Category Archives: People

Original Fiction: “Conference” (final draft)

Posted on 20 January 2013 by josephshoer

I had been trying to sell this story for a while now, but was not successful. There’s a bit of a catch-22 to selling a short story for the first time: without any feedback from editors and readers, there is … Continue reading →

Posted in Graduate school, Original fiction, People, Science, Science Fiction, Space, The Cathedral Galaxy | 3 Comments

Antitechnocracy

Posted on 14 January 2012 by josephshoer

A reporter from This American Life did something interesting for today’s broadcast: she brought together a ninth-grade global warming skeptic and the executive director of the National Earth Science Teachers Association together in the show studio for a discussion. (Audio available here.) … Continue reading →

Posted in People, Science, Skepticism, Social commentary | Leave a comment

Atheist Vuvuzelas Making Noise in Texas

Posted on 7 December 2010 by josephshoer

I sometimes find myself a visitor to College Station, TX and have, over the course of those visits, made a few acquaintances. Today, I checked out an item from the Bryan/College Station local news that involved one such acquaintance: Keri … Continue reading →

Posted in People, Skepticism, Social commentary | Leave a comment

Disconnects

Posted on 8 November 2010 by josephshoer

Tonight, a friend of a friend came over to my apartment so we could all make chili together. During this process, we came to a point when we needed to defrost a bunch of ground beef. When I moved to … Continue reading →

Posted in Food, Gadgets, People, Science, Skepticism, Social commentary | 2 Comments

Good to See

Posted on 31 October 2010 by josephshoer

Jon Stewart, and the 215,000 ± 10% people who came with him, make me very happy for America. This clip was a desperately needed break from the political cycle that has been going on since the 2008 election season. These … Continue reading →

Posted in People, Politics, Skepticism, Social commentary | Leave a comment

Science vs Religion on The Daily Show

Posted on 10 July 2010 by josephshoer

Normally, I have great respect for Jon Stewart as an interviewer. On The Daily Show, he knows when to be serious and let his guests say their piece, but he’s also primarily a comedian rather than a journalist and so … Continue reading →

Posted in People, Science, Skepticism | 2 Comments

Impressions of Scientists: Before and After

Posted on 25 June 2010 by josephshoer

Ten years ago, a seventh-grade class did an intriguing project. The students drew pictures and wrote descriptions of what they thought scientists were like. Then the entire class visited Fermilab, a US accelerator physics lab. After the visit, the students … Continue reading →

Posted in People, Science, Social commentary | Leave a comment

In Which I Disagree with the Smartest Man on the Planet

Posted on 26 April 2010 by josephshoer

Stephen Hawking has been in the news recently for saying that aliens will likely be hostile to us poor Earthlings. In a series for the Discovery Channel the renowned astrophysicist said it was “perfectly rational” to assume intelligent life exists … Continue reading →

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Astronauts in space

Posted on 17 April 2010 by josephshoer

The Space Shuttle mission which just undocked from the International Space Station, STS-131, has beamed down from orbit some great photos of astronauts in space. This is a wonderful chance for us stuck planetside to remind ourselves that we have … Continue reading →

Posted in NASA, People, Science, Space, Uncategorized | 1 Comment

Scott Brown has failed his constituents

Posted on 22 March 2010 by josephshoer

Depending who you ask, freshman Senator Scott Brown got himself elected on a platform of populist rage against health care reform, a reaction of populist frustration with the health care reform process on Capitol Hill, or a flood of insurance-company … Continue reading →

Posted in People, Politics | 2 Comments