More seasonal thoughts

So I've been a bit slack in posting recently. You'll have to forgive me.
Well, I suppose you don't have to forgive me...you'll just stop reading the blog for a while until it seems like I can start writing regularly again.
Well, I try I suppose, but it's the summer.
I'm a bit obsessive about getting out in the summer. If it's still warm and sunny outside when I come home from work then I must get out in it. Even if it's just sitting somewhere and reading a book: it's something. I'm out of the house. On the weekends, if I haven't gotten out of the house by 10, I feel guilty. I'm waisting the day. It's the summer. Get out into it.
I've put a few posts about the effects the season has on me. I am a seasonal person. I think it's healthy to have the weather impact your life from time to time. It humbles you. It forces you to relate or get help from other people. It reminds you don't always have control over every detail in your life.
I think it's one reason people from southern California are a bit crazy: they've no weather to mellow them out. It's also the reason the northern boondocks is just a little bit mellower than southern boondocks. Compare Texas or Oklahoma to Wisconsin or Minnesota. I can tell you where I'd rather live. The northerner's have at least some respect for their environment, and hopefully for other people. Eating seasonal foods (farmer's markets are great for this), drinking seasonal beer, playing seasonal activities: all of these are important. It always gives you something to look forward to, and something to miss.
So while you are sweltering in the heat, or watching a thunderstorm roll by from your air-conditioned home, take some time to appreciate the summer. The leaves will begin to fall soon enough.

The lake

I spent yesterday with my friends in a cottage near a lake. We talked. We laughed. We drank really bad beer and wine. We ate too much food. We made 'smores over a campfire. We even had a drunken ride on a pontoon boat. If you've never done it, I'd highly recommend it. We also had a highly contested game of lawn dice for mustard. A friend of mine is obsessed with mustard. His wife tries very hard to give them away: hence the prize.
Lawn dice is another must do before you leave the planet: Two plastic circles in which you try to throw two pairs of large dice. By the time someone reaches 21 you're begging for it to end.
My favorite moment was probably walking out in front of the lake before everyone else had woken up. I just stood on the small pier and watched the tiny fish swimming around, and cowering in fear when the shadow of a large bird crossed over them.
It was quiet, but like all mornings, weighed with the potential of the day ahead. The memories of the campfire, the beer and wine, the pontoon booze cruise will blur together as the day ages. But at this moment, they are crystal clear in my head. In that early morning moment, I could enjoy them.

The Weather and World Peace

I think the weather can lead to World Peace.
Well perhaps not, but hear me out before you click on to the next blog.

I've sat through quite a few scientific conferences in the half dozen or so years that I've been involved in science. Almost all of these conferences have had a strong international contingent: Europe, China, Japan, Canada, Russia, Australia, etc.
The field I'm in (Atmospheric science) lends itself quite well to international collaboration: weather is global. More importantly, observing the weather needs to be global. The only way to completely understand one part of the atmosphere is to understand how it changes over the entire globe.
I've personally been involved with several international projects: one of them allowing me to work in the United Kingdom for two years. Two of them more recently were field projects: They involved cooperation with Europe, Canada, the US, and Australia (among others) to investigate and observe the atmosphere in unique ways. One of them involved putting observations in parts of the Atlantic Ocean that were expected to have large impacts on computer model forecasts later in time. Another, involves taking observation of potential tropical systems to better predict which ones will become hurricanes and which will not.
So, how does this lead to world peace? Well these scientist work together on problems despite international politics. Political conflict gets in the way of what they want to do. Also, when the teams meet up for conferences or meetings, they eat, socialize, debate, and drink together. Friends are made. Future connections are formed. Science moves forward.
I'd love to see a political candidate use this as part of their platform. In fact, I'd love to see a political candidate use ANYTHING scientific as an element of their platform. How about:,

I will try to strengthen international relations by funding projects that encourage international collaborations. I hear-by will make scientific visits visa free from all countries. I will increase funding to have visiting graduate students attend our Universities. More incentives will be given to those research projects that either

a) decrease our dependence on fossil fuels

b) alleviate world poverty

Imagine the power of a science-based political platform.
Now, why weather? Well it's hard to argue that weather, or any Earth Science really, is bad for our country or amoral. Perhaps a few creationists might be upset if we advocate using evidence and facts in our studies of geology, but I think even the "Intelligent Design" community argue that the physical sciences are worth while to pursue. It's important, it's non-controversial, and most importantly, it saves lives. This argument can of course apply to lots of different earth sciences, life sciences, and medicine. It's the scientific framework, with the goal of saving lives that can be used as the focus. The religious can certainty not be opposed to that.
World peace? Maybe not. World health? Good international politics? Definitely!

Non-Sequitur

HaHaHaHa

This American Religion

Please listen to last weekend's episode of "This American Life" . For those who aren't familar with it, the radio show takes a theme and examines it through various different stories, documentaries, and monologues.
Last week was "Godless America" and it investigated the seperation of church and state in the US. The summary from the webpage:

At a time when House Majority Leader Tom Delay calls for enacting a "Biblical worldview" in government, when Christians are asserting their ideals in the selection of judges, in public school science classes and elsewhere, This American Life spends an hour trying to remember why anyone liked the separation of church and state in the first place. Julia Sweeney, among others, gives a full-throated defense of godlessness. Julia's faith began to crack after reading Biblical passages like the one pictured here, of Abraham about to cut the throat of his beloved son, Isaac.

It's riveting radio, and it will definitely make you think.

Global Climate Change and Other Non-environmentalist Thoughts

Last weekend I had a long conversation with a good friend of mine. He's done a lot of work recently investigating the effects of climate change on some of the small central and south Pacific islands.

His idea, or at least my interpretation of his idea, is that global climate change should not be presented as an environmental issue. Environmental issues bring with them the stigma of people munching granola with long hair and sandels. They also bring with them an idea that "the environment" is separate from the world that people inhabit. It's something you visit on weekends when you go for a walk, or in august when you drag the wife + kids to Yellowstone.

Environmental issues also set up a built in opposition. Let's say the issue is protecting the rain forest. In posing the issue as "humans must protect the rain forest" , you are artificially separating yourself from what you are protecting: the rain forest. It becomes easier to then argue the issue as humans versus (insert environmental issue here). It becomes human economic growth versus rain forests. Or it might be logging jobs versus old growth forests. It's habitat versus humanity.

If you argue global climate change as a human issue, it becomes harder to separate oneself from the problem. First of all, what is global climate change? Essentially, the global temperature has been rising steadily over the last century. This temperature increase, based on incredibly thorough modeling and testing, can be traced to human causes. Most of the uncertainty is related to the impacts and mechanisms of climate change. We know that atmospheric carbon dixoide is increasing from human sources. We know that this can lead to a warming of surface temperatatures, but it's more difficult to determine exactly how and to what degree. For a more detailed information see the US Environmental Protection Agency, the US National Climate Data Center , or the UK's Hadley Center among many other organizations.

So, why should this not be presented as an environmental problem? Well, I firmly believe that the only way the United States will change is when businesses decide it is in their best interest to consider climate change important. Why would they? Well, fundamentally, climate change is an energy problem. Fossil fuel consumption is one of the greatest contributors to the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. If businesses decide that is in their best interest to reduce the amount of energy they use, which I believe it is, then this country can begin to turn around. Alternative efficient engines can be produced. Businesses will take into account commuting time and public transportation when they consider their location, rather than just land cost. Most importantly, they will lobby congress and the president and make it an issue. GE has led the way. Hopefully other businesses will soon follow.

So, what about the personal view? As consumers, we have to make businesses and government know that climate change is a problem that affects us. It's a symptom of the way humans view the world. Everything we do impacts not only "the rainforest", or islands in the south pacific, but our home town. Long commutes not only release carbon dioxide, they emit other pollutions that are a health threat. Using excess plastic or paper causes pollution both at it's production and filling up extra space in a landfill. Little decisions we make matter.

So, my challenge to my blog readers: Add something..one thing to your life to make a difference. Pick up a bike and ride to work if that's possible. Bring a reusable bag to the grocery store. Turn down that plastic bag for an item you buy in the store when you don't really need it. Drive your SUV off of a cliff and buy a hybrid. At the very least, think about the impact of the decisions you make. And please, comment with any suggestions or choices you have made. Global climate change: it's not just for environmentalists any more.