Was The Planet Warming During The Previous N Years?

According to a recent Pew Research Center survey, 25% of USA adults believe that “there is no solid evidence that earth is getting warmer”.  It's true that, if you carefully cherry-pick your data, you can claim that the temperature hasn't gone up in the last N years, for ridiculously small values of N.  However, not only do you have to be extremely careful in your cherry-picking, you have to be phenomenally (perhaps deliberately) ignorant not only of how data analysis works but also of how to look at a simple graph.  Here's some data analysis and some graphs.

An Open Letter To The 83rd Texas Legislature

Dear Texas Legislature,

It is my understanding, based on recent statements of yours, that you are concerned about the health of women, and this concern has led you to propose legislation which imposes new regulations on physicians who perform induced abortions and the facilities in which they are performed. In order to better protect the health and safety of women, there are numerous other regulations which should be imposed, not on induced abortions, but on many aspects of the entire pregnancy. Most importantly, no pregnant woman should be allowed to live more than thirty miles away from an ambulatory surgical center.

NOVA Gets Evolution Wrong

On Nova (PBS)'s “Australia's First 4 Billion Years” we find a horrible misunderstanding of evolution. Or engineering. Or maybe both.

Words Of Wisdom From the Vatican

Federico Lombardi, spokesman for the Vatican, said “It is deplorable that there be a widespread distribution of news stories often not verified or verifiable — false even — that seriously damage people and institutions.”

I agree. We should all work to prevent the promulgating of rumours and lies, of fictions that damage some institutions (and prop up others), of stories that encourage prejudice and intolerance.

Let's start with the fairy tales about God and Moses and Jesus.

The USA Aug 2012 BLS Jobs Report

The USA Bureau of Labor and Statistics released the jobs report on Sept. 7. I've dissected it into different (sub-)sectors to see how the employment market has been changing recently.

Camp Quest on Nightline

ABC's Nightline reported (August 23, 2012) on Camp Quest. The kids said some smart things, and a psychologist said some really stupid things (but that's not surprising, we've met this psychologist before).

Can You Drive a Car With a Windmill On It?

In March, Mitt Romney said “you can't drive a car with a windmill on it.” (Barack Obama just quoted him.) Whether he intended it literally or figuratively, Romney is wrong. Here's why.

Piling On the Texas GOP Platform

There has been a lot of discussion (i.e., well-deserved ridicule) about the 2012 Texas GOP Platform in the past few days. People have been discussing a lot of stupid things in the platform. I'd like to add my 0.02 Loonies.