Topics: Applied Physics, Astrobiology, Astrophysics, Civilization, Climate Change, Existentialism, Exoplanets, SETI, Thermodynamics Well, this firmly puts a kink in the “Fermi Paradox.” The Industrial Revolution started in Britain around 1760 – 1840, and there was a colloquial saying that “the sun did not set on the British Empire.” The former colony, America, cranked up itsContinue reading “Wages of the Thermal Budget…”
Category Archives: Climate Change
Antarctic Greenbelt…
Hummocks of moss cover Ardley Island off the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula. Credit: Dan Charman Topics: Antarctica, Civilization, Climate Change, Existentialism, Global Warming A fast-warming region of Antarctica is getting greener with shocking speed. Satellite imagery of the region reveals that the area covered by plants increased by almost 14 times over 35 years — aContinue reading “Antarctic Greenbelt…”
Driven to Caveat Emptor…
Meinzahn/Getty Images Topics: Applied Physics, Atmospheric Science, Chemistry, Climate Change, Global Warming Note: It’s disheartening that geoengineering, made popular by science fiction novels and plots in Star Trek, is being considered because we’re too selfish to change our behavior. More and more climate scientists are supporting experiments to cool Earth by altering the stratosphere orContinue reading “Driven to Caveat Emptor…”
Joy…
Amy (“Mother Dear”) and Horace Dickerson Sr. (“Paw-Paw”). Topics: Civics, Civil Rights, Civilization, Climate Change, Democracy, Existentialism I read the poem “Seeds” at my wife’s family reunion. For African Americans, reunions are a chance to connect with family members without associating it with a casket. Black life in general has always been dangerous and treacherousContinue reading “Joy…”
Tech Bros and Democracy…
Topics: Civics, Civil Rights, Civilization, Climate Change, Economics, Environment, Existentialism, Fascism Tech bros (n): someone, usually a man, who works in the digital technology industry, especially in the United States, and is sometimes thought to not have good social skills and to be too confident about their own ability. Source: Cambridge Dictionary “The Basic LawsContinue reading “Tech Bros and Democracy…”
Ice, Snow, Water, Nada…
Figure 1. The Vadret da Tschierva glacier in 1935 (top) and in 2022 (bottom).Photos courtesy of swisstopo, L. Hösli, G. Carcanade, M. Huss, VAW-ETHZ. Topics: Civilization, Climate Change, Fluid Mechanics, Global Warming, Meteorology, Research Glaciers—dynamic masses of ice descending from the mountain tops—have always been fascinating to humankind. They intrinsically belong to the high-alpine environment.Continue reading “Ice, Snow, Water, Nada…”
The Crucifixion of Thomas Paine…
Topics: Civics, Civil Rights, Civilization, Climate Change, Democracy, Existentialism, Fascism, Human Rights Excerpt from Facts, Fascism, and Fascists, Friday, January 24, 2020 Tens of millions of Americans, lumped into a diffuse and fractious movement known as the Christian right, have begun to dismantle the intellectual and scientific rigor of the Enlightenment. They are creating aContinue reading “The Crucifixion of Thomas Paine…”
60 Years Ago…
Image Source: History.com/Civil Rights Act of 1964 Topics: Civics, Civil Rights, Civilization, Climate Change, Existentialism, Human Rights Sixty years ago today, I was a month and twelve days from my second birthday. Sixty years ago today, my world was changed by President Lyndon Baines Johnson signing the Civil Rights Act, ninety-nine years after the surrenderContinue reading “60 Years Ago…”
Comstockery…
Image source: Wikipedia/Pine_Tree_Flag Since its creation during the American Revolution, the flag has carried a message of defiance: The phrase “appeal to heaven” comes from the 17th-century philosopher John Locke, who wrote of a responsibility to rebel, even use violence, to overthrow unjust rule. Another Provocative Flag Was Flown at Another Alito Home Topics: Civics,Continue reading “Comstockery…”
Climate CERN…
Worrying trend Reliable climate models are needed so that societies can adapt to the impact of climate change. (Courtesy: Shutterstock/Migel) Topics: Applied Physics, Atmospheric Science, CERN, Civilization, Climate Change It was a scorcher last year. Land and sea temperatures were up to 0.2 °C (32.36 °F) higher every single month in the second half of 2023,Continue reading “Climate CERN…”
Physics and Nano 