This article was originally posted on RealClearPolitics.
The surging popularity of Ted Cruz and the persistent support for Bernie Sanders illustrate that both the Republican and Democratic parties are facing an existential crisis. Indeed, both parties may be headed for a divorce, ushering in a new era of multi-party politics. Continue reading
This article was originally posted on RealClearScience.
Other than getting a major fact wrong, the worst possible feeling for a journalist is the gut-wrenching notion that all of one’s efforts are for naught. For me, it has become increasingly difficult to escape this dreadful feeling, given the state of politics in America. Continue reading
This article was originally posted on RealClearScience.
Imagine if Congress voted on whether or not to teach evolution and climate change in school. And imagine that 73% of Republicans voted against it. The backlash would be easy to predict: The national media, and science journalists in particular, would spend a week making somber declarations of impending educational and scientific collapse that would reverberate across the cosmos.
As it so happens, Congress did just vote on something of tremendous scientific importance: Biotechnology. And, as it so happens, 73% of Democrats voted against the bill. Yet, the national media remained deafeningly and hypocritically silent. Continue reading
This article was originally published on RealClearScience.
The Apocalypse is here.
Science writer Phil Plait’s worst nightmare came true. The Republicans won control of the U.S. Senate. What can we expect to happen? In Plait’s words, the Republicans will “put a cohort of science-deniers [sic] into positions of authority,” which “quite literally affects the future of humanity.” Why? Because, now, the United States will no longer be able to address climate change, “the single greatest threat we as a species face today.” Continue reading
The latest international exams — which show that students from the U.S. rank 21st and 26th in science and math, respectively — once again confirm a pattern that emerged in 1964 with the First International Mathematics Study: Compared with their counterparts abroad, American kids are decidedly mediocre. Read the rest at USA Today.