Science & Society

Industry Arrogance Is Not A Reason To Deny Science

If you talk to someone who knows food but not science, it won't be long before some jab at Monsanto issues forth. And if you persist in discussing biology, it really won't be long before you get called a shill for Monsanto. You don't have to ...

Article - Hank Campbell - Jul 29 2013 - 2:59pm

Science Ghetto: Missives From The Low-Prestige, Low-Value Part Of News

Ann Finkbeiner, author of 2007's The Jasons: The Secret History of Science's Postwar Elite (among other things) and contributor to The Last Word On Nothing, recently had a fascinating exchange with one of my favorite journalists, USA Today ' ...

Article - Hank Campbell - Aug 6 2013 - 11:00am

Conservation Efforts In Africa Backfire Because Conservationists Don't Understand Culture

If you ask conservationists in developed nations why East Africa's Maasai pastoralists hunt lions you get Anthropology 101: to retaliate against lions that kill livestock or to engage in a cultural rite of passage. Aside from mistranslations of Maasa ...

Article - News Staff - Aug 5 2013 - 3:39pm

Knock-Off Designer Clothes, Perfumes And... Food?

When I think of cheap knock-offs I think of things like a Rolex watch or a Gucci handbag, but apparently knock-off food is a $10-15 billion industry. I don't even mean the faux organic stuff sold as such because some shell company in China claims it i ...

Article - Hank Campbell - Aug 11 2013 - 8:59am

Stephen Hawking Eulogizes The Father Of Fracking And Fan Of Science, George P. Mitchell

Two weeks ago, Galveston born and raised George P. Mitchell passed away at age 94. He was well-known as a Texas oil billionaire but less well-known as a keen advocate of science. ...

Article - Hank Campbell - Aug 9 2013 - 2:28pm

Has Shark Week Jumped The, You Know...?

I like the idea of "Shark Week" but I confess I am more of a reader than a television viewer. Still, when Discovery Channel whacked me as part of their "Shark Week" promotional campaign a few years back, it felt like a 'we have arr ...

Blog Post - Hank Campbell - Aug 9 2013 - 4:30pm

Let’s Not Get Too Excited About The New UC Open Access Policy

It was announced today that systemwide Academic Senate representing the 10 campuses of the University of California system had passed an “open access” policy. ...

Article - Michael Eisen - Aug 18 2013 - 9:00am

Is There Really A Greater 'Hookup' Culture On College Campuses Today?

Sociologists have challenged the perception that there is a "new and pervasive hookup culture" among contemporary college students that is substantially greater than a generation ago. ...

Article - News Staff - Aug 13 2013 - 2:08pm

Do Conservation Biologists Work Harder Than Other Scientists?

An international analysis of conservation biologists finds that they work late at night and over weekends- just like much of the salaried corporate world and science writers.  ...

Article - News Staff - Aug 13 2013 - 1:13pm

How Kickstarter Became Irrelevant To STEM

I am making the call: despite all the buzz it is currently getting due to crowdsourced funding for lots of projects, by wading into the anti-technology culture war, I am predicting the demise of Kickstarter.  The people behind Kickstarter have declared tha ...

Article - Hank Campbell - Aug 30 2013 - 10:07am