abortion bill (it was a…

At least James Dobson will approve

Focus on the Patriarchy has always favored punishing children to teach them right from wrong, so I can't imagine them being too upset at this news: a fellow's 4-year-old daughter was having trouble memorizing her ABC's, suggesting that she needed some extra incentives to excel. So Dad waterboarded her. How sweet that Daddy cared so much about the importance of her education. I'm going back to teaching in the fall. Will this be considered a reasonable educational technique? I'm thinking of putting a rack in the lecture hall and carrying around some thumbscrews just to help my students learn…

Links 1/10/11

A melancholic Monday. Let's improve the mood with some links. Science: Energy Drinks Why do women cry? Obviously, it's so they don't get laid. NDM-1: More Evidence It Started in India Conquering an Infinite Cave Other: The Shameful Attack on Public Employees $1 Million Survey on Newark Public School Reform Proves Inconclusive N.J. Supreme Court to decide on politics behind school funding What Have We Learned from the Great Recession? Modern monetary theory and inflation - Part 1 Egypt's Muslims attend Coptic Christmas mass, serving as "human shields" YOU'VE BEEN VERBED So Naomi Wolf is just…

My Suggestion for the New Massachusetts State Seal

According to Boston's The Weekly Dig, Massachusetts is casting about for a new state seal. The current one definitely needs improvement: It's one of the oldest symbols in the US. That may be part of the problem; many think it's outdated. On Wednesday, the Committee on Tourism, Arts and Cultural Development considers a bill to change the Massachusetts seal and motto. The bill would establish a 13-member committee to determine whether the symbols "accurately reflect and embody the historic and contemporary commitments of the Commonwealth." It's also offensive to Native Americans. So here's my…

Monday Links

More stuff I'll never get around to blogging about. Science: On learning from "doing the math" Officials Brace For An H1N1 Resurgence No more 'alpha male'! Bonus Dinosaur of the Week--Dinosaurian Death in Decidedly Drenched Dirt. Other: The Republican Party Is Turning Into A Cult Right-Wing Cranks and Israel No, Wait, I Know This One--the Answer to "Who Does Joe Klein Think is the Crazy Left?" Glenn Greenwald, for fifty points. A Public Option That Works What should we have known? What Socialist Liberals and Bad Evil Government Have Foisted on America Joe Scarborough Is Shocked, Yet Awed by…

Friday Links

Here are some links for you. Science: Why Exercise is Not the Best Prescription for Weight Loss Book Review: Unscientific America Another rich white guy sequences own genome Anthrax bacteria get help from viruses and worms to survive "Is it the pot that made him lazy DM?" Dinosaur of the Week--Acrocanthosaurus. Other: Schools Need Teachers Like Me. I Just Can't Stay. Is It Now a Crime to Be Poor? I am an American conservative shithead Governor Palin's Crazed Health Care Rant: Blame The Washington Post Don't Talk To Me About Death Panels Silent Questions How did health care turn into hate…

Links 6/17/10

Have you heard about this great thing called the Internet? I found some links on it. Science: Bad news: From MRSA to LRSA Vaccine against 2009 pandemic flu also protects mice against 1918 strain A line in Clark Hoyt's final column bothers me Other: For today's active man GABRIEL GETS IT RIGHT The problem never gets mentioned The Bad Logic Of Fiscal Austerity Amish Farming Draws Rare Government Scrutiny Bill Maher goes there: "f*ck your jobs" to oil (& coal) workers Jail for Unpaid Debt a Reality in Six States (Strategic Default Pushback Watch) The Case for Calling Them Nitwits

Saturday Economics Snark

The Economist responds to economist Eugene Fama, who said: I didn't renew my subscription to The Economist because they use the world bubble three times on every page. The Economist: Obviously, we are disappointed to have lost Mr Fama's business. But I can't say we regret the cause. UPDATE: An Economist correspondent notes that as a die-hard believer in the Efficient Markets Hypothesis, Mr Fama is actually being quite rational in cancelling his subscription. As all publicly available information is already reflected in market prices, there's not much point in trying to learn anything from our…

Thursday Links

Merry Thursday. Here are some links. Science: Artificial Meat OSU President Blocks NIH Funded Science to Appease Philanthropist How critical is the "Environment" in the NIH grant application? "ID theory" hasn't been "reduced to" a tool in the Culture Wars - that's what it was designed as. Mammogram flap a case of communication malpractice Other: Professor advises underwater homeowners to walk away from mortgages Entering the Superproject Void Arming Goldman With Pistols Against Public: Alice Schroeder Solidarity for me, not for thee The Fall and Rise of Media The world's largest guilt trip…

Sunday Links

Heckuva week. Science first: What will January 20th do for science-based medicine? Growing Taste for Reef Fish Sends Their Numbers Sinking Ah, them gold rush days! Lack of Sleep Increases Susceptibility to the Common Cold Carnivorous dung beetle shuns dung and decapitates millipedes Other: Retooling an economy based on the endless buying and selling of toys and gizmos The Beautiful and the Clueless Need to fill your CareFirst Blue Cross prescription? Good luck. Oscar insults from MSNBC's Courtney Hazlett EVERY PUNDIT A KING! Uh-oh! A famous film-maker--and a famous professor--wasted time…

Links 8/8/10

Hopefully, I won't be attacked by Digg 'Patriots.' Just in case, though, I've stocked up on some links! Science: Does Coffee Work? Why prediction is a risky business Translational bioinformatics in the cloud Manufacturing The Coffee Culture Genetically Modified Crop on the Loose and Evolving in U.S. Midwest Other: Captured: America in Color from 1939-1943 How To Help Homeowners The fantasy of a vast upper middle class: College isn't for everyone. Neither is the stock market Republicans still the party of the rich Democrats are the party of the lower class Japan's Economic Stagnation Is…

It's a boob-tube night

Leading in to the Carlin-Coulter cage match on Leno tonight, we've also got Phil Plait on the SciFi Channel. It should be a cheerful evening, since he's discussing the end of the world. I'm watching it now, and I will say that Phil is adorable…but the show is awfully cheesy, sprinkled with clips from science fiction movies and treating nuclear terrorism with the same seriousness as the possibility that the robots might revolt and enslave us, or aliens might land and start disintegrating people. And, as an indicator of their concern for detail, they keep spelling Paul Ehrlich's name as "Paul…

Links 1/3/11

Back to work. Got some links though. Science: Ancient England: Before Homo Sapiens How to afford a big sloppy genome Former NIH Director Spins Through Revolving Door, Ends Up at Sanofi-Aventis Other: From the Pentagon to the private sector: In large numbers, and with few rules, retiring generals are taking lucrative defense-firm jobs (I covered this a while ago, here) Time To Put Defense Cuts On The Table Ready or not, here comes the Civil War. Again. Also, Too (about obnoxious cyclists) Academic Economists to Consider Ethics Code Floyd Norris Repeats "Big Banks Are Necessary/Desirable"…

Links 12/13/10

Links for you. Science: And On That Dumping Study Verbal vs. mathematical aptitude in academics Lost Civilization May Have Existed Beneath the Persian Gulf Other: A man thinks that by mouthing hard words... It Gets Better Schrödinger's Rapist: or a guy's guide to approaching strange women without being maced (sad that many men don't get this) Yep, It's Demand Beating Up On Brad DeLong From Judith Miller to Julian Assange (I agree with this except that the "somehow" in the subtitle is due to the sycophancy of our elite-educated media which has been trained to genuflect towards those with…

The Definition of Insanity Is...

...I bet you thought I was going to write something like, "....doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results." Nope. Regarding the federal worker pay freezes, David Weigel notes: The letter from OFA director Mitch Stewart points out -- accurately -- that Obama froze White House staff salaries on his first day in office. And as we all remember, that move prevented the subsequent rise of an anti-spending conservative movement that would imperil Obama's agenda and win the 2010 elections. Although I do think Larry Summers should have to give back some of his salary…

Hobo Matters

tags: Hobo Matters, satire, parody, streaming video This streaming video is a tongue-in-cheek look at the Hobo world after the stock market crashed [7:45] John Hodgman's PBS documentary, Hobo Matters. If not the most celebrated episode of The American Experience, certainly the most astounding, not only for the number of facts packed into this short episode, but also for the fact that PBS actually produced and dared to air it. Unfortunately, this chronicle of the Great Depression and the Hobo Wars was quickly erased from history by the powerful Hobo Queen for it revealed too many secrets…

Innocent Kitty Watches Trololo Man, Cannot Unsee the Horror

tags: cat enjoying attention, Trololo Cat, Eduard Trololo Khil, internet meme, YouTube meme, parody, funny, humor, fucking hilarious, television, streaming video This video features our favorite boyfriend -- right, my peeps? -- Eduard "Trololo" Khill, along with views of a kitty who is watching, open-mouthed in astonishment at what she sees and hears. Here's a few more links to Eduard: More from Eduard "Mr Trolololo" Khill (My New Boyfriend) Eduard Trololo Khil Addresses the People of the World! Scientology X(enu) Factor Russian auditions 2010 And my favorite of all: Captain Kirk Deals with…

The Humane Society of the United States Does NOT Care For (or About) Animals

tags: humane society of the united states, HSUS, H$U$, news report, investigative journalism, animal rights, animal welfare, animal shelters, Wayne Pacellestreaming video Let me remind you that, if you care about animals, you do NOT want to support the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS, more typically known as H$U$). This organization sucked up millions of dollars donated by people from around the world, claiming they would help save animals affected by Hurricane Katrina, but almost none of those funds went to save any animals at all. Who was the most helpful in saving animals?…

Mormons and their Magic Underwear

tags: Mormonism, religion, cults, mind control, magic underwear, moron, offbeat, beliefs, insanity, education, streaming video In some denominations of the Latter Day Saint cult, the temple garment (also referred to as "garments", or "Mormon underwear") is worn beneath the clothing of those who have taken part in the Endowment ceremony. Mormon underwear are worn both day and night and are required for any previously endowed adult to enter a church temple.The undergarments are viewed as a symbolic reminder of the sacred covenants made in temple ceremonies, and are viewed as an either symbolic…

TEDTalks: Talking Bacteria

tags: bacteria, microbiology, TEDTalks, science, streaming video This interesting video is a TEDTalk. TED -- for Technology, Entertainment, Design -- talks cover these topics as well as science, business, development and the arts. They are a daily video podcast of the best talks and performances from the TED Conference, where the world's leading thinkers and doers give "the talk of their lives" in 18 minutes. In this TEDTalk, Bonnie Bassler discovered that bacteria "talk" to each other, using a chemical language that lets them coordinate defense and mount attacks. The find has stunning…

Carnivalia

Here's the latest carnivalia for you to read and enjoy; I and the Bird, #97. As the name implies, this is the blog carnival about wild birds and birding. Canival of the Vanities, G20 edition. This is the granddaddy of all blog carnivals, the one that spawned a million or so other blog carnivals. Festival of the Trees, #34. By reading this festival, you will learn all sorts of interesting things, from photographs of trees to soft toilet paper rolls being more ecologically damaging than driving a hummer. Carnival of Evolution, #10. This blog carnival focuses on writings about evolution.

BIG NEWS Regarding the Antarctica Contest!!

One of the competitors, Andrew Evans, who is in the official Antarctica blogger contest with me just talked to me on the phone and says he wants to donate all 500 of his votes to ME! He is going to write a message on his blog to this effect on Monday, after he returns from a writer's retreat being held on a tiny island in the state of Maine. So please everyone, VOTE VOTE VOTE for me!! The momentum is growing rapidly, since there's only two weeks remaining in this contest!! And I would love love love to have this job!!

I am a Paleontologist

tags: paleontology, fossils, dinosaurs, evolution, I am a Paleontologist, they might be giants, music video, streaming video I have been remiss lately regarding music videos because I was in Finland for awhile, and then was otherwise preoccupied. But I just had to share this song with you; "I am a Paleontologist" is by the group, They Might be Giants and is one of many wonderful songs on their new album "Here Comes Science." If I was teaching biology or evolution this semester, I would use it in class. You can order They Might be Giants' new album [CD/DVD], "Here Comes Science" from Amazon…

Happy Birthday to Tangled up in Blue Guy, Mike!

Happy Birthday to the Tangled up in Blue Guy, Mike Haubrich! Mike is a good guy who is involved with all sorts of media-related things, ranging from writing articles for the Los Angeles Times and directing the Atheists Talk Radio Show in Minnesota to helping the HMS Beagle Project in the UK. Besides being my friend, Mike also has endorsed my own bid to be the Official Antarctica Blogger. In short, the world is a better and richer place because Mike is here. Many thanks, Mike, for the many kind and selfless things you do for so many people. Here's my gift to you.

Darth Vader in the Death Star Cafeteria

tags: Darth Vader in the Death Star Cafeteria, entertainment, comedy, funny, fucking hilarious, transvestite, Eddie Izzard, streaming video I have a secret for all you kids out there. When your parents tell you to leave your Christmas gifts in the living room while you sleep in your bedrooms, they are spending Christmas night using their new digital video cameras to create YouTube videos, such as this one, where they re-enact scenes from their favorite movies. Don't believe me? Well, watch this, but don't get mad at me if this turns out to be one of your parents playing with your toys!

Eddie Izzard Learns French

tags: Learning French, entertainment, comedy, funny, fucking hilarious, transvestite, Eddie Izzard, streaming video This video is a clip of the very talented comedian Eddie Izzard. Eddie Izzard talks about the trials with using the French phrases in everyday conversations that he's learned in his French classes. Perhaps you prefer English subtitles? More information about Eddie: he ran 43 marathons in 7 weeks, has an honorary doctorate from the University of Sheffield, is one of the top 20 comics of all time... oh and he likes to wear woman's clothing too. This last personal habit provides…

300,000 Birds

tags: birds, flock behavior, denmark, wildlife, wow, streaming video This astonishing video from Denmark documents a flock of 300,000 birds in flight. I've seen flocks of as many as a million (or more) shorebirds in flight, but despite that, the sight never ceases to amaze me. For example, how do birds fly at such high speeds in such close quarters, changing directions seemingly at random, without crashing into each other? What is the largest flock of birds you've ever seen? What species were in this flock? Do mixed-species flocks move differently than same-species flocks?

New York City Alyssum

tags: NYC, Upper West Side, Manhattan, flowers, nature, image of the day White Sweet Alyssum, Lobularia (Alyssum) maritima. Photographed on Manhattan's Upper West Side on West 83rd street, across from the post office. Image: GrrlScientist, 27 May 2009 [larger view]. When I was a kid in Washington State, I saw Alyssum everywhere, so I never appreciated them until recently. Seeing these tiny flowers was like being reunited with a long-lost friend. Lobularia is a genus comprising roughly 100-170 species of flowering plants in the family Brassicaceae. They are native to Europe, Asia, and…

Beach Site for Shell Cottage in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

tags: film, movies, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, streaming video This video shows the West Wales site where two Hollywood blockbusters will be filmed this summer. Harry Potter and Robin Hood will both be filmed in Freshwater West in Pembrokeshire. [2:05] Filming for for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is already underway. Roads will be closed in Pembrokeshire, as building for Shell Cottage begins. Shell Cottage plays a prominent part in JK Rowling's final book. Originally located on a little cliff in Cornwall, Harry, Ron and Hermione take shelter in Shell Cottage whilst on the…

Bill Maher Explains the Healthcare Crisis

tags: socialized health care, Bill Maher, humor, funny, satire, fucking hilarious, social commentary, streaming video I am one of more than 40 million Americans who cannot afford health care -- and I think America SHOULD have government-funded health care, as Bill Maher points out so eloquently in less than two minutes. When I had surgery (to place a titanium plate into my badly fractured wrist) in Finland, my hospital gown covered everything, and it was made from real fabric, not that see-through tissue paper that is used in American hospitals. So Maher's observation has more merit than…

Fathead

Look, obesity is a problem. No denying it. But. When the chairperson of an international conference (diabetologist Paul Zimmet from Monash University in Australia) tells a meeting of 2500 experts and health officials there is an "insidious, creeping pandemic of obesity [that] is now engulfing the entire world," and it is "as big a threat as global warming and bird flu," it kind of takes your breath away. (via Globe and Mail) We talk a lot about bird flu here, so I won't bother to argue the inaptness (ineptness?) of the comparison. But obesity is as big a threat as global warming? I - don't…

The rewards of stupidity

Harun Yahya is soliciting entries in an essay contest to disprove evolution. The prize is 100,000 Turkish lira, about $63,000 or 50,000 euros. All you have to do is write a 30-60 page essay parroting creationist nonsense, and maybe you could win! They have a list of suggested topics that make it clear that this is going to be judged by the ignorant in favor of the stupid — it's like a series of entries from the index of creationist claims that, as is common, simply ignore the evidence against them, or worse, make up 'facts' that are wrong.

Around the Web: Patents considered evil, The MOOC debate, Higher Ed 2020 and more

Patents Considered Evil The MOOC debate Higher Ed 2020: Epic Fail? The Digital Age and Higher Education Smart Writing: It’s good to be published, and better to be understood Writing Books People Want to Read 3 Reasons Why There's No Measuring ROI On Social Media Getting scientists to take ethics seriously: strategies that are probably doomed to failure. Elitism, Equality and MOOCs MOOCs and the overprepared student Grading Clout? (using Klout to assign marks) Learning From One Another (peer grading on Coursera) Heard: The Sad Anthropological Truth About The Adjunct Professor Life Bury Your…

Brian Mathews, The Ubiquitous Librarian, is blogging at the Chronicle!

As I have in the past, I'd like to point out a librarian embedded in a faculty-focused blogging network. Brian Mathews recently moved his blog, The Ubiquitous Librarian, to the Chronicle Blog Network run by, you guessed it, The Chronicle of Higher Education. The new URL for Brian's blog is here. And a few recent posts: Instructionally Adrift? Are instructors letting their students down? A Future Space For Reference Services? An Inspiration From GALE Why does my library use social media? When talking about the library remember N3P3: an advocacy talking points framework for academic libraries…

Did Climate Change Supersize Hurricane Sandy? | Mother Jones

Did Climate Change Supersize Hurricane Sandy? asks Chris Mooney in Mother Jones. Look. We know there's more moisture in the atmosphere because when you warm a gas it holds more vapor. So that means there's more precipitation when a storm blows in. And we know the sea level is rising because when you heat water, it expands. More importantly, melting ice from Greenland is pouring incredible volumes of water into the northern Atlantic. This is all elementary physics. So for anyone to argue that Sandy isn't at least in part a product of climate change is just plain silly.

The weatherfolk who never were

George Monbiot usually pays more attention to the climate than weather, but his recent interest in the latter should provide many hours of merriment, and not just in the UK; This month, I questioned the credentials of the alternative weather forecasters used by the Daily Mail, the Express, the Telegraph and the Sun. I suggested that their qualifications were inadequate, their methods inscrutable and their results unreliable. I highlighted the work of these two companies: Exacta Weather and Positive Weather Solutions (PWS). Now the story has become more interesting: do the people from Positive…

Another ID debate

Here's a fun account of a four-way debate on Intelligent Design in Fort Worth, Texas. Actually, it sounds like it was more of a two-way, with Lawrence Krauss, who is very, very good, speaking on the side of science, against David Berlinski, who is very, very supercilious (that word always comes up when Berlinski's name is mentioned) speaking on the side of … well, it's not clear. He doesn't really have any pro-ID arguments, but mainly seems to be on the side of cashing checks from the Discovery Institute. You know the debate went well when creationists have temper tantrums afterwards.