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davieG

Technology, Science and the Environment.

By davieG, in General Chat

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leicsmac

leicsmac

Posted
Posted
7 hours ago, blabyboy said:

Thank you. That works for part of the article.

 

I guess my question back to you would be which horse to back? The authoritarian censoring one, the underfunded one, the one we can't join because we're not fully signed up to their group?

 

There are some points in that article which I think are moot. Getting together for example is easily mitigated by technology and there are plenty of places to share ideas and comment on others.

 

The jobs side, we've already seen the EU trying to entice US scientists over the water with a steady brain drain.

 

Money is being invested by more and more private investors too across different sectors.

 

Maybe I'm more optimistic here, I don't think the US will cut all grants and subsidies, they may dip for sure, but Trump is not going to get away with eradicating it all, there is too much pork in the science funding barrel that senators rely on for that to happen.

Good. Then absolutely don't go to archive.is and enter in the address of the article above for the rest of it then :D

 

As you intimate, there's no real good choices here, but perhaps the best bad choice is swallowing a bit of pride and getting closer ties on this matter with the EU and the Commonwealth nations. I will say though, authoritarian as they are, at least alignment with the Chinese on this particular matter may end up being a necessity to maintain civilisation as it is. 

 

Hopefully other places will pick up the slack that the US is leaving, but I see no reason whatsoever to believe that the current administration are going to do anything other than take a buzzsaw to science R and D (other than that which serves their interests, read; can be used to directly harm people) and a few senators squabbling about pork barrel spending isn't going to stop him, he's shown already that he's both able and willing to replace such senators that don't carry out his will with those that do. 

blabyboy

blabyboy

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, leicsmac said:

... and a few senators squabbling about pork barrel spending isn't going to stop him, he's shown already that he's both able and willing to replace such senators that don't carry out his will with those that do. 

Trump doesn't appoint senators to committees, they are appointed by their peers. The senators for Texas and Alabama seem to have been robust in making sure the space based industries remain and are funded for their constituencies.

leicsmac

leicsmac

Posted
Posted
4 minutes ago, blabyboy said:

Trump doesn't appoint senators to committees, they are appointed by their peers. The senators for Texas and Alabama seem to have been robust in making sure the space based industries remain and are funded for their constituencies.

But he does appear to be able to choose if those senators are elected or re-elected in the first place. Hence all the noise about primarying those representatives that don't follow his agenda to the letter. 

leicsmac

leicsmac

Posted
Posted

Anyhow, in more science related news, not much of it good again:

 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/clynre7leyjo

 

An $88m (£65m) satellite designed to detect releases of the planet-warming gas methane from oil and gas production, has been lost in space in a major setback for climate efforts.

The MethaneSat satellite which had backing from Google and billionaire Jeff Bezos, was launched only last year aboard an Elon Musk SpaceX rocket.

It was meant to collect data for five years on sources of the powerful greenhouse gas, which is responsible for nearly a third of human-induced warming, to help curtail the worst offenders.

The Environment Defense Fund, the NGO which oversees the satellite, said that communication was lost ten days ago and is currently undertaking an investigation into what happened.

 

Space is always difficult. 

  • Like 1
leicsmac

leicsmac

Posted
Posted

In the meantime...

 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cwyelx3x5k0o

 

A major search and rescue operation is continuing through the night in Texas after flash floods killed at least 24 people and left many girls missing from a Christian summer camp.

There was little warning as the Guadalupe River rose 26 feet (7.9m) in less than an hour and flooding that followed swept away mobile homes, vehicles and holiday cabins where people were spending the 4 July weekend.

Rescue crews are still searching for up to 25 children who were among the 750 girls attending the Camp Mystic just outside the town of Kerrville 104km (64.0 miles) north-west of San Antonio.

A state of emergency has been declared in several counties where several roads have been washed away and phone lines are down.

US President Donald Trump called the tragedy "shocking" and "terrible" as the White House pledged additional assistance.

 

That's pretty damn awful.

Zear0

Zear0

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, blabyboy said:

DOH! 

Think I need to return this neuralink implant.

 

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/record-breaking-results-bring-fusion-power-closer-to-reality/?utm_source=tldrnewsletter

Can expect to see quite a few of these stories in the coming years.  A lot of these projects kicked off at a similar time and are approaching end of life.  The operators were always reluctant to use too much, if any fuel, during trials as they didn't want activation of the wall.  Now they're getting near the end, they can really see how effective the technology is.  Exciting times.

leicsmac

leicsmac

Posted
Posted

And I would bet this is far from the only research establishment where something like this is occurring. 

 

The damage being done to scientific progress right now is unconscionable. 

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leicsmac

leicsmac

Posted
Posted
5 minutes ago, blabyboy said:

Maybe the NIH have decided this is the better way?

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/07/250702214148.htm

I'm not sure exactly what the US NIH would have to do with a Swedish institution working with Chinese patients (particularly when the reason for hanging the above researchers out to dry was stated in relative black and white), but it is good to see that other places are carrying on while the US lags.  

leicsmac

leicsmac

Posted
Posted
9 hours ago, blabyboy said:

The first message says that the grant was to study gene therapy for hearing loss.

... and the study referenced has (apparently) zero to do with US research participation or benefit, so I'm unsure why it could be used as an example of the US behaving positively towards scientific research and progress in this case. 

blabyboy

blabyboy

Posted
Posted (edited)
12 hours ago, leicsmac said:

... and the study referenced has (apparently) zero to do with US research participation or benefit, so I'm unsure why it could be used as an example of the US behaving positively towards scientific research and progress in this case. 

I was making the point (perhaps too subtly) that the grant was cut because it was researching into a general area where another party has found the possible solution, so it would make good economic sense to cut the grant and push the money elsewhere. There is a benefit to not pushing money into a losing bet, albeit not for those in the grant programme affected.

 

So it's economics making the decision here over anything else. 

 

I'm not making any point that it's an example of positive attitude towards scientific research.

 

Edited by blabyboy
leicsmac

leicsmac

Posted
Posted
On 09/07/2025 at 19:46, blabyboy said:

I was making the point (perhaps too subtly) that the grant was cut because it was researching into a general area where another party has found the possible solution, so it would make good economic sense to cut the grant and push the money elsewhere. There is a benefit to not pushing money into a losing bet, albeit not for those in the grant programme affected.

 

So it's economics making the decision here over anything else. 

 

I'm not making any point that it's an example of positive attitude towards scientific research.

 

The above would be true if it were guaranteed that other solution would work and be beneficial to everyone. I don't think either of those things can be guaranteed. 

 

Additionally, the reason above is likely the most charitable reason why such a project would be canned and I'm trying to see a reason why this administration deserves anywhere near that level of trust in the field of science (or in any area of it that doesn't involve killing and or hurting people, anyway).

 

On 09/07/2025 at 19:58, blabyboy said:

Another first for UK if true. Fusion reactor generating more fuel than needed to start the reaction using Tritium.

 

https://interestingengineering.com/energy/uk-firm-commercial-tritium-breakthrough?utm_source=tldrnewsletter

 

CEO also has a great name.

 

Probably looking for a buyout in a year's time and it'll go overseas 😔

Getting more good news about fusion by the day, it seems. Great to hear, perhaps one day soon we'll get to the end of that long road. 

leicsmac

leicsmac

Posted
Posted

On topic, that a man like this, prepared to even entertain this kindof conspiracist nonsense, heads up the primary US agency for managing the environment is one of the many reasons I have the opinion about them that I do:

 

 

FB_IMG_1752216544471.jpg

blabyboy

blabyboy

Posted
Posted

Geo-engineering goes on, just not via contrails. There has been some supposition that aircraft could contribute to geo-engineering due to hazing of sunlight caused as the trail dissipates, but I have not read, or heard of a report that definitely confirms any geo-engineering via contrails results in a successful/ probable manipulation of the weather system.

Zear0

Zear0

Posted
Posted
25 minutes ago, leicsmac said:

On topic, that a man like this, prepared to even entertain this kindof conspiracist nonsense, heads up the primary US agency for managing the environment is one of the many reasons I have the opinion about them that I do:

 

 

FB_IMG_1752216544471.jpg

It doesn't end today Lee. 

  • Like 1
leicsmac

leicsmac

Posted
Posted
8 minutes ago, blabyboy said:

Geo-engineering goes on, just not via contrails. There has been some supposition that aircraft could contribute to geo-engineering due to hazing of sunlight caused as the trail dissipates, but I have not read, or heard of a report that definitely confirms any geo-engineering via contrails results in a successful/ probable manipulation of the weather system.

I wonder what the odds are that Mr Zeldin will come up with this kind of reasonable response and consider the case closed, or that those who buy into these ideas will leave it at that?

 

8 minutes ago, Zear0 said:

It doesn't end today Lee. 

Not when you have the inmates running the asylum, right. 

leicsmac

leicsmac

Posted
Posted

On the topic of vaccines elsewhere:

 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cy0w1p0wq87o

 

The US attorney general has ordered charges to be dropped against a doctor accused of destroying Covid-19 vaccines worth $28,000 (£20,742), distributing fake vaccination record cards, and giving children saline shots instead of the vaccine at their parents' request.

Pam Bondi said Dr Michael Kirk Moore Jr. "gave his patients a choice when the federal government refused to do so". He had been indicted by the Justice Department under the Biden administration in 2023.

The plastic surgeon was already on trial in Utah, where he had pleaded not guilty to all charges including conspiracy to defraud the US.

The acting US Attorney for the district of Utah, Felice John Viti, filed to dismiss the charges on Saturday, saying this was "in the interests of justice".

Dr Moore was accused of providing fraudulently completed vaccination certificates for more than 1,900 vaccine doses, the US Attorney's office in Utah said in 2023.

 

It would appear that harmful ignorance is now government approved. 

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