Great op-ed from Marianne Ratcliff in today's Star on fracking in Ventura County. How much fracking is going on, and how much more will be going on? Difficult to say. According to her research, most wells in this area have already been fracked — but that's not to say that more couldn't be, or couldn't beContinue reading “Fracking in Ventura County: the next oil boom?”
Category Archives: subjects for further research
Climate change: it’s not the heat, it’s the humidity
At least when it comes to working outdoors. An interesting study published this month in Nature looks at how rising levels of heat and humidity will impact work in military and civilian sites, and draws a broad conclusion: By 2100 under active mitigation (Fig. 1c), the high stress of present-day India (green Fig. 1b) expandsContinue reading “Climate change: it’s not the heat, it’s the humidity”
Seasonal Forecaster: Cold winter for Eurasia, Northeast
In his talk at the American Meteorological Society convention Tuesday, Judah Cohen repeated a forecast made in December — that Eurasia and New England — will likely have a cold winter this year. He' laid it out the fundamentals of his new prediction idea about ten years ago in the Journal of Climate, although since then he's broughtContinue reading “Seasonal Forecaster: Cold winter for Eurasia, Northeast”
To wipe out coastal cities, burn the fossil fuels: Hansen
In his latest posting, James Hansen looks at ice sheet loss in Greenland and Antartcia, and warns of the possiblility of an exponential ice sheet loss rate. Posing the question, he asks: A crucial question is how rapidly the Greenland (or Antarctic) ice sheet can disintegrate in response to global warming. Earth's history makes itContinue reading “To wipe out coastal cities, burn the fossil fuels: Hansen”
Maybe stories are just data with a soul: Brené Brown
Great talk from Brene Brown on vulnerability (not to mention shame, guilt, and fear). All the good stuff. Especially applicable at Christmas: Am I alone in struggling with vulnerability? No. So this is what I learned. We numb vulnerability — when we're waiting for the call. It was funny, I sent out something on TwitterContinue reading “Maybe stories are just data with a soul: Brené Brown”
Arctic Sea Ice or Siberian Snow best for winter forecasts?
At the AGU went looking for leading sea ice extent researcher Jen Francis at Rutgers, who has become known for arguing that the extent of sea ice/Arctic Amplification alters the jetstream (making it "wavier") and leads to extreme weather in places like the Northeast and northern Europe. Or, as she told the NYTimes this spring,Continue reading “Arctic Sea Ice or Siberian Snow best for winter forecasts?”
NorCal preps for promised ARKstorm: 12 Inches?
CA has had no significant extreme weather since December 2010, when a series of atmospheric rivers took an unexpected tour fhrough Southern California. Both the precipitation totals and the graphics for "ARKstorms" are jaw-dropping. In 2011, the USGS issued a massive report on an ARKstorm that left the entire Central Valley approximately six inches deep in water, forcedContinue reading “NorCal preps for promised ARKstorm: 12 Inches?”
What is going on with the alleged El Nino of 2012?
Six months ago, temperatures in the equatorial Pacific suggested that, after two years under the influence of La Niña, which tends to mean cold dry winters here in Southern California, that our ocean was turning towards an El Niño condition. Under that condition, warm temperatures and westerlies in the equatorial Pacific predispose those of usContinue reading “What is going on with the alleged El Nino of 2012?”
EPA appoints chem co rep to regulatory position
From the Chicago Tribune: As a lawyer and scientist for one of the world's largest makers of flame retardants, Todd Stedeford vigorously defended chemicals added to scores of household products — often by concluding the substances are far less dangerous than academic and government studies have determined. Studies, legal newsletters and letters he wrote orContinue reading “EPA appoints chem co rep to regulatory position”
The usefulness of depression: Scientific American
This is not a new story, but it's new to me, and its logic compells: Molecular research shows that the receptor that governs what we think of as depression has deep mammalian roots, which means it must have been selected for by evolution. So why would depression be useful? Depressed people often think intensely aboutContinue reading “The usefulness of depression: Scientific American”
Kit Stolz 