An in-depth article in the Oct 22, 2019 Politico magazine on the emerging science of attribution: The new science fossil fuel companies fear – Researchers can now link weather events to emissions – and to the companies responsible. A string of lawsuits is about to give “attribution science” a real-life test – by ZACK COLMAN … [Read more…]
By Andrew Crane-Droesch – Washington Post – 10/21/19 … Out of the blue, in August 2018, agriculture secretary George “Sonny” Perdue announced that my agency and the National Institute of Food and Agriculture would relocate from Washington, D.C., to some yet-to-be-determined location. He claimed that this would lower costs and bring us closer to “stakeholders.” … [Read more…]
From the California Digital Newspaper Collection: Sacramento Daily Union 17 September 1868 THE FIRST FIGHT (the Kansas-Nebraska contest) A reader asks us to give some information regarding the Kansas-Nebraska contest and the opinions of the different parties thereto. That fight for liberty was so like the present one in the principles and purposes involved that … [Read more…]
Cultural Comment by Lizzie Widdicombe, New Yorker 10/21/19 For argument’s sake, let’s imagine that Trump’s tweet was wrong, and the “Civil War like fracture in this Nation” doesn’t come to pass. Instead, he and his allies lose the 2020 election. A new Administration comes in, dedicated to helping the nation “work off” its historical crimes, … [Read more…]
From IEEE Spectrum: New Alternative to Bitcoin Uses Negligible Energy 15 Oct 2019 | 15:00 GMT New Alternative to Bitcoin Uses Negligible Energy Novel algorithms are secure like blockchains, but simpler, faster, and more energy-efficient By Charles Q. Choi A nearly zero-energy alternative to Bitcoin and other blockchain-based cryptocurrencies that promises as much security but … [Read more…]
From SwissInfo: The United Nations is facing a serious cashflow crisis, as 63 states – including its largest contributor, the United States – have not paid their annual dues. In Geneva, officials at the UN’s European headquarters (UNOG) are considering ways to cut costs, while the host nation looks on anxiously. The statement by UN … [Read more…]
From Mather Jones, September 26, 2019, Arctic Ice Is Melting Faster Than Expected. These Scientists Have a Radical Idea to Save It. Costly and controversial, yes. But we may be running out of choices. “We’re getting much more attention because of how dire thing are,” says inventor and engineer Leslie Field, founder of Ice911, a … [Read more…]
Guardian, 17 September, 2019: Six whistleblowers and ex-government scientists describe how the Trump administration made them bury climate science – and why they won’t stay quiet by Oliver Milman From weakening vehicle emissions to blocking warnings about how coastal parks could flood or the impact on the Arctic, the Trump administration is accused of muzzling … [Read more…]
Carlos Cruz-Diez, Whose Art Made Color Move, Is Dead at 95 New York Times, Karen Rosenberg, Aug. 2, 2019.
In a NY Times obituary today, “President Andrés Manuel López Obrador of Mexico announced the death on Twitter, calling Mr. Toledo “a true defender of nature, customs and traditions of our people.” No other details were given.”