science

Categories under science

Why bringing the bankers to heel is so important…

Written By: - Date published: 11:33 am, January 13th, 2012 - 88 comments

Ecological economist Brian Davey explains how while we need to fix the problems of peak oil and climate change, we’re not going to get anywhere until we deal with the psychopathic elite of bankers who have control of the world economy.

Shapes of things (2012 and all that)

Written By: - Date published: 10:36 am, December 31st, 2011 - 29 comments

Gareth at Hot Topic makes some predictions about 2012. Looks about right. It is going to be interesting to see what happens on the ENSO this year. Do our farmers head into drought or get another good year of relief from the extremes?

ImperatorFish: A Plea To Jim Hopkins

Written By: - Date published: 7:32 pm, December 21st, 2011 - 14 comments

Scott at Imperator Fish has kindly given us permission to syndicate posts from his blog – the original of this post is here

Did you realise Jim Hopkins abolished Climate Change last Friday? It was awfully good of him and his craaaaaaaazy red-rimmed glasses.

Nelson floods

Written By: - Date published: 11:23 am, December 19th, 2011 - 41 comments

It’s Nelson / Tasman’s turn to get hammered by nature. Commiserations to all those affected. As a country (and a world) we should brace for more extreme weather ahead.

Priorities

Written By: - Date published: 10:33 am, December 19th, 2011 - 25 comments

Trillions have been plowed into bailing out banks, investors, and whole countries during the economic crisis. The cost easily exceeds total investment in tackling climate change. Is it, as George Monbiot argues, that elites just look out for themselves, or are humans just incapable of perceiving the danger of large, slowly-building problems?

What we need more of is science

Written By: - Date published: 6:42 pm, December 15th, 2011 - 22 comments

There was a very good science piece on Nine-to-Noon this morning, covering some of Kathryn Ryan’s trip to Antarctica. It got me thinking: we need a lot more science in our media – we’d get a better country out of it.

O Canada!

Written By: - Date published: 11:20 pm, December 13th, 2011 - 89 comments

Canada is to withdraw from the Kyoto Protocol, making it one of 2 nations in the world to be formally outside it. What will National do when the inevitably large fines roll in for us under their eviscerated ETS?

Disgraced again on climate change

Written By: - Date published: 8:52 am, December 9th, 2011 - 89 comments

To add insult to the injury of another wasted year on climate change, the government has taken the opportunity of the Durban conference not to make progress, but to disgrace us yet again.

100% Stupid

Written By: - Date published: 7:28 am, December 8th, 2011 - 51 comments

Is the John Key Party actively trying to trash New Zealand’s fragile “100% Pure” brand?

“Conservation” Minister

Written By: - Date published: 8:40 am, December 3rd, 2011 - 103 comments

Quite apart from the broken promise, isn’t it the job of a “Conservation” Minister to, you know, conserve?  Instead of leading the mining charge?

If we stick with the status quo

Written By: - Date published: 4:02 pm, November 24th, 2011 - 14 comments

Another of those pictures that is worth a thousand words.

Integrity or hocus pocus

Written By: - Date published: 9:32 am, November 20th, 2011 - 59 comments

I have no sympathy for politicians complaining about their ‘private’ political conversations being made public. What politicians say on politics is inherently of public interest. Don’t say different things in private then in public, and you won’t get caught out. It’s a matter of integrity. We can now reveal what John Key really thinks about climate change.

Nats and climate change deniers

Written By: - Date published: 9:02 am, November 19th, 2011 - 45 comments

The teapot tape fiasco has forced the Nats to pretend that they are interested in policy.  It’s screamingly hypocritical of them, since they couldn’t even be bothered returning answers to Radio NZ’s policy survey. But let’s not waste this new opportunity.  Let’s start with asking them why they’re endorsing a party of loony climate change deniers.

Two headlines to ponder

Written By: - Date published: 4:18 pm, November 10th, 2011 - 60 comments

IEA: World is hurtling toward irreversible climate change

Government shifts to ETS go-slow

Discuss…

The new hole in National’s budget

Written By: - Date published: 7:24 am, November 10th, 2011 - 99 comments

National would get the books back into the black with a $1.5b surplus 2014/15. It’s on their ads, it’s in the PREFU. So, it’s gotta be true, eh? Well, we already know they’ve cooked the books by claiming both that they would have the revenue from asset sales and the dividends from those sold assets. Now, their ETS changes have opened a second great big hole in their budget.

Climate change predictions

Written By: - Date published: 8:13 am, November 5th, 2011 - 125 comments

Predictions on global greenhouse gas emissions have turned out to be wrong.  The real emissions are higher than the worst case projections.  Models of warming, however, have been confirmed as accurate.  Here in NZ a joint VUW / Otago study makes damning criticisms of the Nats’ record on climate change.

Slave fishing – NZ’s shame

Written By: - Date published: 6:48 am, October 25th, 2011 - 13 comments

You won’t find much praise for Talley’s on this site. But, fair dues, they harvest their fish with Kiwi crews and have this to say on slave fishing: “If it is uneconomic to harvest a New Zealand resource under New Zealand labour conditions and costs then it is not a resource. Blood diamonds and Asian textile sweatshops use the same justification”

Anti-deepsea drilling petition

Written By: - Date published: 10:22 am, October 18th, 2011 - 41 comments

Sign Greenpeace’s petition against deepsea oil drilling.

Fools rush in

Written By: - Date published: 1:55 pm, October 14th, 2011 - 55 comments

Labour has announced it will put a moratorium on deepsea oil drilling until it’s proven safe. Good. Basic precautionary principle. Clearly necessary given the piss-poor handling of a relatively small spill. Besides, there’s no rush to dig this stuff up. It’s not going anywhere and we can only extract it once. Will only become more valuable over time.

The denial machine

Written By: - Date published: 1:42 pm, October 9th, 2011 - 7 comments

It’s scary ‘coz it’s true.

Steve Jobs, 1955-2011

Written By: - Date published: 1:25 pm, October 6th, 2011 - 71 comments

Apple co-founder Steve Jobs died today at the age of 56.

Climate change killing Tuvalu & Tokelau

Written By: - Date published: 9:47 am, October 6th, 2011 - 9 comments

The low-lying island nations of Tuvalu and Tokelau have declared water emergencies and parts of Samoa are rationing water. Climate change has raised the sea level so that what little freshwater lens the islands have has been reduced. Higher temperatures evaporate more of it. Climate change is also causing more frequent and severe La Ninas, which causes droughts.

Ecocide Mock Trial

Written By: - Date published: 9:22 am, September 29th, 2011 - 5 comments

The crime of ecocide will be tested, as if it is already law, by barristers before a judge and jury, at the UK Supreme Court in London.

Moving planet

Written By: - Date published: 12:15 pm, September 23rd, 2011 - 7 comments

Moving Planet is a worldwide rally to demand solutions to the climate crisis. It is being held on 24th September 2011 – a day to move beyond fossil fuels.  Check out an event near you…

Inflating more than a blowfish

Written By: - Date published: 11:34 am, September 22nd, 2011 - 39 comments

It is all rather hilarious to watch exactly how stupid people can expend so much effort to not read actual science. But it appears that your average climate change denier (CCD) is far more concerned with inflated gossip than actually understanding anything. There is a great video looking at an instance of this trait.

Chart o’ the day: Not on target

Written By: - Date published: 11:01 am, September 20th, 2011 - 74 comments

The innovation that we need

Written By: - Date published: 1:50 pm, September 19th, 2011 - 49 comments

We’re going to need a lot of innovation to survive the coming decades. Today’s innovation is a simple modification that at least doubles the energy output of a wind turbine.  Brilliant.

Slow follower

Written By: - Date published: 12:20 pm, September 16th, 2011 - 16 comments

When it comes to making any kind of effort to saving the planet from catastrophic climate change I guess being even a “fast follower” was just a little too ambitious for the Key government.

Remember

Written By: - Date published: 9:00 am, September 16th, 2011 - 59 comments

When the Nats say they must cut early childhood education funding – remember their new $500m subsidy to polluters.
When the Nats say they have to cut women’s refuge money – remember their new $500m subsidy to polluters.
When the Nats say they have to sell our assets to pay their debt – remember their new $500m subsidy to polluters.

National Brain Drain

Written By: - Date published: 10:23 am, September 12th, 2011 - 47 comments

National promised to close the wage gap with Australia, and stop the flow of people across the ditch. Instead they’ve not just massively increased the wage gap and the number of people fleeing the country, they’re now forcing our best and brightest out.

Ecocide

Written By: - Date published: 7:26 am, September 9th, 2011 - 64 comments

If a corporation can have the legal rights of a person, why can’t the environment can’t have the legal protections of a person too?

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