Adding To The Reading List...

Education Reform

Dear Karl, Scott, Daniel, and John : The Future You Predicted Seems Right On Schedule

What If They All Took Art?

Isaac Asimov on the Thrill of Lifelong Learning, Science vs. Religion, and the Role of Science Fiction in Advancing Society

Asimov then considers how computers would usher in this profound change in learning and paints the outline of a concept that Clay Shirky would detail and term “cognitive surplus” two decades later:

Science, not silence...

Science is more than a discipline, it’s a belief system.  It’s a way of looking at the world in wonder with insatiable curiosity.  Scientists value rationality.  They have a healthy sense of skepticism, they are critical thinkers.  They are using their time and energy to understand the world and make it a better place.  

They deal in evidence and facts.

Not politics and lies. 

I am THRILLED to hear that scientists are hearing the same call to action that many other groups are answering in these unsettling times...

The March for Science is a celebration of our passion for science and a call to support and safeguard the scientific community. Recent policy changes have caused heightened worry among scientists, and the incredible and immediate outpouring of support has made clear that these concerns are also shared by hundreds of thousands of people around the world. Mischaracterization of science as a partisan issue, which has given policymakers permission to reject overwhelming evidence, is a critical and urgent matter. It is time for people who support scientific research and evidence-based policies to take a public stand and be counted.

ON APRIL 22, 2017, WE WALK OUT OF THE LAB AND INTO THE STREETS.

We are scientists and science enthusiasts. We come from all races, all religions, all gender identities, all sexual orientations, all socioeconomic backgrounds, all political perspectives, and all nationalities. Our diversity is our greatest strength: a wealth of opinions, perspectives, and ideas is critical for the scientific process. What unites us is a love of science, and an insatiable curiosity. We all recognize that science is everywhere and affects everyone.

Science is often an arduous process, but it is also thrilling. A universal human curiosity and dogged persistence is the greatest hope for the future. This movement cannot and will not end with a march. Our plans for policy change and community outreach will start with marches worldwide and a teach-in at the National Mall, but it is imperative that we continue to celebrate and defend science at all levels - from local schools to federal agencies - throughout the world.

#sciencemarch

MarchofScience.com

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See also my del.icio.us links or my flipboards or many of the content/curation pages on my weebly site...  in particular though, one of the greatest scientists of all times comes to mind (Post: Carl Sagan)

And that includes politicians!!   In one of my favorite videos of Carl, he speaks about  science, politics, and skepticism (here’s the short clip on that).

Op-Ed: Why we need scientists to run for public office now - via Ars Technica

Which is why it’s also exciting to see groups encouraging scientists to run for office.... 

We are members of the STEM Community, grassroots supporters, and political activists committed to bring innovation to Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education, aggressively advocate for real solutions to Climate Change and elect more STEM trained candidates to public office.

314Action.org

Update

Sensing New Threats, Scientists Entertain Political Ambitions

Why I’m Marching for Science

In Age of Trump, Scientists Show Signs of a Political Pulse

A lot of Americans don’t know a thing scientist.  We need to fix that

Excerpt:   This is the battle for the legitimacy of science, a battle we helped create because we still haven’t figured out how to show people what we do, why we do it, and why it’s important.  So we’ll march. And then we have to get to work. Going forward, we have to be stewards. We have to share without condescension and be patient and helpful as people balance uncomfortable truths. We have to integrate into our communities as voices on the ground. We’re people who care about the health and well-being of the human race. That’s why we sequester ourselves in our labs working for cures, or in front of computers trying to understand weather patterns, or out in the ocean, gathering samples of water, fish, and plants. But we have to do a better job of communicating if we want the default to be evidence-based policy for us, the people, and not for profit. I hope it’s not too late to reverse our failings.

Gotta keep positive...

Obama Reckons with a Trump Presidency David Remnick via The New Yorker

Bernie Sanders: Where We Go From Here  Matt Taibbi via Rolling Stone

A Mathematician's Perspective on the Divide Vi Hart via YouTube

(btw, see Parable of the Polygons:  A Playable post on the Shape of Society by Vi Hart and Nicky Case)

Scientists are frantically copying U.S. climate data, fearing it might vanish under Trump via The Washington Post

Talking Back to Hate Speech, Explained. via Bill Moyers & Company

Get up, Stand up

Your Guide to the sprawling New anti-Trump Resistance Movement

These are some of the resources from this wonderful article along with other helpful resources I have found online.

Indivisible

A practical guide for resisting the Trump agenda... Former congressional staffers reveal best practices for making Congress listen

5 Calls

Spend 5 minutes, make 5 calls.Calling is the most effective way to influence your representative.

Resistance Manual

Open-source platform to harness the collective power of the people to resist the impact of a Trump presidency and to continue to make progress in our communities. Already, thousands of pieces of content have been contributed to the site from people all over the country, helping to keep communities informed and ready for the work ahead.

Also see

Pussyhat Project

Movement Match

#MarchforScience

#ResistTrumpTuesdays

Town Hall Project- Google Spreadsheet with upcoming events/town hall meetings of appearances made by representatives

What to do when you’re so overwhelmed by the Trump presidency you can barely move

It Seems to Me:  What Young Women May Not Know

What the Fuck Just Happened Today

Week 12: Experts in authoritarianism advise to keep a list of things subtly changing around you, so you’ll remember. (see links to previous weeks at bottom of the post)

My previous post:  Science not Silence

What’s going on?

Trending on Twitter today... #OATHKEEPERS ferguson

What???

Oath Keepers and the Age of Treason via Mother Jones

Oath Keepers: The heavily armed white vigilantes in Ferguson, explained via Vox

“The sky calls to us. If we do not destroy ourselves, we will one day venture to the stars.” -CS

Reading Stephen Hawking’s opinion piece in The Guardian today made me think again of Sagan...  Specifically, the Pale, Blue Dot and his last interview with Charlie Rose...  if you’re familiar with either then it will be no surprise why I had to choose a Carl Sagan quote as the title of this post...  

There’s a lot to unpack in Stephen Hawking’s opinion piece in The Guardian today...  his words tie together so many themes that you will find in my online collections and things I share...   

“This is the most dangerous time for our planet” 

Sounds pretty dire, huh?  But at the end of the day I agree that there’s hope... 

One Last Thought (via my page on space/perspective)

“I really believe that if the political leaders of the world could see their planet from a distance of 100,000 miles their outlook could be fundamentally changed. That all-important border would be invisible, that noisy argument silenced. The tiny globe would continue to turn, serenely ignoring its subdivisions, presenting a unified facade that would cry out for unified understanding, for homogeneous treatment. The earth must become as it appears: blue and white, not capitalist or Communist; blue and white, not rich or poor; blue and white, not envious or envied.” — Michael Collins, Gemini 10 & Apollo 11 astronaut

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ps

Who is CS?  Carl Sagan of course...  I recently posted about him because it was Cal Sagan day a few weeks ago...  funny enough, he also came up today in a discussion at work in reference to the recent post about his course notes, course materials, and more being available in an online Library of Congress collection...  check out the links for more information and food for thought...  

Since the time I was in elementary school I wanted to become a marine biologist to study and swim with sharks.  Next summer I’m planning a trip to Australia and for my 40th birthday, *this* is what I plan on doing....  Check out the video here.  #dreamvacation

Great Whites circling the “ghost cage” video.  This was pretty amazing and would totally love to do this, but with a door that stayed closed!

psychopath