Monthly Archives: August 2012

Why I Think DeLong Is Wrong About Niall Ferguson’s Motives

Posted on August 25, 2012 by mikethemadbiologist

Brad DeLong comments on the motivations behind Niall Ferguson’s hacktacular Newsweek piece about Obama: My impression was that at Ferguson’s level of this–not at mine–there are many, many more groups of people that want you to come speak than you … Continue reading →

Posted in Bidness, Conservatives | 2 Comments

Links 8/24/12

Posted on August 24, 2012 by mikethemadbiologist

Link for you. Science: Why fact-checking matters Of Dragons and Diminutive Elephants (excellent) UW Team Says ‘Duplex Sequencing’ Method Offers Millions-Fold Improvement in Error Rate Here is Some Legitimate Science on Pregnancy and Rape Forest Razing by Ancient Maya Worsened … Continue reading →

Posted in Lotsa Links | 1 Comment

Anyone in Boston (or Anywhere Else) Know What This Thing Is?

Posted on August 24, 2012 by mikethemadbiologist

I walk by this all time at the corner of Dartmouth and Marlborough Streets: I have no idea what it is. I see similar things like it elsewhere in the city. It doesn’t appear to be hooked up to any … Continue reading →

Posted in Boston | 5 Comments

An Alternative Hypothesis For Why Generation Y Isn’t Buying Cars

Posted on August 24, 2012 by mikethemadbiologist

The Atlantic has had a couple of articles exploring why car buying has plummeted among Generation Y (21 – 34 year olds). I don’t disagree with the economic angles: “A car is a symbol of freedom,” one consumer researcher told … Continue reading →

Posted in Automobiles | 9 Comments

Links 8/23/12

Posted on August 23, 2012 by mikethemadbiologist

Links for you. Science: The responsibilities of an academic are teaching, research and service fundraising (must-read; I’ve been saying this for a while now) How many species are there? New species wants you to See No Weevil Helium Shortages Impact … Continue reading →

Posted in Lotsa Links | 1 Comment

Nothing in Movement Conservatism Makes Sense Except in the Light of Creationism: The Family Research Council Edition

Posted on August 23, 2012 by mikethemadbiologist

With apologies, as always, to Theodosius Dobzhansky. John Aravosis on anti-gay group, the Family Research Council (boldface mine): And they know they lie. And they don’t care. And they’ve been doing it for twenty years. And when I say “lie,” … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservatives, Creationism | 1 Comment

Microbiome Creep, E. coli and Colorectal Cancer (Oh My!)

Posted on August 23, 2012 by mikethemadbiologist

My recent snark-laden post about the microbiome was in part inspired by the coverage of this Science paper “Intestinal Inflammation Targets Cancer-Inducing Activity of the Microbiota.” Interestingly, the coverage of this paper didn’t make Jonathan Eisen happy either: Some studies … Continue reading →

Posted in E. coli, Microbiology, Microbiome, News Media | 3 Comments

Links 8/22/12

Posted on August 22, 2012 by mikethemadbiologist

Links for you. Science: Obesity: Another thing it’s too late to prevent Rape-related pregnancy: Estimates and descriptive characteristics from a national sample of women Sleep, Pain, and Hospital Workers This is what it looks like when two slugs make love … Continue reading →

Posted in Lotsa Links | 1 Comment

Shorter Tea Party: Ever Since Congress Passed TARP, We’ve Decided to Hate Gay People

Posted on August 22, 2012 by mikethemadbiologist

Or something. Something I never understood about the Iraq War was how many nominal Democrats who supported the invasion of Iraq subsequently decided to jettison the rest of the Democratic Party platform, which was described by some as “ever since … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservatives | 2 Comments

What Is the Purpose of Scientific Publication?

Posted on August 22, 2012 by mikethemadbiologist

There has been a lot of discussion in the science bloggysphere about this post by Joe Pickrell (and see his related post for background) which discusses possible ways to improve scientific (that is, technical, not popular) communication. It’s interesting, but … Continue reading →

Posted in Publishing | 4 Comments