on 09. 8.10
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Today, Planet 100 presents its 200th episode. To celebrate this milestone we're counting down the Top 10 Most Outrageous Stories from the last 200 days of Planet 100.
on 09. 8.10
Photo via Wired
You may have heard of Simon Singh long before his name rose to the top of the list of those championing sound science: He'd written two bestselling books, Fermat's Enigma and the Big Bang. Despite the wide range of subject matter contained in those books, the topic that ended up casting him into controversy was much different -- a seemingly benign newspaper article about some of the pitfalls of alternative medicine. He ended up defending his career from a powerful group, the British Chiropractic Association, who sued him for libel for having the chutzpah to assert that there was no proof that chiropractic treatment could treat ailments like asthma in children. As he decided to defend his science-backed claim rather than apologize, he became a much needed spokesperson for sound science (he won the suit). There are plenty of lessons to be learned from his story -- and many that hit close to home to anyone familiar with other topics where the science continually faces a PR crisis from outside interests. Here's what he has to say about defending science in the public sphere:
on 09. 8.10
Photo via News One
Less dramatic than the fiery explosion of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig and the multiple month-spanning underwater oil geyser that followed it are many of the BP Gulf spill's side effects. And oil-related sicknesses are undoubtedly among the thorniest -- many fishermen-turned cleanup workers have already been afflicted by close contact with oil and the chemical dispersents used to combat it. But there will probably be many more. As such, "Health Effects of the Gulf Oil Spill", a paper recently published in the Journal of the American Medicine Association (JAMA), is advising physicians around the Gulf and beyond to learn to treat oil and dispersent-related sicknesses.
TreeHugger breaks it down for you in a series of in depth how-to articles that will help you green your life. No time like the present!
on 09. 8.10
photo: Johnny Bahru via flickr.
Large marine reserves aren't working to protect fish or coral--and therefore fishermen's livelihoods in the long term--and we should collectively shift towards more small reserves with fishing allowed in between. That's the word from the UN University Institute for Water, Environment and Health's Peter Sale.
on 09. 8.10
Image via California High-Speed Rail Authority
In his Labor Day speech two days ago, the president announced plans for a $50 billion stimulus package that would take aim at updating the country's lagging transportation infrastructure. He called for Congress to approve an infusion of funds for highway, air traffic control, and, yes, high speed rail projects, that would lead to the "immediate" creation of jobs and give a boost to the economy. Obama said that the bill would be paid for by eliminating the tax subsidies currently given to profitable oil and gas companies. Will the plan point the country's transit sector in a more sustainable direction?
on 09. 8.10
photo: Ramanathan Kathiresa via flickr
Another study detailing the negative environmental effects of continued tar sands development in Canada, and how independent review finds much greater impact that either the industry or government cares to acknowledge: The latest issue of The Wilson Journal of Ornithology has published a report showing that annual bird mortality in the toxic tailing ponds around tar sands project is far in excess of officially accepted figures.
on 09. 8.10
photo: US Fish & Wildlife Service via flickr
While BP just concluded that a whole slew of missteps led to the Deepwater Horizon explosion and subsequent Gulf Gusher, so it seems a whole bunch of political squabbling seems to be holding up distribution of some $500 million in research money pledged to investigate the ecological effects of the spill. OnEarth goes into more detail, but this is the gist of it:
Here are a few recommended websites.
on 09. 8.10
BP has just released it's report on the events leading up to the explosion on the Deepwater Horizon and subsequent record-breaking oil spill. As was expected, BP attempts to spread blame across all the companies involved and says "a complex and interlinked series of mechanical failures, human judgements, engineering design, operation implementation and team interface" by "multiple companies and work teams" was responsible.
Here are a few recommended websites.
