Science & Society

The problem, in a word, is language.Carl Zimmer’s recent article Can Life Be Defined in Three Words raised just that issue.He referred to the many attempts that have been made by scientists to define…

In the USA, it is, I understand, a great insult to call a member of the fair sex a “Tub of Lard”.  So folks from across the Pond may do a slight double-take when they read   …

Robopocalypse, see also here on Boing Boing, is a novel by roboticist Daniel Wilson, who foretells a global apocalypse brought on by artificial Intelligence (AI) that hijacks automation systems…

Ok, don't forget PIPA and SOPA.  They're important too.  But whereas PIPA and SOPA only have the potentialto be misused for censorship, RWA is designed from the ground up to block the…

Many publishers attract a significant amount of bile from scientists. However, most bile is reserved for that titan of publishers, Elsevier. Now, many academics are signing on online pledge called…

Who has more credibility to the NPR audience, a scientist or someone who runs an organic yogurt company?  It depends on the issue, of course.  When it comes to global warming, science is…

The Wall Street Journal published an excellent case study in denialism on Friday, in the form of a letter from sixteen scientists seeking to perpetuate gridlock in climate policy.  While nothing…

Over 30 percent of all terrorist attacks from 1970 to 2008 occurred in just five metropolitan U.S. counties, according to a report published today by researchers in the National Consortium for the…

The news of the world are filled again with anti-Chinese propaganda. I am appalled at how simplistic anti-Chinese bickering is allowed to be, because it hides the real problems and dangers of China,…

Franz Hörmann, professor at the Vienna University for Economics (Wirtschaftsuniversität Wien), distinguishes between Expert-Knowledge (Fachwissen) and Experience-Knowledge (Erlebniswissen). The…