Science & Society

Japan's Nuclear Emergency - The Straight Goods - Update The latest reports coming from Japan indicate that the current nuclear emergency is not as great as some people had feared it might be. Despite some media reports: there have been no reactor explosions.  Period. Radiation levels are falling, according to the most recent news release by the Japanese government. I realize you, those who have seen the images must be very concerned. The conclusion from the data obtained or confirmed is that it is expected that the condition of the [Unit 3] containment vessel remains sound, as I said…

The online disability rights and autism advocacy movements intersect, with appeals from the autism advocacy movement appealing to the larger disability rights movement. Recently, a new petition has been started by the Autistic Self-Advocacy Network calling for individuals to "Tell the CDC 'No' on Abuse-Enabling 'Wandering' Code!" Online petitions are easy to sign and almost meaningless, but it feels good to take some stand, right? What's interesting to examine is how appeals to sign petitions are made. When is inflammatory, sensationalized rhetoric appropriate and when should…

If you want clicks, then now is the time to write about earthquakes and nuclear disasters. That is why Science 2.0 has now an article telling us how great it is that the quake hit Japan, because Japan is so well prepared, and this is mostly thanks to the good folks from science and technology, so no wonder there are only a mere 1000 dead to count. Another article presents us with press releases of Japanese nuclear reactor officials trying to calm the panic. Comments were quick to point out that maybe it is not quite so great to use science in order to give people a false sense of security so…

Why We Should Ban Food Ban food?Which food?All of it, probably. Why we should ban food Oh yes, and medicines. They're just too darn dangerous to produce, that's why.  Quite apart from the risks of various kinds of toxins getting in your food and killing you, think of all the dangers associated with the production and distribution of food.  Tractors, fertilizer, diesel fuel, - I'd ban those just for starters. I hope to show by a perfectly logical chain of argument that if we ban the industries most likely to trigger disasters then we must stop eating. In a list of industrial…

Update: For the latest bulletins, please see my new article:Japan's Nuclear Emergency - The Straight Goods - Update original post begins here:Japan's Nuclear Emergency - The Straight Goods There is much speculative and inaccurate reporting in the world's media regarding the problems caused to nuclear power facilities in Japan by the recent earthquake. The Tokyo Electric Power Company - TEPCO - is releasing frequent updates on the emergency situation which followed the earthquake. Their web site is getting very heavy traffic at the moment, so I reproduce here two of their most recent news…

Japan Quake - Media Up To Mischief Edit - this blog entry is now out of date.  The complaint about 100 versus 1000 is now withdrawn.Please see Japan's Nuclear Emergency - The Straight Goods - including comments - for updated information. Original post below: The media loves to abuse the deliciously ambiguous term up to. Why do some reporters like to get hold of a range of values from a scientist or engineer and then quote the number at the scariest end of the range? Some media sources are reporting radiation levels of 1000 times normal following a problem with Japan's Fukushima Number…

Over many years, as a member of the Royal Society of Chemistry, I have regularly received their magazine, formerly Chemistry in Britain, now Chemistry World.  This often contains an article of historical interest Twenty or thirty years ago, I read about the foundation of an educational institute which later went on to become either today’s City University or possibly the University of North London, towards the end of the nineteenth century.  The new building contained a lift shaft, but for ten years or more, there was no lift, because the Professor…

In case you were living under the science equivalent of a rock, the Journal of Cosmology published a study by a NASA researcher stating, essentially, that fossilized bacteria had been found on Earth, but originating from outer space. That was a bit of a stretch to anyone who thought about it.   Holes in rocks can look like lots of things. An NPR blogger tackles the aftermath, and mentions CBS and ABC, but mostly focuses on the Fox News handling of the story because, you know, Republicans don't believe in global warming like progressives (NPR employees and writers and listeners) do so…

Infinite Growth And The Crisis Cocktail - a guest article Infinite growth is not possible in any real-world context, yet many otherwise rational people behave - economically speaking - as if they believe that it is possible. Some time ago I invited Neven- who keeps the Arctic Sea Ice blog and pops up as a commenter on many web sites - to write an article on this topic.  I had read his many comments about it and had been very impressed with his insights. Unfortunately, due to the proverbial 'circumstances beyond my control', I was not able to publish his article.  Now, somewhat…

Despite what you may guess by mass media coverage, the priorities of Americans are not global warming or wars in Iraq and Afghanistan but are instead just what they were in 1990; health care and a good education for their children. That's not to say the NEA or the current health care reform efforts are favored by people, no one except other government employees(1) suggests that unionizing government employees has been a good thing and with 1,000 waivers already issued in reform that will never happen, it isn't really reform, but during a recession when the majority feel taxes are too high,…