Al Gore is shown marching in front of a large graph showing atmospheric temperature and levels of carbon dioxide in the movie “An Inconvenient Truth.” He smiles and observes that the two lines look related. He proposes that carbon dioxide from burning hydrocarbons has caused the small amount of warming over the last century. Those who don’t believe man is the cause of this warming are called “deniers” who ignore the scientific facts. I proudly accept the name “denier,” but point out that I do not deny nor ignore the scientific facts. What Mr. Gore neglects to mention is that the warming shown by the graphs occurs decades before the carbon dioxide levels increase. The warming therefore could not have been caused by increases in atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide since the warming comes first. Mr. Gore has to deny the scientific facts to defend his theory. Continue reading
Category Archives: Commentary
It’s Cool, But Does It Work?
I am a great fan of technology, but an even greater fan of things that work. A recent article in Forbes tells how an inexpensive “vinegar test” for cervical cancer is saving lives in India, in places where the western standard pap smear is too expensive to use. “This is a striking example of how a low-tech, low-cost intervention can sometimes take the place of a more high-tech innovation.”
Simpler technology did not mean a simpler project. Continue reading
Surprising Benefit of Marijuana Debate
The legalization of marijuana is a controversial topic. One positive aspect of the debate was pointed out in a recent Washington Post piece http://wapo.st/14bcRyj (which contains several links to the underlying studies).
“There is a strong minority in each party that breaks with its side’s dominant view – which does not happen on public issues as often as it used to. Thus do 37 percent of both conservatives and Republicans favor legalization. Thus do 39 percent of Democrats and 25 percent of liberals oppose it.”
Here is a benefit I would never have expected. Anything that creates allies across the toxic red/blue line in American politics can’t be bad.
Deaths Caused by Nuclear Power Generation
This posting was inspired by the review last week of “The Rise of Nuclear Fear” and a commentary about radiation exposure from the Three Mile Island Accident. Spencer R. Weart, the author of the “Nuclear Fear” book, has a conclusion I consider worth repeating. “Much more electricity will be needed before the entire world reaches minimal prosperity. None of the ways to generate electricity is fully satisfactory. In terms of both my family’s health and the health of the environment, I would personally live near an existing nuclear reactor than near a plant fired by fossil fuels such as coal.” Continue reading
The Rise of Nuclear Fear
I struggled with the first part of the book by Spencer R. Weart, my interest in the title kept me reading, and I’m glad I did. I suggest beginning with the personal note at the end of the book. The opening sentence explains the book’s focus on the psychology of fear and the “forces of imagery and their pressure upon policies.” The author also reveals his personal opinions, and I was frankly somewhat surprised that he believes we should develop nuclear energy. The book carefully presents the pros and cons, with more emphasis on the cons, that I hadn’t anticipated that position. Continue reading
Radiation Exposure from the Three Mile Island Accident
A friend told me he attended a conference where one of the papers presented concluded that the person receiving the highest radiation exposure from the accident at Three Mile Island was a journalist who flew from Singapore to cover the story. A Health Physics Society report by Robert J. Barish has a good discussion about radiation exposure during air travel. It explains the exposure “…is caused not only by x rays (photons) but also by a variety of energetic particles such as neutrons, protons, electrons, muons ( a subatomic particle similar to an electron), and pions (another subatomic paricle described as the lightest meson). These “…come from a variety of cosmic sources in our galaxy, with a lesser contribution from our own sun” Continue reading