I’m mainly blogging at the Guardian at the moment. Today I posted a piece on the fossil fuel disinvestment campaign, which has been rolling through US universities for a while. In essence, disinvestment is the opposite of investment, inviting people to think about how their money’s being used when they’re not using it themselves. There’s … Continue reading »
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“I’m a scientist. I shall be my own Minister for Science”
Via a mate who’s just read the new Thatcher biography by Charles Moore. On Thatcher, scientific advice and “the weather”: “Dr John Ashworth, the Chief Scientist, who worked within the Central Policy Review Staff, asked to see Mrs Thatcher shortly after she had arrived at No. 10. As he entered, the Prime Minister said: ‘Who … Continue reading »
Troll Below? Science policy below the line.
Some streetart on a bridge in Dublin I have an essay in James Wilsdon and Rob Doubleday’s collection: “Future directions for scientific advice in Whitehall” (downloadable for free). It’s an invitation for the various greats and goods of science policy to not only use social media to promote their ideas but to “go below the … Continue reading »
Dear British Sociological Association
Dear British Sociological Association, It’s your annual conference this week. Hope you’re having fun. I’ve only been once (2007). Honestly, the whole thing frustrated me a bit and, also because it’s so expensive, I’ve not been back. My main memory was a giant, embarrassing “eh” silence after Latour’s keynote, then sitting by the river with … Continue reading »
Sussex Occupy Bloomsbury
I took this photo outside the Institute of Education on Tuesday. Aside from the violent tone of the message, it was striking to this tag 55 miles away from the University of Sussex itself. There was more around Senate House and Birkbeck. I’d be interested to know if there are similar signs on other campuses … Continue reading »
How to be optimistic about climate change
Climate change is depressing. Really depressing. And yeah, I know the apocalypse is like sex because every generation thinks they’ve discovered it. But it does feel a bit end times. Properly end times. We maybe don’t admit this enough, but it really, really is. I think it is still possible to have hope though. Moreover, … Continue reading »
John Hayes MP and the bourgeois
Gove-themed streetart, Brighton. Our energy minister John Hayes seems to enjoy the word “bourgeois”. I don’t blame him, it’s a fun word to say. Back in October, he described the idea of onshore wind farms as “a bourgeois left article of faith based on some academic perspective”, arguing that “We need to understand communities’ genuine … Continue reading »
A Life of Galileo: What Brecht can teach us about the public ownership of science
This post first appeared on New Left Project. The central tourist strip of Stratford-upon-Avon is not the sort of place you expect to find much Marxism. It’s all a bit Ye Olde Costa Coffee, Anne Hathaway fudge, postcards, postcards, postcards and pink fridge magnets quoting As You Like It. The most subversive it gets is … Continue reading »
Captain Eco and the World of Tomorrow
My set the inaugural Green Showoff last night was also a chunk of my talk at the Story today, so I thought I’d post it here. I did my PhD on kids science books. When I tell people this, they often get a sort of “aww bless” expression on their faces. Patronising f*ckers. Written by … Continue reading »
Why “scientific literacy” is silly, again.
The prize of smugness for anyone who can correctly guess which event caused a friend to text me this last year. I spent an evening earlier this month doing some public engagement about public engagement. Or, talking about scientific literacy in a pub in Bloomsbury as part of the regular “Big Ideas” debates. If you … Continue reading »
