Articles by David Roberts

Aargh! My brain!

Wow.

Every year, the Edge Foundation asks an enormous array of smart people (scientists, philosophers, mathematicians, intellectuals of every stripe) a single question and publishes the results. This year's question:

WHAT IS YOUR DANGEROUS IDEA?

The history of science is replete with discoveries that were considered socially, morally, or emotionally dangerous in their time; the Copernican and Darwinian revolutions are the most obvious. What is your dangerous idea? An idea you think about (not necessarily one you originated) that is dangerous not because it is assumed to be false, but because it might be true?

What you get in the answers are the good bits: The most intriguing ideas of the world's top thinkers boiled down to their essence.

It's some of the most fascinating stuff I've ever read, and after two hours I've only scratched the surface. I really can't recommend it highly enough.

What would your answer be?

(via BoingBoing)

Happy New Year

Happy 2006, all you Gristmill readers!

Sorry for the lack of posting lately. I've been taking a "vacation" (look it up), hanging out with family and not thinking at all about the environment. Coupled with that, I've had a mild case of blog depression lately -- which I will shake off completely, starting tomorrow!

I may have one of those year-end roundups so de rigeur in the blogosphere tomorrow, but in the meantime, don't miss Joel Makower's trying-to-put-on-a-happy-face-but-really-quite-melancholy state of green business post.

RealClimate, one year in

The folks at RealClimate reflect on their first year of blogging.

I would call what they've done a fairly hearty success. My one complaint is that, if your stated goal is to communicate accurate science to outsiders, you would do well to minimize technical jargon and focus on clear, accessible prose. Some of the posts are so dense that I hesitate to recommend them.

But regardless, it's an invaluable resource. If you don't have the RSS feed in your reader, get it.

Let them breathe cake

I would say "unbelievable," but this is Texas we're talking about.

The majority of Houston-area lawmakers in the Texas House voted against legislation intended to protect the public from toxic air pollution, a Houston Chronicle analysis of 2005 voting records has found.

The five rejected amendments would have made the state's health screening levels for pollution more strict, required companies to continuously monitor emissions and set fines for the periodic releases known as "upsets" that plague fence-line neighborhoods.

Yet 20 of 34 representatives in the eight-county region, where toxic pollution problems have been well-documented, particularly along the Houston Ship Channel, voted to table these actions.

All 20 of the dissenters are Republicans, some of them representing industrial districts such as Pasadena, Baytown and Seabrook, where people and industry exist side by side.

No doubt a matter of conservative principle, right?

(via TPMCafe)