Media is the message – Jan 13
– The Networked Era: An Interview with Michael Nielsen
– New Bill Would Put Taxpayer-Funded Science Behind Pay Walls
– The writer who made millions by self-publishing online
Year: 2012
Energy – Jan 13
– The Nature of Oil: Reconsidering American Power in the Middle East
– The Expert’s Report that Damns the Northern Gateway Pipeline (David Hughes)
– Plentiful Energy – the book on the Integral Fast Reactor
– Fidel Castro on fracking and climate change (cites Yergin)
All quiet on the Euro front
Am I the only person who is so cynical as to think that ‘no news’ rather than being ‘good news’ is actually an indication that the news hasn’t quite been prepared for public consumption yet?
The expert’s report that damns the northern gateway pipeline
The Northern Gateway Pipeline will explosively increase the scale of oil sands production at a level not in the national interest, says David Hughes, one of Canada’s foremost energy analysts.
What it looks like when food grows everywhere
Today I’d like to share a map with you…It is a map of the town of Guildford (or Guldeford as it was then) in 1793. Regular readers will know I love a good map, and I have spent a fair while poring over this one. There are a couple of things I love about it. Firstly, it is the most amazing piece of draughtsmanship. It is a thing of extraordinary beauty in a way that Googlemaps can only dream of. The way its laid out, the calligraphy, the attention to detail, are beautiful in a way very few people could recreate today. But what is so extraordinary, upon closer inspection, is how it captures what it looks like when food grows everywhere. Think of it, if you like, as Incredible Edible Guildford, circa. 1739.
ODAC Newsletter – Jan 13
Fears of an EU recession gained ground this week with news that the German economy shrank in Q4. In oil markets this dunked oil prices to a New Year low – though they quickly recovered on Thursday in response to renewed concerns of supply disruption. In Nigeria unions threatened to escalate nationwide strikes to the oil production sector at the weekend if the government fails to reverse recent cuts in fuel subsidies.
Citywatch: Revolting food trends of 2011-12
Four uprisings of global significance surprised the world in 2011, and the spirit of all four will surprise those who manage the food system in 2012—which leads to my choice of year-end and year-beginning indicators that pick up the colors of these uprisings in emerging habits related to eating.
Florida counties band together to ready for warming’s effects
While U.S. action on climate change remains stalled, four south Florida counties have joined forces to plan for how to deal with the impacts — some of which are already being felt — of rising seas, higher temperatures, and more torrential rains.
Cool ideas – January 13
-Rainwater Harvesting
-Flax growing returns to Manchester
-Librarian pedaling for books
Will New Zealand be the first developed country to evolve a steady-state economy?
New Zealand will inevitably make a transition to a steady-state economy. The onset of energy descent — having less and less energy to use with each passing decade — will push it to do so sooner rather than later. The critical question is whether the transition to a steady-state economy will be by design or disaster.
Man and the natural world
Thomas describes changing attitudes to the natural world in early modern Britain, a time period that he sets at approximately 1500-1800. A great many things happened in the relationship between Britons and their natural environment during this period: enclosures of common land, increasing urbanization, the birth of scientific taxonomy, early attempts at conservation, and many others. I read a few pages, saw that Thomas was an engaging writer, and decided to take a first step towards dispelling my massive ignorance of the human past.
Iran and the spectre of war – Jan 13
– U.S. Sends Top Iranian Leader a Warning on Strait Threat
– Who is responsible for the Iran nuclear scientists attacks?
– Russia Warns of US Strike on Iran
– Tom Hayden: Preventing the Coming War with Iran
