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Recent Posts
- Is shale gas a major driver of recent increase in global atmospheric methane? Not according to the most recent observational and satellite studies
- Why political demands we radically speed up decarbonization represent wishful thinking
- On the Channel 4 News video – Uncovered: Canada’s Dirty Oil Secret – An embarrassing hit piece full of errors and falsehoods
- The Green Party’s “Mission Possible” a cool name for a policy proposal that is not ready for prime time.
- Why Confounding Variables Matter – On that UVic study attributing the 2017 Extreme Fire Season to Climate Change
Top Posts & Pages
- Is shale gas a major driver of recent increase in global atmospheric methane? Not according to the most recent observational and satellite studies
- Debunking more misinformation about the Trans Mountain Pipeline Expansion project. Some simple facts about bitumen, heavy oil, and Asian Markets.
- On the Channel 4 News video - Uncovered: Canada's Dirty Oil Secret - An embarrassing hit piece full of errors and falsehoods
- About
- On Southern Resident Killer Whales and the Trans Mountain Expansion Project
- Debunking another CCPA anti-LNG article, this time in the Globe and Mail - now with Marc Lee response
- On the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives' bad science about BC LNG emissions
- Deconstructing the 100% Wind, Water and Sunlight scenarios – Part III Issues with energy storage
- On Carbon Dioxide Toxicity
- On RCP8.5 and "the Business as Usual" Scenario - Different beasts not to be confused
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Category Archives: Chemistry and Toxicology
How understanding Type I and Type II errors and p-values helps in assessing the conclusions of the Ramazzini Institute 13-week pilot study on Glyphosate
As regular followers of this blog know, my graduate research involved developing systems to allow data collected by researchers to be evaluated for reliability and made available for subsequent re-use by other researchers. I carried out my research in an … Continue reading
A layman’s guide to the behaviour of diluted bitumen in a marine spill
Having listened to the arguments for and against the Energy East and the Trans Mountain Expansion (TMX) projects one of the things that really struck me was the low quality of the scientific knowledge used in the debates. In particular, … Continue reading
On Carbon Dioxide Toxicity
The other evening I became engaged in a fascinating discussion (for me) with a climate skeptic on the topic of carbon dioxide, specifically whether it was “toxic” or not. After that discussion I committed to do a write-up on the … Continue reading
Posted in Chemistry and Toxicology, Risk, Uncategorized
17 Comments
On chemical scare-mongering and science communication, it’s BPA’s turn this time
I have written numerous blog posts describing the miscommunication of human health risks posed by chemistry and chemicals; covering topics from gypsy-moth spray to synthetic soccer fields. Frankly the fact that I have an entire section of this blog dedicated … Continue reading
Posted in Chemistry and Toxicology, Risk, Uncategorized
4 Comments
A cautionary tale about disconnecting theory from data in data analyses
In the modern era a new breed of scientist has emerged on the scene: data analysis specialists. Similarly there is a new breed of journalist called “data journalists” with my favourite being Chad Skelton, formerly of the Vancouver Sun. These … Continue reading
Posted in Chemistry and Toxicology, Uncategorized
6 Comments
On poor science communication in the media: a case study on the flu vaccine
This morning I was directed to a blog post by Bill Tieleman in The Tyee. The post dealt with the flu vaccine and was titled Time to End Expensive, Ineffective Forced Flu Shots. This is the latest of his, now … Continue reading
Posted in Canadian Politics, Chemistry and Toxicology, Risk, Uncategorized
5 Comments
Don’t fear the soccer pitch – on synthetic turf fields and risk communication
So my twitter feed exploded again. This time it was about the risks of synthetic turf fields to the kids in our soccer organization. The basis for this furor was a series of reports in The Province, CBC etc…. apparently … Continue reading
Posted in Chemistry and Toxicology
6 Comments
