Policy
purepedantry | June 21, 2006Will Jake be doing all these posts from this issue of Nature? Perhaps...
This issue of Nature also has an editorial related to some Asian countries' recent decision to pay researchers for publishing papers:
South Korea has become the latest country to offer scientists cash prizes for publications in top-level international journals (see page 792). Other nations, including China and Pakistan, already have such programmes in place. The thousands, or even tens of thousands, of dollars on offer can be a fat prize for researchers in countries with lean science budgets.
...
Proponents can point to…
mikethemadbiologist | June 19, 2006I've always had a problem with the internet 'progressives.' I have never liked the term progressive, particularly since I'm not ashamed to call myself a liberal (here's one reason why). I haven't blogged much about the YearlyKos convention and ensuing controversy (being a lefty blogger, albeit a small one, I suppose I am the actual subject matter of much of that commentary). But a couple of posts have really made it clear to me why I'm not excited at all by the internet progressives.
It's the same reason I'm not excited by the mainstream Democratic Party as a whole: they don't seem to…
cmooney | June 16, 2006Well folks: The debate on NPR's "Science Friday" is today, starting around 3:15 ET. There will be a fair number of listener calls, I believe; remember, you can call in at 1-800-989-8255. To find a way to listen live, click here.
Meanwhile, I'm continuing to prepare, and want to thank you all very much for your help on the subjects of evolution and climate change. To further my prep, I also went to see Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth last night; I thought it was very powerful. True, there were a couple spots where Gore's presentation could have misled viewers into incorrectly thinking that…
mikethemadbiologist | June 15, 2006I'll readily admit that I'm as partisan as anyone. But am I the only progressive liberal blogger who has a problem with the other 'progressive' bloggers who are going batshit crazy over the Iraqi government's offer of amnesty for insurgents who have not killed Iraqis (i.e., they have only killed Americans)? After all, we're the ones who have pointed repeatedly out that the American presence is the problem. Doesn't that imply that the insurgency is, in part, a resistance movement against an occupying power?
I'm willing to punch as hard as the next guy when it comes to politics, but I draw…
pharyngula | June 15, 2006Lots of stuff about the intersection of science and politics in the US today—here are three things to read over breakfast.
Bruce Sterling suggests that American science is experiencing creeping Lysenkoism, and reports that "the Bush administration has systematically manipulated scientific inquiry into climate change, forest management, lead and mercury contamination, and a host of other issues." He predicts a rather grim end for our science and science policy.
Before long, the damage will spread beyond our borders. International scientific bodies will treat American scientists as pariahs.…
drorzel | June 14, 2006The esteemed Dr. Free-Ride has a post about politics responding to Sean Carroll's recap of Yearly Kos. Both of them say things about the practice of politics that nicely encapsulate why I'm not a political activist-- I'm too much of an academic:
Sean:
Deep down, though, I learned once again that an environment of political activism is not for me. I've volunteered and been active politically in very minor ways in the past, and I am always reminded that I should go back to academia where I belong. Of necessity, political action feeds on fervent commitment to the cause and a deep-seated…
razib | June 14, 2006Bora made two quick references to "group selection" today. I don't have much time...and shouldn't be blogging, but I want to make a few quick points before this topic goes down the memory hole (I know, unnecessary caveat, but I am driven by personal guilt in expressing it, not public shame). For those "not in the know" (e.g., most readers), Bora and I have a history.
Update: Robert Skipper's ruminations are worth a read, as always. And of course I was just making shit up about his political views and draft....
My problem with Bora comes down to assertions like this:
And I have realized…
jstemwedel | June 13, 2006Sean Carroll at Cosmic Variance has a great post with some of his thoughts about Yearly Kos. In it, he describes the convention's heartening attention to matters scientific:
The good news is: science! Thanks largely to DarkSyde's efforts, there was a substantial presence of science bloggers at YearlyKos. A "Science Bloggers Caucus" on Thursday night, which I expected to collect a dozen or so misplaced souls who weren't interested in the gatherings sponsored by some of the big political blogs, instead packed a room to overflowing with over fifty energetic participants from a wide cross-…
mikethemadbiologist | June 13, 2006The Mad Biologist digs bloggers who are very mad. Before we get to the Mad blogger Grand Moff Texan (aka "The Asshole of the Gods. And there's not a damn thing you can do about it."), I've noticed that the Punditocracy and the celebrity media have the disturbing habit of dismissing out of hand the measured opinions of bonafide experts (see global warming or anything on Fox News). What always amazes me is not the dismissal, but the utter arrogance that underlies it.
This doesn't just apply to science-although we can all think of some real doozies. I think this arrogance is even worse when…
clock | June 11, 2006In chronological order so you know how much time you have to write and submit your posts:
Next Philosophy Carnival (philosophy) will be on June 12, 2006 on Kenny Pearce.
Next Grand Rounds (medicine) will be on June 13th on Haversian Canal.
Next Carnival of Education (teaching, education policy) will be on June 14th, 2006 on What It's Like on the Inside.
Next Animalcules (microorganisms) will be on June 15th, 2006 on Knowledge as Salvation.
First Mendel's Garden (genetics) will be on June 15th, 2006 on The force that through....
Next Teaching Carnival (higher ed) will be on or shortly after…
clock | June 10, 2006If Janet says something, we better listen! So, a little introduction is in place:
3 reasons you blog about science:
At the time when the Age of Reason is under assault, every effort must be made to make science accessible and understandable to as many people as possible. I'd like to think of myself as a small part of that effort.
Blogging about politics distracts me from my Dissertation writing. Blogging about science inspires to me to try to finish as soon as possible, go back to the lab and re-join the reseacrh community.
It is generally a good idea to blog, at least sometimes, about…
cmooney | June 9, 2006Wow. The Yearly Kos science panel this morning was awesome, really a tour de force. Facing a full room, Wesley Clark got up there and riffed for at least twenty minutes, with impressive eloquence, about the importance of science to the American future. I wish I'd been taking notes. Here's a guy whose past--unbeknownst to me--had a lot of science in it; he's a kid of the Sputnik era, and really grasps how far we've fallen from the days when scientific innovation was at the center of America's image of itself. I was very, very impressed. (And I can't complain that at one point, Clark actually…
purepedantry | June 9, 2006Hi,
Most of this stuff appears in the About or Contact section but I thought I would put it out front on the first day.
My name is Jake Young, and I am an MD-PhD student focusing on Neuroscience at Mount Sinai School of Medicine. Yes, my parents are quite proud, but I assure you that at present it qualifies me for very little other than arguing the finer points of tissue culture. Despite abject lack of qualifications, this blog will at least attempt to delve deeply into science and other things. Actually, I hope for that to someday be my epitaph: "Jake, he talked a lot about science and…
scientificactivist | June 9, 2006Welcome to the new home of The Scientific Activist, a growing source of news and commentary on science, politics, science policy, and everything in between. The Scientific Activist was first launched on January 11th, 2006, at scientificactivist.blogspot.com/, and the goals were ambitious: by providing information and insights on recent scientific developments, political issues in science, and the proper role of science in an ever-changing world, I hoped to make strides toward increasing public understanding of science, clearing up misconceptions, and opening up a dialogue on these important…
jstemwedel | June 8, 2006From USA Today:
The first vaccine to protect against most cervical cancer won federal approval Thursday.
The vaccine Gardasil, approved for use in girls and women ages 9 to 26, prevents infection by four strains of the human papillomavirus, or HPV, Merck & Co. Inc. said. The virus is the most prevalent sexually transmitted disease.
Gardasil protects against the two types of HPV responsible for about 70% of cervical cancer cases. The vaccine also blocks infection by two other strains responsible for 90% of genital wart cases.
Merck is expected to market Gardasil as a cancer, rather than an…
jstemwedel | June 8, 2006This week, the National Review Online's media blogger revealed the secret identity of dKos blogger Armando, who says that this unwanted decloaking probably means he will no longer blog.
While I'm not heavy into the political end of the blogosphere (until someone can provide me with more than 24 hours per day), Armando's story resonates with me because one of my favorite science bloggers, BotanicalGirl, had to stop blogging when members of her department became aware of her blog. So I've been thinking a lot about blogging anonymously versus blogging under one's own name, not just in terms of…
stoat | May 23, 2006And the forum is: http://groups.google.com/group/globalchange/. Go have a look. Why? From the welcome message:
We are creating a moderated newsgroup/mailing list for the discussion of environmental science, economics, policy and politics, especially as related to global change issues such as climate change, biodiversity,
and sustainability.
The signal to noise ratio on sci.environment and similar unmoderated discussion lists has dropped to the point where it can no longer sustain interesting or informative exchanges of information and ideas.
The success of the lightly moderated discussions…
drorzel | May 22, 2006A scientific conference like DAMOP almost always includes a conference banquet (to which people may or may not bring dates), usually the last night of the meeting, where everybody gets together to eat massive quantities of catered food and drink massive amounts of wine supplied by the conference. The quality of these ranges from your standard rubber chicken sort of fare to the multi-course gourmet meal (with a different bottle of wine for each course) provided at a conference I attended in Bordeaux.
DAMOP does all right in the food department, though you're not going to get real gourmet fare…
grrlscientist | May 17, 2006I just learned that new federal guidelines recommend that all human female Americans between their first menstrual period and menopause should be treated as pre-pregnant, regardless of their future reproductive plans.
Does this sound rather like .. er, The Handmaid's Tale to you?
It certainly does to me!
According to this Washington Post article, what does it mean to be a member of the pre-pregnant? This means that, among other things, all "pre-pregnant" women should take folic acid supplements, refrain from smoking and using alcohol, avoid contact with cat feces and lead-based paint,…
apalazzo | May 14, 2006I'm in the lab on a rainy Sunday. This week I was too busy to really blog.
Fortunately other people had interesting stories ...
Ed Brayton discusses an interesting (but flawed) OpEd in the Wall Street Journal on the misplaced support of Inteligent Design by NeoCons.
Speaking of ID, here's an OpEd in Friday's NY Times on evolution and ID in the classroom.
Although some think that nuclear energy was a bad idea, I think that it's the undeniable future of our powersupply. And it's green. The NY Times editorial staff seems to agree. WIRED as well:
Solar. Wind. Hydro. As replacements for fossil…