{"id":863,"date":"2008-07-10T20:41:15","date_gmt":"2008-07-11T01:41:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/?p=863"},"modified":"2008-07-10T20:42:53","modified_gmt":"2008-07-11T01:42:53","slug":"maybe-some-science-would-be-useful-in-this-situation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/archives\/2008\/07\/10\/maybe-some-science-would-be-useful-in-this-situation\/","title":{"rendered":"Maybe some <em>science<\/em> would be useful in this situation?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><object width=\"425\" height=\"344\"><param name=\"movie\" value=\"http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/v\/iT-lxXsrgaE&#038;hl=en&#038;fs=1\"><\/param><param name=\"allowFullScreen\" value=\"true\"><\/param><\/object><\/p>\n<p>Hmmm&#8230;  Applying vaunted American know-how to find new solutions to the problem of energy independence?  What an odd, odd thought, especially when McCain supports <a href=\"http:\/\/scienceblogs.com\/deepseanews\/2008\/07\/the_deep_sea_is_finally_a_fact.php?utm_source=networkbanner&#038;utm_medium=link\">a tiny, slow band-aid that &#8230; well &#8230; won&#8217;t really help at all<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>We were in Fargo a few days ago buying a car.  We sold our one and only car when we went abroad, and are currently on borrowed wheels.  There was serious discussion of not even getting a car, or perhaps leasing a car for the winter months while going without a petrol powered vehicle in the summer when we can bike around town.  In the end, though, we decided to go ahead and buy a shiny blue Honda Fit.  (This is the second time we&#8217;ve bought the exact same car as my sister a year or two after she bought hers.  We&#8217;re not very original, I&#8217;m afraid.  That, and my sister rocks!)<\/p>\n<p>The Honda dealer said that the demand for Civics, hybrids, and Fits has been <em>really<\/em> high, and they&#8217;ve had periods where they haven&#8217;t had <em>any<\/em> Civics to show people, including <em>used<\/em> ones!  (And this is North Dakota, where I suspect trucks have long out-numbered compacts.)  Given that most people won&#8217;t keep a car for all of the 7 years it will be before we see any of the off-shore oil from McCain&#8217;s proposal, Obama&#8217;s plan seems to be much more in touch with the mood of the populace.<\/p>\n<p>What I&#8217;d <em>really<\/em> like is for the U.S. people (and government) to realize that there&#8217;s real value in basic scientific research, and understand that kind of research is going to have to be an important part of any solution to the current energy and climate problems.<\/p>\n<p>While in Fargo we also bought Sub-Evil a new bike, and will probably buy a new bike for WeatherGirl in the next week or two.  This, combined with the fact that mine is getting a substantial tune-up at the moment, means we&#8217;ll all be on two spiffy wheels as much as possible, at least when the weather allows.<\/p>\n\n\t<div class=\"st-post-tags \">\n\tTags: <a href=\"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/archives\/tag\/bicycles\/\" title=\"bicycles\">bicycles<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/archives\/tag\/cars\/\" title=\"cars\">cars<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/archives\/tag\/energy\/\" title=\"energy\">energy<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/archives\/tag\/politics\/\" title=\"Politics\">Politics<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/archives\/tag\/research\/\" title=\"Research\">Research<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/archives\/tag\/science\/\" title=\"Science\">Science<\/a><br \/><\/div>\n\n\n\t<h4>Related posts<\/h4>\n\t<ul class=\"st-related-posts\">\n\t<li><a href=\"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/archives\/2008\/04\/01\/educations-an-investment-not-an-expense\/\" title=\"Education&#8217;s an <em>investment<\/em>, not an <em>expense!<\/em> (1 Apr 08)\">Education&#8217;s an <em>investment<\/em>, not an <em>expense!<\/em><\/a> (4)<\/li>\n\t<li><a href=\"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/archives\/2008\/08\/10\/youd-almost-think-women-were-important\/\" title=\"You&#8217;d almost think women were important (10 Aug 08)\">You&#8217;d almost think women were important<\/a> (1)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Hmmm&#8230; Applying vaunted American know-how to find new solutions to the problem of energy independence? What an odd, odd thought, especially when McCain supports a tiny, slow band-aid that &#8230; well &#8230; won&#8217;t really help at all. We were in Fargo a few days ago buying a car. We sold our one and only car &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/archives\/2008\/07\/10\/maybe-some-science-would-be-useful-in-this-situation\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;Maybe some <em>science<\/em> would be useful in this situation?&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0},"categories":[13,15,28],"tags":[40,41,147,865,864,866],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p90sy-dV","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":false,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":747,"url":"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/archives\/2007\/12\/13\/no-i-really-do-think-we-need-a-science-debate\/","url_meta":{"origin":863,"position":0},"title":"No, I really do think we need a science debate","author":"Nic McPhee","date":"13 Dec 07","format":false,"excerpt":"Yesterday I posted a somewhat knee-jerk vote in favor of the idea of a science debate. Poking a little at the enormous lists of blog posts on this topic that A Blog Around The Clock has collected, one finds that while most people are definitely in favor, some people aren't\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Politics&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Politics","link":"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/archives\/category\/politics\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":690,"url":"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/archives\/2007\/11\/12\/some-must-see-tv-tomorrow-night-for-those-in-the-us\/","url_meta":{"origin":863,"position":1},"title":"Some must see TV tomorrow night (for those in the U.S.)","author":"Nic McPhee","date":"12 Nov 07","format":false,"excerpt":"As has been noted elsewhere by many (e.g., PeeZed), tomorrow night (Tuesday, 13 Nov) PBS is airing Judgement Day. This is a Nova program covering in considerable detail the ins and outs of the trial two years ago in Dover, Pennsylvania, that was, at its heart, about whether \"intelligent design\"\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Education&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Education","link":"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/archives\/category\/education\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":824,"url":"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/archives\/2008\/04\/01\/educations-an-investment-not-an-expense\/","url_meta":{"origin":863,"position":2},"title":"Education&#8217;s an investment, not an expense!","author":"Nic McPhee","date":"1 Apr 08","format":false,"excerpt":"Just did a pile o' dishes and listened to a SciAm podcast featuring the remarks of Robert Rosner (head of Argonne National Laboratory). The short version is that science (and, I would argue, education in general) is a matter of necessity plus vision. First, science is not a luxury, but\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Education&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Education","link":"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/archives\/category\/education\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":786,"url":"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/archives\/2008\/01\/30\/techcrunch-endorses-obama-and-mccain\/","url_meta":{"origin":863,"position":3},"title":"TechCrunch endorses Obama and McCain","author":"Nic McPhee","date":"30 Jan 08","format":false,"excerpt":"In a well written and thoughtful endorsement that (not surprisingly) focuses on tech related issues, they've gone for Obama and McCain (with a strong preference for Obama between the two). Obviously technical issues aren't the only important issues facing the country, and silicon valley tech issues aren't necessarily always the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Computing&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Computing","link":"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/archives\/category\/computing\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":545,"url":"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/archives\/2007\/04\/27\/chickens-and-egss-in-energy-policy\/","url_meta":{"origin":863,"position":4},"title":"Chickens and eggs in energy policy","author":"Nic McPhee","date":"27 Apr 07","format":false,"excerpt":"In one of my classes we've been discussing energy consumption, and the pros and cons of using tools like large gas taxes to help control consumption. One of my students just posted a link to a piece that predicts that we're looking at $4\/gallon gas this summer in the U.S.,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Education&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Education","link":"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/archives\/category\/education\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":770,"url":"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/archives\/2008\/01\/10\/we-have-to-help-them-understand-science-matters\/","url_meta":{"origin":863,"position":5},"title":"We have to help them understand:  Science matters!","author":"Nic McPhee","date":"10 Jan 08","format":false,"excerpt":"I highly recommend \"Science, delayed\" over on Science- Progress.org. It's a short, clear case by Chris Mooney for how seriously messed up the U.S. Congress is when it comes to science, and how important it is for us all to speak up. The short version is the the Office of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Education&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Education","link":"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/archives\/category\/education\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/863"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=863"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/863\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=863"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=863"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/UnhinderedByTalent.com\/Phi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=863"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}