Category Archives: Science and the scientific method

Politics, Government, and Science During Pandemic Times

When asked in early 2000 how long I thought COVID-19 would last, I answered three years. Alas, it has now been nearly six years since a frightening respiratory disease was first noticed in Hubei Province centered in Wuhan. Retrospective analyses indicate the virus was already circulating in other parts of the world. It soon became […]

Coffee Break: The Next Surgeon General, Gene Therapy, Ozone Hole Closes, Daylight Saving Time, and American Socialism

Part the First: The Next Surgeon General Prepares for her Closeup. In a surprise to absolutely no one, Casey Means MD discloses financial ties to supplement industry. New financial disclosures from surgeon general nominee Casey Means show that she’s made hundreds of thousands of dollars promoting supplements and other health and wellness products, details likely […]

Are We Offloading Critical Thinking to AI Chatbots?

Research, much of it by companies with deep investment in AI, suggests that chatbot interactions alter how users think.

Book Review: This Is Your Brain On Nature

In “Nature and the Mind,” Marc Berman uses neuroscience to show how interacting with nature benefits mental health.

Should We Try to Prevent Autism?

Advocates for those with austism debate the value of prevention versus better care and support.

Coffee Break: Beware the Jargon, Chocolate(!), Arsenic Life Final Update, Death Becomes Us, and the Scopes Trial,

Part the First: Beware Scientific Jargon. But everyone here already knows that. Nevertheless, this is a perpetual challenge for every scientist and other scholar who wants to be understood by our fellow citizens without “dumbing it down.” Scientific jargon can be ‘satisfying’ — but misleading. Jargon works especially well for those of my tribe who […]