Category Archives: Science

Links and Comments: Science and Science Fiction

Posted on 26 July 2017 by Mark R. Kelly

Harvard Business Review: Why Business Leaders Need to Read More Science Fiction. Science fiction can help. Maybe you associate it with spaceships and aliens, but science fiction offers more than escapism. By presenting plausible alternative realities, science fiction stories empower … Continue reading →

Posted in Science, science fiction | Comments Off on Links and Comments: Science and Science Fiction

Links and Comments: Tribal Loyalty and Values v. Reality

Posted on 23 June 2017 by Mark R. Kelly

NY Times: The 15 Best-Educated Congressional Districts in the U.S.. All but two of which, including the just contested Georgia district north of Atlanta, are solidly Democratic. Hmm. \\ Also: Trump’s Lies, a comprehensive, up-to-date list. It’s not surprising that … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservative Resistance, Politics, Science | Comments Off on Links and Comments: Tribal Loyalty and Values v. Reality

Carl Sagan’s “Baloney Detection Kit”

Posted on 16 June 2017 by Mark R. Kelly

Carl Sagan, one of the great scientist-communicators to the general public of the past century, author of the 1980 book Cosmos and host of the 1980 TV series of that name, has a list of ideas for how to evaluate … Continue reading →

Posted in MInd, Psychology, Science | Comments Off on Carl Sagan’s “Baloney Detection Kit”

Linkdump: Science, society, conspiracy theories, the fear of NRA conventioneers

Posted on 12 June 2017 by Mark R. Kelly

Science: The Atlantic: Are We Living in a Giant Cosmic Void?. Maybe. Scientific American: How the Science of “Blue Lies” May Explain Trump’s Support. Subtitle: “They are a very particular form of deception that can build solidarity within groups” Guardian: … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservative Resistance, Cosmology, Lunacy, MInd, Psychology, Science | Comments Off on Linkdump: Science, society, conspiracy theories, the fear of NRA conventioneers

Links and Comments: Tyson v. Douthat

Posted on 24 May 2017 by Mark R. Kelly

I started writing up a few notes about the new (small) Neil deGrasse Tyson book, ASTROPHYSICS FOR PEOPLE IN A HURRY, and got sidetracked by a passage that reminded me of a Ross Douthat column from a few weeks ago. … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Notes, Religion, Science | Comments Off on Links and Comments: Tyson v. Douthat

How science can explain why you don’t believe in science

Posted on 8 May 2017 by Mark R. Kelly

Here’s another recent commentary from the San Francisco Chronicle, this by Caille Millner: Free speech is a joke when laughing is a crime It’s nominally about the 61-year-old woman who was just *convicted* of “disorderly and disruptive conduct” for laughing … Continue reading →

Posted in MInd, Science | Comments Off on How science can explain why you don’t believe in science

Neil deGrasse Tyson on Science

Posted on 24 April 2017 by Mark R. Kelly

Dear Facebook Universe, I offer this four-minute video on “Science in America” containing what may be the most important words I have ever spoken. As always, but especially these days, keep looking up. — Neil deGrasse Tyson Science In America … Continue reading →

Posted in Science | Comments Off on Neil deGrasse Tyson on Science

That Dress, and How to Do Science

Posted on 17 April 2017 by Mark R. Kelly

Slate: Two Years Later, We Finally Know Why People Saw “The Dress” Differently Two points here. First, the controversy over the color of the dress — blue and black or white and gold — is certainly the most widely-known example … Continue reading →

Posted in MInd, Science | Comments Off on That Dress, and How to Do Science

Stuart Brand Quote: The Only News

Posted on 11 March 2017 by Mark R. Kelly

A thought against the daily onslaught of political news (never mind the weather, local crime, and traffic accidents that comprise the everyday local TV news) — in the big picture of human history (and progress), almost none of that matters; … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics, Science | Comments Off on Stuart Brand Quote: The Only News

Science News

Posted on 10 March 2017 by Mark R. Kelly

Jerry Coyne comments on an article about where to find the best science reporting, with a nice graphic aligning evidence-based vs. ideologically driven, and compelling reads vs not so much. Where do you find the best science reporting? I’m a … Continue reading →

Posted in Science | Comments Off on Science News