Category Archives: Policy

Where have all the STS’ers gone?

Posted on December 21, 2020 by ...and Then There's Physics

There’s a recent paper in Science and Technology Studies by Jaron Harambam called The Corona Truth Wars: Where Have All the STS’ers Gone When We Need Them Most? The topic is, fairly obviously, the current coronavirus pandemic, and the abstract … Continue reading →

Posted in Climate change, Environmental change, Philosophy for Bloggers, Policy, Research | Tagged , , , | 21 Comments

Climate change doesn’t work like that

Posted on November 17, 2020 by ...and Then There's Physics

A couple of years ago I wrote a post where I tried to explain why I thought climate change was a different kind of problem when compared to most of the other issues we might face today. I find it … Continue reading →

Posted in Climate change, Environmental change, ethics, Policy, Science | Tagged , , , , , | 69 Comments

Policy in the language of science

Posted on October 24, 2020 by ...and Then There's Physics

I was listening to the a Received Wisdom podcast. It’s a podcast by Shobita Parthasarathy and Jack Stilgoe, which I have written about before. At the beginning of the podcast, the hosts were discussing the Great Barrington Declaration, and Jack … Continue reading →

Posted in Policy, Politics, Science, Scientists | Tagged , , , , | 77 Comments

Understanding methane

Posted on September 26, 2020 by ...and Then There's Physics

There was a recent Conversation article about methane called Climate explained: methane is short-lived in the atmosphere but leaves long-term damage that caused a bit of a stir on Twitter. One way people assess the significance of different greenhouse gases, … Continue reading →

Posted in Climate change, Global warming, Policy, Research, The scientific method | Tagged , , , , , , , | 40 Comments

Matt Ridley – How Innovation Works

Posted on August 23, 2020 by ...and Then There's Physics

Despite having been a regular critic of Matt Ridley’s Lukewarmerism, I’ve just finished reading his new book How Innovation Works. I actually quite enjoyed the book and found it quite an easy read. Ridley is clearly a very convincing writer. … Continue reading →

Posted in Philosophy for Bloggers, Policy | Tagged , , , | 90 Comments

Deep Adaptation

Posted on July 20, 2020 by ...and Then There's Physics

Something I haven’t paid much attention to recently is the Deep Adaptation arguments. I think it originated with a paper by Jem Bendell. The reason it’s of current interest is because of a critique called the faulty science, doomism, and … Continue reading →

Posted in Climate change, ClimateBall, Philosophy for Bloggers, Policy | Tagged , , , , | 56 Comments

Across the lines

Posted on May 31, 2020 by ...and Then There's Physics

I haven’t really come across anything to write about recently. I’ve been thinking a bit about models and how they are used to inform decision making. I’ve been thinking a bit about the use of scientific advice. I also had … Continue reading →

Posted in advocacy, Personal, Philosophy for Bloggers, Policy, Politics | Tagged , | 20 Comments

The Imperial College code

Posted on May 16, 2020 by ...and Then There's Physics

The Imperial College code, the results from which are thought to have changed the UK government’s coronavirus policy, has been available for a while now on github. Since being made available, it’s received criticism from some quarters, as discussed by … Continue reading →

Posted in Policy, Research, Scientists, The scientific method | Tagged , , , , , , | 616 Comments

Sometimes it’s never good enough

Posted on March 30, 2020 by ...and Then There's Physics

I’ve, in the past, suggested that climate scientists could end up being criticised whatever happens. If the impact of climate change ends up being less severe than it could have been, climate scientists will probably be criticised for being alarmists. … Continue reading →

Posted in Philosophy for Bloggers, Policy, Politics, Scientists, The philosophy of science | Tagged , , , , , | 105 Comments