I came across this story arising from near Portland, Oregon today and was moved to finally understand something I’ve read about and resisted in the past. [Fifteen-month-old] Ava Worthington died March 2, 2008, after her parents and other members of… Continue Reading
From two separate sources on the same day — news that we possess, right now, the technological ability to reduce global temperatures by several degrees. The Wall Street Journal and The Atlantic both discuss two proposals — the first and… Continue Reading
Techskeptic has a nice thought on what it is to be a “denialist.” It is, in essence, an approach to an unpleasant subject guided by the Nirvana fallacy. He writes of those who would deny global warming, but his thought… Continue Reading
Guppies transplanted from a predator-free environment to one in which they were potentially food for other animals were able to alter their reproductive output by significant margins within about twenty generations. For guppies, that’s only about eight years. If you… Continue Reading
Physicists, armed with high-speed cameras and lasers and stuff, say, “It looks like a curve ball, but the ball’s trajectory is, actually straight.” Pitchers and batters both insist, “No way, the damn thing curves.” Here’s a demonstration of why the… Continue Reading
Tinyfrog gives an example of how callous and uncaring nature really is. There are crater lakes in Africa which, by accident of their altitude, geographic situs in calderas, and the geology below them, trap immense amounts of pure gaseous carbon… Continue Reading
From Alan Stewart Carl at Donkelphant: But, really, the skeptics’ fixation on proving the science false is just a symptom of the greater issue — namely that a lot of people are concerned that action to reduce CO2 emissions will… Continue Reading
Andrew Sullivan’s conservative credentials are suspect these days. On the other hand, the very fact that his credentials are suspect is a symptom of something wrong with the right side of the political spectrum. Still here’s what he has to… Continue Reading
Panic over the swine flu is starting to be tedious. I heard yesterday that a client who is a school bus driver saw about half the number of kids as normal going to school this week. Half? There’s that much… Continue Reading