Disclaimer: This post presents more opinion than a typical Thought and Awe post, and should be taken with a larger grain of salt. Accordingly, there are no peer-reviewed citations at bottom. One of the most exasperating battlegrounds in America’s perennial “culture wars” is the high school science classroom. Every few years, some state legislature or school board decides that science education would be much …
Space: A Reflection of Ourselves
In late April, Russia’s deputy prime minister helpfully suggested that the United States look into trampolines to get its astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS). The threat to stop ferrying US astronauts on Russian ships, delivered cheekily and via twitter, was mostly a childish diplomatic gesture reflecting rising tensions over Ukraine. However, it exposed a telling snapshot of the changing politics and science of …
Risk Misconceptions
Last week, a man peed into the reservoir that housed some of the municipal water supply for Portland, Oregon. In response, the public health officials in Portland, Oregon dumped and flushed the 38 million gallon reservoir. The City Commissioner, Nick Fish, claimed he “didn’t have a choice”, since he doesn’t “have the luxury of slicing it too thin when there’s a potential …
Changing Winds in Science Funding
Bias can taint scientific research, as conclusions are sensitive to the conscious and unconscious choices scientists make in study design, data collection, analysis, and interpretation. A naive, utopian vision of science would have its practitioners completely impartial, unbiased and objective. Scientists would rely solely on the evidence to construct their conclusions about the world, without an eye towards dogma or financial gain. Of course, …
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