Southern Fried Science

Help identify this mystery machine from the darkest recesses of our lab

February 28, 2011 Andrew Thaler 10 Comments

Science

While cleaning out our lab the other day, we discovered this mysterious piece of equipment buried deep within a cabinet. After querying several dozen scientists of different eras, we have determined only that it was manufactured in the early 20th century and no one has any idea what it is. The optics were made by Bausch and Lomb, the motor was made by Dunmore. We have a few guesses about its intended purpose.

This machine is massive, it weighs about 50 pounds and is forged from Bakelite and steel. The drum is clearly some kind of centrifuge and the optics point into the center of the spinning drum. No one has yet been willing to plug it in and turn it on. There are two patent numbers listed on the plate – patent # 1,648,369 and patent # 1,907,803.

Political Ecology at Home – Lessons from Abroad?

February 28, 2011February 22, 2011 Bluegrass Blue Crab

Uncategorized

Political ecology within the First World came from a gradual realization that the definition of the field did not only apply to exotic cultures abroad, but had resonance domestically. As first defined by Blaikie and Brookfield (1987), political ecology combines “the concerns of ecology and a broadly defined political economy. Together this encompasses the constantly shifting dialectic between society and land-based resources, and also within classes and groups within society itself” (17). Scholars returning from research in the Third World observed this shifting dialectic in their own countries, complete with struggles over power and access between sectors of society.

The first call to the political ecology community to consider applying their principles to the First World came from Louise Fortmann (1996) in her article “Bonanza! The unasked questions: Domestic land tenure through international lenses.” Although she admitted there are vast differences between home and abroad, she identifies six lessons from the international land tenure debate that could have traction in the United States: property as social process, customary tenures, common property and community management of resources, gender, the complexity of tenancy relationships, and land concentration.

Weekly dose of TED – Greg Stone: Saving the ocean one island at a time

February 25, 2011 Andrew Thaler

Uncategorized

Kiribati is perhaps one of the most remote countries in the world. Despite its distance from the sources of environmental degradation, it will probably be the very first country to be destroyed by climate change. Most of the country, a collection of small islands spanning an area almost as large as the United States, lies … Read More “Weekly dose of TED – Greg Stone: Saving the ocean one island at a time” »

SFS Gear Review: ExOfficio anti-microbial Underwear

February 24, 2011February 23, 2011 Andrew Thaler 3 Comments

Uncategorized

There’s a reason I wrote this free form poem, and that reason is Exoficio’s anti-bacterial boxer shorts. Yes, today we’re talking about underwear. Let’s face it, a bad pair of underpants can make a field season miserable, while a decent pair will make you, and everyone around you, much more comfortable. Life is messy, especially while doing field work.

Stem cell research, science policy, and President Bush’s book

February 24, 2011February 21, 2011 David Shiffman

Science

At the recommendation of my parents, I’ve started reading “Decision Points”, President Bush’s autobiography. I’ve enjoyed it more than I expected to. It paints a picture of a well-intentioned guy doing what he thought was right in tough circumstances and occasionally getting it wrong. I find this view of President Bush more appealing than either of the common liberal caricatures of him (those being either an evil genius trying to destroy the world or a bumbling idiot completely out of his depth).

Each chapter focuses on an important decision he made during his two-term Presidency. One of these concerned his stem cell research policy and made a few references to his policy towards science as a whole. Since liberals considered his science policies so bad that incoming-President Obama references “restoring science to it’s rightful place” in his inauguration speech, I was curious to hear President Bush’s side of the story.

Turtle science at the Archie Carr National Wildlife refuge

February 23, 2011February 23, 2011 David Shiffman

Conservation, Science

The high density of sea turtles at the Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge provides a wonderful opportunity for research, and a team from the University of Central Florida takes full advantage of it. They were kind enough to allow me to tag along.

Biodiversity Wednesday: Shortgrass Prairie

February 23, 2011February 23, 2011 Bluegrass Blue Crab

Uncategorized

The middle of America boasts some of the best soils in the world, making it “the breadbasket of America”, if not the world. However, that soil is both a blessing and a curse – native species of grasses and the birds, bugs, and bison that depended on the area have been pushed out in favor of human food production. The ecosystem of middle America looks today like miles upon miles of rows of corn and soy, not the shortgrass prairie that once inhabited the area.

State of the Field: Pay for that Particulate!

February 22, 2011February 22, 2011 Bluegrass Blue Crab

Uncategorized

kingston, tn fly ash spill (7) — What are the true costs of power? photo by author

Ever wonder why coal-fired power is so much cheaper than the alternatives? Coal-producing communities aren’t paid for their personal health impacts, the environment is not paid for streams turned acid, and mountains are not paid for their removal. More subtle costs are also passed on: rising rates of asthma from particulates in the air, introduction of malaria into previously unaffected areas from a warming world, and the relocation of whole countries due to sea level rise.

Pollution is a classic example of an economic externality – companies choosing not to sequester chemicals in their effluent pass the cost of pollution and remediation on to those downstream. Therefore the cost of production signaled by price does not represent the true cost of production. The contradiction is deeper, however, and forms one of the main critiques of capitalism – the “second contradiction of capitalism”. Capitalism relies on the continual growth of the market, costs determined by the raw material and labor inputs. However, these costs assume limitless availability of what Marx calls “conditions of production” – the infrastructure and environmental services that are required for production. These, however, are not limitless and therefore not cost-free. Rising costs will eventually outpace price and production will therefore cease (O’Connor 1998).

Shark Science Monday: Nick Dulvy talks about determining shark’s conservation status

February 21, 2011 David Shiffman 2 Comments

Conservation, Science

In this week’s edition of Shark Science Monday, Nick Dulvy, co-chair of the IUCN Shark Specialist Group, discusses how researchers determine the conservation status of shark species. If you have a question for Nick, leave it below and I’ll make sure he sees it.

Reader Survey: Who reads Southern Fried Science?

February 21, 2011 Andrew Thaler 6 Comments

Uncategorized

Introduction

Who are our readers? That is the question we wanted to answer at the beginning of this year. Are you scientists, students, or interested laypeople? Where are you from? What do you like and what don’t you like? Is anybody out there?

So last month we launched a survey to help us find out.