Tim | June 29, 2010
It bothers me when people suggest that such and such will wipe out Life on Earth. This is usually made as part of an argument suggesting that human activity is the cause of a problem. My issue is that, by using such an absolute, their argument is weakened and sometimes this means that a useful [...]
Tim | June 29, 2010
I have seen the argument that, if global warming is occurring at all, it is a natural thing so we should do nothing. To be consistent, people who hold that view should not seek medical help when any naturally-occurring illness happens to them. Some people do exactly that, but others are vulnerable to the suggestion [...]
Tim | June 24, 2010
We acquired a new PM today. On the radio I heard some random say that the last bloke was no good because “he wasn’t a normal sort of bloke. He couldn’t communicate”. I think that is actually two separate issues. The ability to communicate is a vital asset in a politician. In fact, all they [...]
Tim | June 18, 2010
I would like this blog to be informative. Wales will fit into Queensland 82.961308950914341 times… not including Queensland’s islands. http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A1066484 http://www.ga.gov.au/education/geoscience-basics/dimensions/area-aus-states-territories.jsp http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_the_area_of_Wales All part of the service.
Tim | June 13, 2010
I have heard it suggested that those who would have us stop using fossil fuels have, as part of their agenda, the destruction of “our way of life”. By “our way of life” they meant Western, free market, Capitalist economies. It is currently common practice for those of us in the echosphere to cherry pick [...]
Tim | June 9, 2010
Tony Robinson on Time Team in reference to “Dark Age”, Anglo-Saxon archeology: “The Thinking Man’s Dungeons and Dragons.”
Tim | June 9, 2010
There are a lot of estimates being tossed about and it is hard to get a grip on the implications. One went like this: “one Exxon Valdez every two and a half to five days. And we’re on day 50.” Very disturbing. There is a precedent for this sort of thing in the Gulf of [...]
Tim | June 5, 2010
All the crude oil pouring into the Gulf of Mexico was going to be cracked and then burned and end up in the air as various gases; 12,000 to 100,000 barrels a day apparently. It is a reminder of the rate at which we are converting the carbon that was sequestered underground over the millions [...]
Tim | June 3, 2010
For roughly 190,000 years as we spread ourselves across the planet, the elements of our diet that were difficult to come by were sugars, salt and fats. When we did find them it was important to take maximum advantage of the opportunity. These days we can provide ourselves with endless amounts of these but we [...]
Tim | June 3, 2010
Predicting the future is an amusing diversion with a long tradition. It can also be a bit frustrating because certain things which you would like to see, are going to happen after you have ceased investing in your own biological maintenance. A very important trick is not to bother giving a time frame to the [...]