Good comments from James Annan that are both spot on and completely useless, I think, regarding what journalists should do with the latest hot results from Science and Nature: I think the golden rule to remember is that a new item of research, even if it’s appeared in a prestigious peer-reviewed journal, is not in …
Apropos a long and predictably unproductive comment thread, a new study published on line by Science today: Using predicted precipitation changes, we calculate that decrease in perennial drainage will significantly affect present surface water access across 25% of Africa by the end of this century. I don’t want to make too big a deal of …
From the National Weather Service, a pile o’ facts on New Mexico’s record-setting dry winter.
Over at NewStoat comes word that a William Connolley-Luboš Motl connection has been found: seven degrees of separation to link the pair.
Juniper pollen count: 943. This is a very large number. (Hat tip Matt B for the link.) I had to root through the bike gear this morning to find my summer gloves (those goofy ones with no fingers).
Re the degrees of separation game, Tim Lambert points out that he’s got an Erdos number of three: Lambert – Stanton – Stinson – Erdos. If you really bend the rules*, I’ve got an Erdos number of five: Erdos -> Peter Palfy->Jan Saxl->Pavel Etingof->Alexander Kirillov. Which means I’ve got a Lambert number of – what …
A comment worth pulling out onto the front page, about the latest success of New Mexico’s own Brandon Leslie (this is distance running for those not familiar with the jargon): Well it just keeps getting better for Brandon, He ran in the USA Mens X-C Championships on Feb 20 in the Bronx, NY, with bitter …
weather: That storm, she’s a flirt, but it’s pretty clear she’s not going to put out. I’ve probably mentioned this before, but there’s a story somewhere in the crazy psychotic way the dry weather is making us feel. Two days of measurable precipitation in Albuquerque since Nov. 1. Two. music: The podGoober project’s gem of …
Steve McIntyre has been playing a fun sort of “degrees of separation” game, identifying members of climate science’s “hockey team” based on coauthorship of paleoclimate papers and using their team membership to disparage their work. I’ve not found it to be a particularly useful or persuasive argument, and Tim Lambert has pointed out the inconsistency …
Sunday mornings are for riding, and I like to joke that the saddle’s my church. Moreso, it turns out, than I realized. In the Jan. 28 New Scientist, evolutionary psychologist Robin Dunbar has an essay about the physiological dimensions of religion. She discusses the physical side, from singing and dancing to the intensity of serious …