Nat-n-Bio

Next-generation science e-books may help keep young people engaged By Charles Q. Choi Science can advance quickly, rendering existing textbooks obsolete. Now new digital textbooks are emerging intended to better engage students and keep them up-to-date on the latest research. These e-books will cost (and weigh) less than the average printed tome. In January, Apple announced its iBooks 2 textbook platform for the iPad, and publishers, including McGraw-Hill, Pearson, and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, have signed on to create content for it. In February, Nature Publishing Group, of which Scientific[...] 

New UK Met Office global temperature data confirms that the world has not warmed in the past 15 years. Analysis by the GWPF of the newly released HadCRUT4 global temperature database shows that there has been no global warming in the past 15 years – a timescale that challenges current models of global warming.   The graph shows the global annual average temperature since 1997. No statistically significant trend can be discerned from the data. The only statistically acceptable conclusion to be drawn from the HadCRUT4 data is that between 1997 – 2011 it has remained constant, with[...] 

by Eric Dennis The most frustrating thing about being a scientist skeptical of catastrophic global warming is that the other side is continually distorting what I am skeptical of. In his immodestly titled New York Review of Books article “Why the Global Warming Skeptics Are Wrong,” economist William Nordhaus presents six questions that the legitimacy of global warming skepticism allegedly rests on. Is the planet in fact warming? Are human influences an important contributor to warming? Is carbon dioxide a pollutant? Are we seeing a regime of fear for skeptical climate scientists? Are the[...] 

Second of a three-part series of excerpts from Energy Freedom by Marita Noon Originally published in the Washington Examiner Part 1, “Big Green Wants To Repeal the Industrial Revolution,” is available here. So who are all these evil-appearing “environmentalists?” Should all Birkenstock wearers be suspect? What about the lady at the grocery store with the canvas sack for her purchases? There is a difference between those of us who care for the earth, want to use it wisely, and believe in recycling—and those who are in decision-making positions, setting policy and/or funding the programs.[...] 

First of a three-part series of excerpts from Energy Freedom by Marita Noon Originally published in the Washington Examiner Environmentalists would have everyone believe that oil, gas, and coal—all fossil fuels—are at the base of much of the world’s ills. Nuclear is no better. They even oppose hydropower, wind energy, and commercial solar. Yet, they claim the high ground and position themselves as the moral authority. What would the world look like if they were setting truly setting energy policy rather than merely influencing it? An in-depth study of environmental groups’ energy-related[...] 

“El ambientalismo es el nuevo colonialismo”es la frase célebre más reciente del presidente Evo Morales. Súbitamente, luego de utilizar la demagogia pachamamista durante años para la promoción de su imagen internacional, el gobernante cocalero descubrió que, en realidad, el ambientalismo sería una ideología imperial. Parafraseando un título famoso de Lenin (que al vicepresidente García Linera también le gusta parafrasear), podríamos hablar de “El antiecologismo, enfermedad tardía del evismo”. En el fondo, el nuevo giro ideológico muestra que el “pachamamismo verde” no[...] 

There’s no compelling scientific argument for drastic action to ‘decarbonize’ the world’s economy. Editor’s Note: The following has been signed by the 16 scientists listed at the end of the article: A candidate for public office in any contemporary democracy may have to consider what, if anything, to do about “global warming.” Candidates should understand that the oft-repeated claim that nearly all scientists demand that something dramatic be done to stop global warming is not true. In fact, a large and growing number of distinguished scientists and engineers[...] 

Carrie B Kerekes La política pública generalmente considera a la polución y a otras mediciones de una pobre calidad ambiental como “males” públicos atribuibles a fracasos del mercado; así se argumenta la necesidad de la intervención estatal a través de reglamentaciones y estándares ambientales. Por el contrario, se debería analizar la calidad ambiental desde la perspectiva de los derechos de propiedad, donde las instituciones crean incentivos que llevan a una reducción en los niveles de contaminación. Este artículo muestra que donde los derechos de propiedad están claramente establecidos,[...] 

  Jon Entine ¿Cuáles son los mayores riesgos para la salud? En base a los informes recientes uno pensaría que está camino a tener un cáncer: fugas de formaldehido de las paredes sintéticas, radiaciones de su celular, tomar café de un vaso de plástico e innumerables cosas más. Sin embargo, como puede afirmarlo cualquier experto en cáncer, se está en mucho mayor riesgo al quedarse sentados, lo que aumenta la obesidad y aumenta exponencialmente los riesgos de cáncer. http://www.aei.org/article/103837 Health Risks: Scared to Death By Jon Entine   You’re luxuriating[...]