from the desk of Bob Siederer

Hello again Science Fans!

A month ago, if you had told me what was about to happen, I'd have said "no way, the year can't get stranger than it has been already".  Yet, here we are, with 500+ wildfires in the general area, a prolonged heat wave, and another round of dry thunderstorms headed our way.  And that's just locally.  In the Gulf of Mexico, two hurricanes are brewing at the same time! This is what it has taken to push the Coronavirus from the front pages.

Our hearts go out to those affected directly by the wild fires.  The complex of fires north of Santa Cruz has displaced thousands, destroyed the buildings at California's original State Park, and made simple breathing unsafe.  We've collected some sources of information to pass along:

CalFire Incident Maps and Status: Click on the Active Incidents bars for details on a particular fire.

from the desk of Herb Masters

Greetings Science Supporters,

I'm beginning to think that the reason it's getting so hot is that the astrophysicists and astronomers have been lying to us.  It seems pretty apparent that the reason it is getting so hot can only be because the earth is moving closer to the sun!  This must be because of the drag on the atmosphere by so many of the world's population wearing masks, making them less aerodynamic.  (just kidding!  Wave as we drift farther away!)

I can't come to grips with the idea that so many people insist on having their own "true understanding" of how the universe works and

from the desk of Herb Masters

Hello to all who think science is one of the best tools we have to understand, save, enhance the quality of life, and help improve this for every person of every color, religious belief, and geographic starting point.  I really didn't expect much change since I last wrote the SciSchmooze.  Willful covidnorance is still rampant.  I'm sure you have read, heard, and seen plenty of Covid-19 articles of doom and gloom as well as hopeful ones.  I'm not going to go on about it here, but at the end of this missive I will add a few links that I think are worth taking a look at and are a bit removed from the common media articles.

This week I have been pondering something a bit different than usual.  I think and I hope you at least mostly agree that science is the best tool we have for answering questions and solving problems.  However we are in an age where science is leading to so many technologies that people with skill can fool us. In a movie theatre (remember those?) we could watch a movie and suspend belief or doubt and enjoy being fooled into believing

from the desk of Meenakshi Prabhune

Hello fellow Sci-Schmoozers,

As we continue adjusting to our new normal and hoping to control the havoc created by SARS-Cov-2
virus, there is another battle that many of us have been fighting. Science supporters have always had
some resistance, but these are special times. The misinformation around COVID-19 is in abundance and
spreading like wildfire. Herb had also touched upon this issue in the past newsletters. While those that
are willfully ignoring evidence cannot be helped, I am finding even rational friends and relatives
genuinely confused by conflicting news and falling prey to fake news. One important reason is that them
not being familiar with the scientific details is not new, but even scientists still figuring out details of this
virus is complicating the situation further. As new data emerges, scientists are compelled to rectify
previous stances, which (for some people) might seem like contradicting and confusing information.
In such times, it is also hard to know what (and who) to believe. Here are my tips on how to identify real
news vs fake information:

-The most important step is to check the source. Is it a reliable, well-known news outlet? If not, has a
similar story been covered by trustworthy outlets? It is always a smoki

from the desk of Bob Siederer

Hello again Science Fans!

Let's start with news from the coronavirus world.  Why is it that people with contrarian views will latch onto the one published report that supports their position and ignore the many published reports that disagree, or outright refute it?  I guess people don't want to admit they were wrong.  The most visible example of this at the moment deals with the effectiveness of masks worn in public.  With views ranging from masks are ineffective to they cause CO2 poisoning, here's a case to prove that they do, indeed keep the disease from spreading.

I think another reason there's so much controversy is the way media are jumping on the latest news, including non-peer reviewed, preliminary research, some of which is later retracted.  Once out there, it takes on a life of its own and never leaves the internet.  The various remedies that have been promoted for COVID-19 since we first heard of it have covered quite a range of effectiveness.  Here's a good summary to bring you up to date on

from the desk of Herb Masters

Hello Fans of Science, Facts, and Reason

My apologies in advance but I find I must rant.

First off, I accept that the news and media can distort the scale of a problem.  Given that, there seems to be a significant number of people that seem to demonstrate a vast capacity for WILLFUL COVIDNORANCE.  I think this is a subset of willful ignorance.  It seems to be largely contained to a group of covidiots who are willing to put family and friends as well as coworkers at risk as well as themselves.  It doesn't seem to be as big of a problem here in the SF Bay Area and especially in San Mateo County where I live as it is in other parts of the state and country.  Let me be clear about one more thing.  I spent 25 years working in emergency services.  I treated every person I came into c

from the desk of Herb Masters

Greetings Science Supporters,

You can't say these aren't interesting times!  Let's, for a brief moment, look at the big picture.  It's not spring anymore!  There has been a lot going on that isn't related to the problems we are facing here on earth that is either uplifting or uplooking!  Even the news today casts a shadow over what we can enjoy in the universe and right here on good ol' planet Earth. 

Though I have to admit I haven't seen it yet, there is a great night show going on.  Neowise sounds like some sort of pseudointellectual slang

from the desk of David Almandsmith

Greetings from Southern California!
 
Yes, i escaped in my Prius with masks, hand sanitizer, two cats, and my partner, Carmen, to her brother's home in Carmensbad. I am pleased to report that even here, nearly everybody is wearing masks in public. With all the kerfuffle around mask wearing, just consider: in countries where it has been mandated, they have gone on to stomping the curve flat.

If you missed a major fireworks display on the 4th, you may have done your body a favor.

On July 6th, just 31 years ago, the first photograph of a red sprite was made, proving it was a real phenomenon; not understood, but real. Today they are fairly well understoo

from the desk of Bob Siederer

Hello again Science fans!

Summertime!  Just the word can evoke memories of fireworks, days at the pool or lake, family road trips, camps, food from the grill...I'm sure you can add to this list from your own memories.  More now than when I was a child, summer vacation may no longer mean time off from learning as there are many good opportunities for school aged children to further their education during the summers, especially in scientific areas.

UC Merced is starting a series of webinars aimed at middle and high school students and teachers this week.  You can see the full list here.  Seminars range from single to multi-day sessions and include some general topics on how to be ready for college in the STEM fields.

Of course, the coronavirus crisis has changed how we'll conduct ourselves this summer.  It is really disconcerting to see the number of cases rising so rapidly in some areas of the country that weren't initially that seriously affected.  I've pointed you to the

from the desk of Herb Masters

Welcome to Summer?

Where were you on Saturday, June 20, 2020 at 21:43 GMT?  Yes, it was another one of those amazing phenomena that you can't really sense without "tools".  You may have missed catching an annular eclipse today as well!  It's amazing how there always seems to be something amazing going on that science helps us understand, even when we humans are so engaged or distracted, depending on your point of view, by what is going on in our lives and the news.  I think most of the graduation ceremonies are over now.  I'd like to share what I think was one