An Absurd “Plan”
Another of my letters-to-the-editor that will never be published, so you can read it here. This one was sent to Scientific American regarding their November 2009 issue.
In September 2006, you published a special issue on "Energy's Future" with a well-reasoned mix of articles on energy conservation, renewable energy, and nuclear power. I've referred to that issue frequently. It was a quality piece of work on a topic that is frequently demagogued.
Imagine my dismay, therefore, when this month's issue arrived [Read more...]
Posted October 25th, 2009, 2:35 pm EDT by stephenfleming
Stereotypes
I spent the ride into work pondering this Twitter exchange with Grayson Daughters. [Read more...]
Posted June 16th, 2009, 9:45 am EDT by stephenfleming
NSF and UAW – Separated at Birth?
With the United Auto Workers in the news lately, I happened to have a National Science Foundation grant proposal on my desk, and was struck by the similarities in their logos!
Coincidence? Deep dark conspiracy? Or a graphics artist reselling the same work to multiple clients?
Posted November 21st, 2008, 7:38 pm EST by stephenfleming
City of Atlanta Water Works
We complained that our tap water looked and tasted rusty. So, during a multi-year drought, here's what the City of Atlanta Water Works did about it... they sent out a guy in a truck to open up the fire hydrant on our street.
Wasted untold hundreds (thousands?) of gallons of water. Now the water coming out of our sinks is dirtier than ever.
We're drinking filtered water ourselves, and have bought a second water filter for the Cat Cave. Sad... Atlanta used to have some of the best tap water around. Now it's been filters and bottled water for us for years.
Posted November 11th, 2008, 7:36 pm EST by stephenfleming
Rules for Voting
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"If you are part of a society that votes, then do so. There may be no candidates and no measures you want to vote for ... but there are certain to be ones you want to vote against. By this rule you will rarely go wrong." —Robert A. Heinlein |
Posted November 4th, 2008, 4:49 pm EST by stephenfleming
My Letter to the Editor for “New Scientist” magazine
They probably won't publish this, so I'll put it here:
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To the Editors:
The premise of your special on growth in the 15 October 2008 issue is just plain wrong, and the wrongness starts in your lead editorial. http://tinyurl.com/4evh5e
You state that "we live on a planet with finite resources." But we also live in a solar system with eight planets, fifty moons, a million asteroids, [Read more...]
Posted November 1st, 2008, 2:31 am EDT by stephenfleming
Phi Beta Kappa
I got into a discussion about Georgia Tech academics the other day, when I mentioned how difficult the undergraduate curriculum was. The other person (who graduated from a state university that shall remain nameless) retorted with "Well, Tech doesn't even have a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa!"
That's true. We don't. And I started digging into why. [Read more...]
Posted October 18th, 2008, 3:13 am EDT by stephenfleming
Jim Wooten on Tech High
Just a quick link for those who may have missed it: http://www.ajc.com/print/content/printedition/2008/06/10/tuwooten.html.
Posted June 10th, 2008, 12:36 pm EDT by stephenfleming
Tech High School Graduation on Sunday!
What are you doing Sunday night?
If you're in Atlanta, and not spending the Memorial Day weekend on the beach, I'd like to invite you to the first-ever Tech High School graduation. [Read more...]
Posted May 22nd, 2008, 12:27 pm EDT by stephenfleming
Georgia Senate Bill 80
Okay, I'm going to talk about local politics for a bit. Those of you reading this outside of the state of Georgia can skip this post.
Georgia is a fabulous place to call home, but trying to grow high-tech businesses in the Deep South has a few challenges that you just don't encounter elsewhere in the country. One is the lack of local venture capital [Read more...]
Posted March 30th, 2008, 9:29 pm EDT by stephenfleming
