Some mind-numblingly painful non-science below. Indeed, from one of the items: “It’s quite an achievement, really, to be so wrong i[n] so many ways on so simple a subject in so few words.” Feels like there’s a lot of that going around lately......
On the other hand, Susan Hassol, interviewed on a NASA blog below, says there are plenty of reasons for optimism, and we need to make sure to give people reason to believe that we can tackle climate change. We’ve cleaned up our messes before—remember “Burn on, big river, burn on”? Well, the Cuyahoga is no longer flammable. So chin up, and get to work!
- Global Warming Feels Quite Pleasant The New York Times, April 21, 2016 — Global warming has made the weather overall more pleasant in the US over the past few years, making Americans more lethargic over climate change. Will a drastic change in weather be needed for people to act?
- A Day with Ken Ham, Slate.com, April 25, 2016 — The formidable Zach Kopplin, winner of NCSE’s Friend of Darwin award, reports on his experience attending one of Creation Museum founder Ken Ham’s “Vision Conferences.” That vision is decidedly idiosyncratic and resolutely anti-evolution. Most alarming, it appears that public school trips to the Creation Museum, a clear violation of the constitutional separation of church and state, are continuing to happen. You won’t be surprised to learn that Mr. Ham doesn’t believe in the separation of church and state.
- 10 Astounding Moments in a Creationist Textbook: Revis[i]ting Of Pandas and People, Poppycock, April 25, 2016 — Prompted by the acquisition of the Foundation for Thought and Ethics by the Discovery Institute, Carrie Poppy offers a listicle about FTE’s most infamous publication, Of Pandas and People, the “intelligent design” textbook at the center of the Kitzmiller v. Dover trial.
- Why Creationists Are Out of Time With History and Science, The Guardian, April 27, 2016 — Paleontologist Dave Hone is unimpressed with creationist misunderstanding and misuse of his work on pterosaurs. “It’s quite an achievement, really, to be so wrong i[n] so many ways on so simple a subject in so few words.”
- We’re Over Being Bummed About Climate Change and Ready for Solutions, NASA Global Climate Change, April 28, 2016 — Oceanography teacher and NASA science blogger, Laura Faye Tenenbaum interviews climate communication expert Susan Hassol about flipping the message about climate change from doom to zoom: No question, climate change is an enormous challenge but there’s a lot to be positive and optimistic about. And the sooner we get to work, the less it will cost.
- Unfriendly Climate, Texas Monthly, May 2016 — “Texas Tech’s Katharine Hayhoe is one of the most respected experts on global warming in the country. She’s also an evangelical Christian who is trying to connect with the very people who most doubt her research. Too bad the temperature keeps rising.”
