90 Billion People, 1 Planet?

This post from Andrew Revkin over at Dot Earth (one of my favorite blogs) gives a great example of the "doomsayer" Paul Ehrlich-type population point of view vs. the Paul Simon-type "cornucopian" view. Even has a video clip from each...

I try to be an optimist, but I can't get away from what Garrett Hardin said about Simon and his cornucopian world-view: "Simon really should have taken an elementary math course before he said anything about the consequences of the human population."

"In hindsight, we screwed up,"

N.C. Farmers Battle Herbicide-Resistant Weeds

"The Palmer amaranth can withstand withering heat and lengthy droughts, produces thousands of hardy seeds and possesses a root system that sucks nutrients away from crops. If left alone, it would take over a corn or soybean field in one year. Now, a strain has developed a resistance to glyphosate, among the most effective and widely used herbicides, commonly known as Roundup." Click here for the rest of the article...

Everything I need to know I learned from Star Wars

Love this quote from E.O. Wilson. I've heard him say something like it, but never the Star Wars analogy:

"Our civilization is mirrored in “Star Wars.” Our emotions are still Stone Age, our institutions are medieval and our technical ability is godlike. When you put those three together you have a very dangerous situation."

The full interview is at Bloomerg.com.

Pope's Call for Financial Ethics includes Environmental Ethics

From the AP:

"At the same time, [Pope Benedict XVI] demanded that industrialized nations reduce their energy consumption, both to better care for the environment — "God's gift to everyone" — and to let the poorer have access to energy resources.

'One of the greatest challenges facing the economy is to achieve the most efficient use — not abuse — of natural resources, based on a realization that the notion of 'efficiency' is not value-free,' he wrote."

Genes, Memes and "Temes"

Whoa! This one will make you think. Are humans just machines that help memes replicate themselves? Blackmore discusses how ideas replicate themselves from brain to brain, and that the next stage of "replicator" on earth (the first being genes, the second, memes) is the "teme," which is spreading itself via technology. And they are making great use of human brains to do it. (Does she always match her hair to her outfit?)

Satanic Blob Creature Menaces North Carolina

That has to be the best headline in the ongoing saga of the Raleigh sewer blob (It's from the UK's Register).

This story from News 14 Carolina is probably the best so far as to what it might actually be and how the video came about.

It's noteworthy that with all the big local, national and international news stories this week, that the sewer blob topped may news sites "most viewed" story lists. Maybe it's proof of biophilia--our innate connection to living things, or maybe we just like wierd stuff...

E.O Wilson on "Wilson's Law"

Dr. Wilson talks about his rather simple but brilliant idea on how we can preseve biodiversity for future generations. Only E.O could call it "Wilson's Law" and still seem modest.