No matter what the chorus of know-nothings, led by people like Jenny McCarthy, may say time and again.
In May, The New England Journal of Medicine laid the blame for clusters of disease outbreaks throughout the US squarely at the feet of declining vaccination rates, while nonprofit health care provider Kaiser Permanente reported that unvaccinated children [...]
Science News
Vaccines Do Not Cause Autism
October 20th, 2009
38 Comments
Super Freakonomics In Global Warming Hot Water
October 17th, 2009
44 Comments
Freakonomics was one of my favorite books of the last few years and I was looking forward to the new book. But it is apparently stuffed full of science-denying horse puckey on the issue of climate change. That is sad.
Republicans Vs. Science
October 8th, 2009
2 Comments
This time its Tom Coburn, who long time observers know is nuts.
Abstinence Only, Southern Politics = More Teen Pregnancy
July 20th, 2009
9 Comments
Via John Cole comes this obvious data.
Teenage pregnancies and syphilis have risen sharply among a generation of American school girls who were urged to avoid sex before marriage under George Bush’s evangelically-driven education policy, according to a new report by the US’s major public health body.
In a report that will surprise few of Bush’s critics [...]
Why America Shakes Its Head At Texas
July 12th, 2009
31 Comments
Yes, lets hire a creationist to run the state education board. Lord. Then again, this is a decision made by Gov. Rick Perry – previously of Texas secession advocacy and even before that, Lieutenant Governor to… George W. Bush.
So, it makes perfect sense.
Onward, backwards regional southern party, onward!
America Needs To Start Listening More To Its Scientists
July 9th, 2009
99 Comments
Listen harder, folks.
‘Nearly all scientists (97%) say humans and other living things have evolved over time,’ while only 61% of the public agrees, according to a new report (PDF, p. 37) from the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press. Asked which comes closer to their view, ‘Humans and other living things have [...]
Invest In Science, Save Lives
June 24th, 2009
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NIH funding seems to have an effect on mortality rates.
In an attempt to inform the debate, the PNAS article tracked mortality rates for cardiovascular disease (CVD), stroke, cancer, and diabetes, along with inflation-adjusted NIH funding. Mortality rates were compared to funding levels at organizations that are specifically tasked with addressing the disease in question, such [...]
Creationists At Anti-Evolution Discovery Institute Try To Censor Web Video
June 11th, 2009
8 Comments
(via)
Said It Before, And I’ll Say It Again: MARS
May 15th, 2009
1 Comment
There seems to have been water there more recently than we thought.
A new study finds some serious valleys carved by rivers within the last billion years — much sooner than most similar findings. That’s good news for biologists, as water is a key to life as we know it, and the more recently there was [...]
Mike Pence Pwned By Chris Matthews For Being Anti-Science
May 5th, 2009
16 Comments
The conservative movement’s anti-science posturing comes home to roost when Rep. Mike Pence can’t give Chris Matthews a straight answer on what he believes about evolution on Hardball. Sometimes Tweety gets it right. Rarely. But this is one of those cases.
Jim Carrey’s Public Health Crisis
April 22nd, 2009
62 Comments
This nonsense at Huffpo from Jim Carrey attacking vaccines is the height of celebrities masquerading as experts. Usually its for harmless things, but in this case Carrey’s advocacy (along with Jenny McCarthy) will likely lead to children getting sick and possibly dying.
This attitude caused a measles outbreak in San Diego and is basically child abuse.
Vaccinate [...]
Bobby Jindal Would Still Like To Know Why We’re Monitoring Volcanoes
March 23rd, 2009
10 Comments
Seriously. WHY?
Mount Redoubt, a volcano in southern Alaska, began erupting late Sunday, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
The eruption, starting about 11:38 p.m. Sunday local time (2:38 a.m. Monday EDT), was obscured by darkness and snow. But the initial height of the eruption cloud was estimated at less than 20,000 feet above sea level, the [...]
Stem Cells Make Blind Kid See
March 10th, 2009
36 Comments
Yeah, can’t imagine why would want to use them.
Macie Morse was born with optic nerve hypoplasia, meaning her optic nerve didn’t develop all the way. The only way to repair it was to grow more of the nerve using umbilical cord stem cells.
She and her mother traveled all the way to China for an experimental [...]
Science Returns To America
March 8th, 2009
18 Comments
Another reason we voted for Barack Obama.
When President Obama lifts restrictions on funding for human embryonic stem cell research today, he will also issue a presidential memorandum aimed at insulating scientific decisions across the federal government from political influence, officials said yesterday.
‘The president believes that it’s particularly important to sign this memorandum so that we [...]
Obama To Lift Bush Stem Cell Ban Monday
March 6th, 2009
8 Comments
New stem cell lines will be allowed to be created. Science wins. (per NBC)
More:
Although the exact wording of the order has not been revealed, the White House plans an 11 a.m. ceremony to sign the order repealing one of the most controversial steps taken by his predecessor, fulfilling one of Obama’s eagerly anticipated campaign promises.
Space & The Budget
February 26th, 2009
1 Comment
Important.
U.S. President Barack Obama has proposed a funding boost for NASA that provides more support for Earth sciences missions and aviation, while keeping the agency’s three space shuttles on target for a 2010 retirement.
NASA would receive $18.7 billion for the 2010 fiscal year under the budget proposal released by the White House on Thursday. That [...]
Male Brains Turn Women With Bikinis Into Objects
February 19th, 2009
12 Comments
Science marches on.
Sexy women in bikinis really do inspire some men to see them as objects, according to a new study of male behavior.
Brain scans revealed that when men are shown pictures of scantily clad women, the region of the brain associated with tool use lights up.
Men were also more likely to associate images of [...]
Man, Those Are Some Navel-Gazers
January 26th, 2009
10 Comments
Check out Gawker trying to figure out why Neil deGrasse Tyson drew a crowd. The guy is a modern era version of Carl Sagan. People are always curious about how the Universe works, and someone who can explain it in entertaining and engaging way will always be popular. Even if the hipster crowd doesn’t know [...]
America Takes Up Stem Cell Research
January 23rd, 2009
19 Comments
Science is back, under Obama.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has cleared the way for the world’s first study of human embryonic stem cell therapy, Geron Corp said on Friday.
The California biotechnology company plans to start a clinical trial to try to use the stem cells to regrow nerve tissue in patients with acute spinal [...]
Science Teacher Fail
January 13th, 2009
12 Comments
Science teachers really shouldn’t trot out nonsense to try and attack evolution in class. God!
