ethics
mikethemadbiologist | July 26, 2010One of the things that freaks out some people in the 'hard' sciences (and I use that term broadly) about the social sciences is that they, unlike the hard sciences, they don't restrict themselves to positive statements, but, instead, deal with normative statements. In other (less high-falutin') words, the social sciences don't only try to explain why things are, they often make statements about how things should be. This not only makes my colleagues in the physical sciences uncomfortable, but it's also viewed as lacking rigor which means your penis will fall off.
This, to me, seems both…
grrlscientist | July 20, 2010
Unless you've been living under a rock, or you are the CEO of Seed Media Group (SMG), you are well aware that Bora Zivkovic left ScienceBlogs 24 hours ago. Shockingly, despite this important loss, Adam Bly, CEO of SMG, has not communicated with any of us who remain at ScienceBlogs about this loss either by telephone, email, text, twitter, carrier pigeon or even with smoke signals. As far as I am concerned, ScienceBlogs is now ZombieBlogs, the undead, a heartless and soulless brain-eating monster that once was a beautiful living ideal.
A significant number of us have been planning a strike,…
grrlscientist | July 19, 2010tags: ethics, journalistic ethics, PepsiCo Food Frontiers blog, advertorial, ScienceBlogs, Seed Media Group, Adam Bly
I am greatly saddened to be able to tell you finally that my friend and colleague -- no, former colleague -- Bora Zivkovic, is leaving ScienceBlogs for good. I suspected and then knew for the past week and a half that this was coming, but I'd be lying if I didn't say that I am deeply, deeply upset. So upset that I am really not able to talk about it. But in short, Bora is like a brother to me and since I've no family to speak of (until a few short months ago, when my real-…
jstemwedel | July 19, 2010In what is surely a contender for the photo next to the "business as usual in the blogosphere" entry in the Wiktionary, a (male) blogger has posted a list of the sexiest (all-but-one female) scientists (using photos of those scientists obtained from the web without any indication that he had also obtained proper permission to use those photos in his post), and now the blogger says he wants to know what could possibly be wrong about making such a post.
Because no one has ever taken the time to explain this issues in any detail. (You'd think someone who knew how to search for images could…
mikethemadbiologist | July 19, 2010Last week, I wrote about a column by biologist Marc Lipsitch, who described a conflict of interest for scientists that has not been discussed: gag agreements for scientists who accept industry funding. In other words, if the corporate funder doesn't like the results, nobody will hear about them. These agreements also present other problems, such as reviewing grant proposals or receiving federal funding, as the scientist will have access to information that is unknown and undiscussed*.
Well (pun intended), BP appears to have tried this strategy too (italics mine):
BP has been trying to hire…
grrlscientist | July 16, 2010tags: The surprising truth about what motivates us, tasks, simple tasks, complex tasks, commissions, innovation, mastery, economics, financial rewards, purpose motive, blog writing, making the world a better place, RSA, streaming video
This video is really interesting for two reasons: first, it's a hand-drawn animation that evolves in front of your eyes, and second, I think it explains why scientists like to write blogs for the public about science -- for free! Adapted from Dan Pink's talk at the RSA, this fascinating video illustrates the hidden truths behind what really motivates us at home…
grrlscientist | July 15, 2010tags: ethics, collective action, Science Bloggers Union, ScienceBlogs, Seed Media Group, Adam Bly
Migration #2 (1995)
Fine art quilt by Caryl Bryer Fallert.
[Hand dyed, machine pieced, appliqued, and quilted 100% cotton fabric, 80/20 cotton/poly batting]
Collection of The National Quilt Museum of the United States.
I have been trying to write this blog entry for several days now. I've actually written it a couple dozen times but I have deleted every one so far. But even though it's difficult to write, this is something I need to tell you, dear readers, even if my attempt at an explanation…
mikethemadbiologist | July 13, 2010Over the weekend, I discussed how the wealthy are far more likely to walk away from an underwater mortgage (when the mortgage payments will cost more than the value of the property) than the non-wealthy. Yves Smith makes a good observation (italics mine):
Another message here is that high income borrowers aren't taking the Freddie/Fannie/bank bluster about strategic defaults seriously. Recall that the latest threat was that they would pursue deficiency judgments, as in sue borrowers who defaulted where the proceeds from the sale of the home, net of expenses, did not cover the mortgage debt…
mikethemadbiologist | July 12, 2010Thanks to Pepsigeddon, conflict of interest-related posts seem to be bouncing around the intertubes. Which brings us to this article by Marc Lipsitch* about another type of potential conflict of interest--gag agreements for faculty who receive industry support (and which are typically allowed by most universities):
Recently, however, I received a request from a large pharmaceutical company to assist in the design of a clinical trial, and the proposed terms seemed to require that I sign away my right to criticize the product. One provision would prohibit me from entering into "any agreement…
grrlscientist | July 12, 2010tags: Orientation Day in the MSM, journalism, mainstream media, humor, streaming video
This video is a rather .. interesting ... look at the challenges of working as a journalist in the mainstream media in these technologically challenging days.
gregladen | July 11, 2010In which I suggest a way that Pepsigate could have been different.
I think PepsiCo's research scientists have something to say that I want to listen to. So do the scientists at Coke. And Cargill. The reason I think this is that some of my own research involves diet and nutrition, and I assume that the bench scientists working in the food industry are busy figuring stuff out at the molecular and biochemical level that I would not mind knowing.
Strike that: I know they are figuring stuff out. A few years back I had the honor and pleasure of being asked to give the keynote speech at a…
grrlscientist | July 11, 2010tags: Top Catholic Priest Accused of Sexually Abusing His Own Sons, ethics, religion, catholicism, Catholic Church, television, criminal activity, news, pedophilia, child rape, Pope John Paul, Marcial Maciel Degollado, streaming video
This video explores the question; "how much money would you want in exchange to be raped and sodomized throughout your childhood years?" This is a question that I also would like answers to. Any thoughts?
On one hand, I am completely sympathetic to this guy's situation, but on the other hand, I cannot help but wonder how a man who was raped as a child by his…
grrlscientist | July 10, 2010tags: Stephen Fry on Catholicism, Intelligence Squared Debate, religion, catholicism, Catholic Church, poverty, sexuality,homosexuality, AIDS, HIV, condoms, pedophilia, child rape, culture, Stephen Fry, streaming video
Stephen Fry provides his very articulate and thoughtful opinion on Catholicism and the Catholic Church at the Intelligence Squared Debate.
grrlscientist | July 8, 2010tags: What Do Disappointed Idealists and Tampon Commercials Have In Common?, social commentary, television, advertising, market research, mass media, manipulating the masses, satire, funny, humor, streaming video
It's rare when I see a video that, in a short 30 seconds, sums up the level of cynicism I currently feel, and leaves me with a smile. Okay, I have a sardonic smile at the moment, but it's a smile, and that's a start.
jstemwedel | July 6, 2010Today ScienceBlogs launched a new sponsored blog, Food Frontiers. The sponsor is PepsiCo. Here's the description of what the blog is going to be about from its inaugural post by Sb overlord Evan Lerner:
On behalf of the team here at ScienceBlogs, I'd like to welcome you to Food Frontiers, a new project presented by PepsiCo.
As part of this partnership, we'll hear from a wide range of experts on how the company is developing products rooted in rigorous, science-based nutrition standards to offer consumers more wholesome and enjoyable foods and beverages. The focus will be on innovations in…
grrlscientist | July 6, 2010
It's taken me a few hours to cool off enough to write coherently and without using (too much) profanity after I learned that ScienceBlogs added a corporate PR "blog" about nutrition written by PepsiCo. I think I've learned all I care to know about corporate "food" giants' definition of what is "nutrition" by being confronted daily by a flock of hugely protruding bellies and jiggling posteriors everywhere I go (yes, even here in Germany). I would link to that "blog" so you can see what I am talking about but quite frankly, I don't want to send any traffic to them. I think you can find them…
jstemwedel | July 6, 2010I saw a story in the San Jose Mercury News that I thought raised an interesting question about sick leave, one worth discussing here.
As it turns out, all the details of the specific case reported in the article sort of obscure the general question that it initially raised for me. But since I'm still interested in discussing the more general problem, here's a poll to tweak your intuitions.
In cash-strapped community college system, an administrator collecting paid sick leave is ...online survey
The question that the headline and first two paragraphs of the article raised for me was about…
grrlscientist | July 5, 2010tags: The Tiger Next Door, documentary, film, ethics, social commentary, exotic pets, wild animals, large cats, Dennis Hill, streaming video
This interesting video is a trailer for a documentary, "The Tiger Next Door," the story of a man named Dennis Hill who has been breeding and selling tigers from his backyard for over 15 years. Hill's dream is to breed a stripeless white tiger -- but at what cost to the animals, and at what risk to the community?
As the film begins, Hill has 24 tigers, 3 bears, 6 leopards and one cougar. But after a surprise government inspection, he loses the license…
grrlscientist | July 3, 2010tags: Stephen Hawking on Religion: Science Will Win, Diane Sawyer, Stephen Hawking, interview, science, religion, streaming video
World News Anchor, Diane Sawyer, asks physicist Stephen Hawking about the biggest mystery he'd like solved. He said, "I want to know why the universe exists, why there is something rather than nothing".
mikethemadbiologist | June 20, 2010One of the problems with the rise of behavioral economics is that too often behavior is defined as irrational, the result of cognitive screwups. I've dealt with this issue before, but James Kwak convincingly argues that the BP oil disaster is not due to a cognitive failure to assess risk:
I have no doubt that it is true that people have problems estimating the chances of certain rare events.* But to stop there is to whitewash the sins of the companies and the executives who created these crises.
First, it doesn't do to say that ordinary people are irrational in making ordinary everyday…