Science

Don’t Know Much Biology

Actually, I’m fond of the song, but the headline isn’t really accurate as a description of the public’s views of evolution. The (relatively) good news, according to Gallup, is that “only” 40% of the public think that humans were created in their present form in the last ten thousand years.  Obviously, they “don’t know much …

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It Depends on What the Meanings of “Are” Are

Bill Clinton once famously said that the truthfulness of a statement depended on “what the meaning of ‘is’ is.” There’s a similar usage issue in a recent spat over climate data. A  dispute between Roger Pielke and RealClimate seems to turn in part on whether a statement about current climate trends has to be proven …

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Drowning the East Coast

According to WaPo, Sea levels could rise faster along the U.S. East Coast than in any other densely populated part of the world, new research shows, as changes in ice caps and ocean currents push water toward a shoreline inlaid with cities, resort boardwalks and gem-rare habitats. Three studies this year, including one out last …

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Climate change is outpacing most dire models

The Washington Post reports today on Chris Field’s presentation at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, in which he said: “We are basically looking now at a future climate that’s beyond anything we’ve considered seriously in climate model simulations.”  Faster development of coal-fired electrical power in developing countries is …

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More hot links

Piggy-backing on Dan’s post below, here are some more blogs that cover environmental issues. Of course everyone has their own spin, and most of these blogs make no pretense of neutrality. Browse at your own risk. And please let us know what additional sites you find useful.

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Wow, things really have changed in Washington: a Cabinet official speaks about climate change’s impacts on California

The Los Angeles Times has a story today in its (venerable but soon-to-be-axed) California section discussing new Energy Secretary Steven Chu’s public statements on the dramatic challenges California will face as a result of climate change.  From the story: Chu warned of water shortages plaguing the West and Upper Midwest and particularly dire consequences for California, …

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More accusations of politics trumping science and law at Interior

The Washington Post reports that officials at the Department of Interior ignored “key scientific findings” and the views of National Park Service officials “when they limited water flows in the Grand Canyon to optimize generation of electric power there, risking damage to the ecology of the spectacular national landmark.”  The Post story, written by Juliet …

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Hitting the right notes on science

The environmental science community is welcoming the new Obama administration with open arms.   That’s no surprise, of course — there was never any love lost between environmental scientists and the George W. Bush administration. But for the science community this transition is more than the departure of an enemy.   So far, the new president is …

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