jfleck at inkstain

A few thoughts from John Fleck, a writer of journalism and other things, living in New Mexico

New Climate Blog

Andrew Dessler, one of my favorite climate science/politics/policy ‘splainers, has started a blog.

On British Bees

Of possible interest to at least one Inkstain reader, there’s a paper in last week’s Science documenting the decline in bee diversity in Britain and the Netherlands. It’s of potential significance because of the importance of pollinators to our ability to grow food, though, as the authors note, “the evidence for such declines remains scanty.”

Early Spring

Interesting new bit of work by Dirmeyer and Brubaker in GRL about the effects of early spring on northern hemisphere water budgets: Over most mid- and high-latitude areas, a strong annual cycle of recycling ratio exists; low during winter when storm tracks are active, tropospheric circulation strong, and surface evaporation rates low, high during summer [...]

Stuff I Wrote Elsewhere

In which I describe the climate wars tribal labels being attached to me because of my Sunday story on climate change science.

The Hurricane Record

There’s good reason to think the whole hurricane-global warming debate is a huge distraction, because of its relative lack of importance in understanding societal hurricane risk. (See Roger Pielke Jr.’s blog for the latest in many, many discussions of the data suggesting that building houses on the beach is the most important risk factor in [...]

Stuff I Wrote Elsewhere

From my work blog, on how not to make national non-proliferation policy.

Testosterone Patches

Some useful background for those cycling fans in the audience trying to understand the context of Floyd’s test results. Turns out Malcolm Gladwell spent the necessary time getting on terms with the subject some years ago: Athletes have now switched from injection to transdermal testosterone patches, which administer a continuous low-level dose of the hormone, [...]

How Floyd Might Have Done It

This was a joke. This apparently is not: Floyd Landis, who on Sunday became the third American cyclist to win the Tour de France, tested positive for a banned substance after winning Stage 17 of the race, his team announced Thursday.

Stegner

Last fall, Lissa and I spent a couple of days in and around Lee’s Ferry. As the linchpin between the upper and lower Colorado basins, it’s central to storytelling about water, drought and the west, which is part of my attraction to the place. But it’s also magnificent country in a stark and powerful way. [...]

Thanks

If you’re the mysterious Garden Fairy who left that bag of delicious home-grown tomatoes on our porch, thanks.

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