The British environmental writer Mark Lynas gave a speech recently that opened with this remarkable mea culpa: I want to start with some apologies. For the record, here and upfront, I apologise for having spent several years ripping up GM crops. I am also sorry that I helped to start the anti-GM movement back in…Continue Reading…
One of the most trenchant observers of the science/policy interface is Daniel Sarewitz, co-director of Arizona State University’s Consortium for Science, Policy & Outcomes. Since 2009, Sarewitz has been a regular columnist for the journal Nature. He writes for both general and specialized audiences. His insightful essays, on everything from the politics of climate change…Continue Reading…
In the aftermath of President Obama’s reelection, there was much media discussion of the GOP’s ever-shrinking demographic base. As the Washington Post’s Chris Cillizza pointed out, with the aid of an astonishing chart: That only 11 percent of Republicans’ total vote came from non-whites tells you everything you need to know about the large-scale demographic…Continue Reading…
On Twitter, some smart people I follow alerted me to a post titled, “2012: The year crazy and stupid went mainstream.” It’s by a writer named Bernie Mooney who defines himself as a “progressive contrarian.” Here’s how he begins his post: I’ve always been of the mind that stupid should hurt, so 2012 was a hard…Continue Reading…
Journalists today are pretty mindful about the terms they use to describe a group of people, especially when referencing ethnicity or religion. In mainstream media, outright slurs are forbidden (though not everyone abides) and anything that smells pejorative is called out. Euphemisms are another matter, as the tortured debate over torture (I mean “enhanced interrogation”)…Continue Reading…
Two long-running debates involving the supposed purity of science have flared anew. A recent editorial in the UK’s New Statesmen that cautioned against the politicizing of science (using climate change as a prime example) kicked up a Twitter storm and has provoked numerous responses, including this one from a science policy expert in the Guardian headlined (probably to the author’s…Continue Reading…
My mother-in-law is is one of the kindest, most open-minded persons I know. A retired elementary school teacher who taught for four decades in a gritty urban district, she radiates intelligence and goodness. She stands with science on all the hot-button issues of our day, such as evolution. Now in her early 80s, she is…Continue Reading…
Get ready for another wave of anti-GMO mania. This one is about to rise up with the news that genetically modified salmon are on the verge of being approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). There is quite an interesting backstory to this development, which Jon Entine revealed at Slate several days ago. The short version…Continue Reading…
George Monbiot is a terrific green Scrooge. Last week, the UK’s most popular and widely read environmental writer penned a cheery new column titled, “The Kiss of Death.” (The headline in the Guardian version is not quite so black.) In it, he rails against the culture of consumerism and advises people to stop buying (for…Continue Reading…
Several years ago, the BBC aired an excellent program called, “Science Under Attack.” It was hosted by UK Royal Society President Paul Nurse, who examined why public trust in key scientific theories has been eroded – from the theory that man-made climate change is warming our planet, to the safety of GM food, or that HIV…Continue Reading…