Blogging the End of the World™
Arctic Nautical Charting Plan from climate central By Michael D. Lemonick27 February 2013 (Climate Central) – The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has launched a program to update some of its nautical charts, thanks largely to climate change. The revisions affect Alaska’s coast, which has America’s only Arctic seafront. As a result of global […]
By Matt McGrath, Environment correspondent, BBC News1 March 2013 (BBC) – The most accurate assessment to date of the impact of commercial fishing on sharks suggests around 100 million are being killed each year. The researchers say that this rate of exploitation is far too high, especially for a species which reproduces later in life. […]
By Adam Vaughan 28 February 2013 (guardian.co.uk) – Public concern in environmental issues including global warming, the loss of species and air pollution has dropped to its lowest level in two decades, according to an international poll released this week. The GlobeScan poll, undertaken last summer before superstorm Sandy hit the Caribbean and New York, […]
[UPDATE: Keystone XL pipeline: US government report drew on analysis by oil consultants] By Juliet Eilperin and Steven Mufson1 March 2013 (Washington Post) – The State Department released a draft environmental impact assessment of the controversial Keystone XL pipeline Friday afternoon, suggesting that blocking the project would not have a significant impact on either the […]
In an escalation of the annual farce that plays out at the Weblog Awards (cf. Antiscience site wins another ‘Best Science or Technology Weblog’ award), this year we have 4 of 5 nominees in the Science category held by antiscience blogs. In 2010, Des tried to persuade the Weblog Awards staff to reconsider allowing antiscience […]
By Walter Hickey 27 February 2013 (Business Insider) – Sequestration will likely go through as scheduled, meaning that Congress has not acted on the first of three “mini-cliffs” that resulted from January’s fiscal cliff negotiation. The next mini-cliff, scheduled to hit on March 27, will absolutely require action. If events in Congress remain at a […]
By Paul Watson, observer1 March 2013 The Japanese whaling fleet has left the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary and is heading north. The ships crossing north of sixty degrees are the Nisshin Maru, Yushin Maru, Yushin Maru No. 2, Shonan Maru No. 2, the Steve Irwin and the Bob Barker. The entire Japanese whaling fleet is […]
By Emily Heffling, Virginia Campus Organizer22 February 2013 If Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli was featured on the TV show, Are you smarter than a 5th grader?, he would have been out before the first commercial. In his new book, The Last Line of Defense, Cuccinelli has a chapter called “Weird Science” dedicated to his […]
By Ed Flanagan, Producer, NBC News28 February 2013 BEIJING (NBC News) – Beijing and other parts of northern China were stung by hazardous air pollution levels Thursday as strong winds blew a sandstorm through the region. Air in the capital turned a yellowish hue as sand from China’s arid northwest blew in, turning the sky […]
By Matt Bowen26 February 2013 (Fairfax NZ News) – Bilbo Baggins’ lush green shire could have the life sucked out of it after Waikato’s undeclared drought restricted Hobbiton’s water supply. It’s the region’s driest summer in five years and, with no rain in sight, Matamata’s best known tourist attraction may become three hectares of parched […]
